Carl Banks Quotations

Number one, Harry is very deserving, and number two, this is an honor that was long overdue. He played middle linebacker like a man among boys.

He was a man among boys. He was the guy who set the tone for toughness for our defense.

He was the standard for that position in that era.

He was a great player and a great team leader. Harry didn't back down from anybody or any challenge. He was very good ... now it's safe to say he was great, because he's finally in the Hall of Fame.

I think what they have going for them right now is great team defense. I think the whole is greater than the sum of its parts, because when you break down this defense you can probably find some deficiencies at each position. But collectively, they've been able to mask them by playing good team defense.

Most great championship defenses are very intimidating. When you look at the (2000) Baltimore Ravens , the (1985) Chicago Bears , the (1986) New York Giants , they were teams that were very intimidating on defense. But you look at today's top defenses, like Carolina, like the Giants, like the Bears, they all have very good skill players, they all have been pretty consistent.

You know Bill is going to goose it up to his guys a bit more than just a regular game. The bloom comes off the rose after the first season of facing each other, but it's easily the biggest game of the season for each team so far.

Your good defenses are the ones that tackle well. Baltimore, New England ... you don't see them missing too many tackles. Tampa Bay used to be that way but no more.

This is an honor that is long overdue. He played middle linebacker like a man among boys. Harry was a warrior who led by example. He was a great player and a great team leader. Harry didn't back down from anybody or any challenge. He was very good ... Now it's safe to say he was great, because he's finally in the Hall of Fame.

It's bad. I don't know of any other way to put it.

That's a good thing. That's how you should look at football. If you don't have anything to compare, you start to cheer for watered-down things. If you don't have standard bearers then you're going to allow mediocrity to be looked at as great.