Beginning in 1966 the

Newspaper Enterprise Association The Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA) is an editorial column and comic strip newspaper syndication service based in the United States and established in 1902. The oldest syndicate still in operation, the NEA was originally a secondary news ...

(NEA) annually awarded the George Halas Trophy to the most outstanding defensive player in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

(NFL). The winner was released via the NEA news service and also appeared in the ''

World Almanac ''The World Almanac and Book of Facts'' is a US-published reference work, an almanac conveying information about such subjects as world changes, tragedies, and sports feats. It has been published yearly from 1868 to 1875, and again every year sinc ...

'', which was an NEA publication. The award ran through 1998. It was considered one of the major awards and was included in the ''NFL Record and Fact Book'' and its winners appeared in the encyclopedia, ''Total Football II''.

Winners

1966— Larry Wilson, S, St. Louis Cardinals
1967—

Deacon Jones David D. "Deacon" Jones (December 9, 1938 – June 3, 2013) was an American professional football player who was a defensive end in the National Football League (NFL) for the Los Angeles Rams, San Diego Chargers, and the Washington Redskins. H ...

, DE, Los Angeles Rams
1968— Deacon Jones, DE, Los Angeles Rams
1969—

Dick Butkus Richard Marvin Butkus (born December 9, 1942) is an American former professional football player, sports commentator, and actor. He played football as a middle linebacker for the Chicago Bears of the National Football League (NFL) from 1965 to ...

, MLB, Chicago Bears
1970— Dick Butkus, MLB, Chicago Bears
1971—

Carl Eller Carl Eller (born January 25, 1942) is an American former professional football player who was a defensive end in the National Football League (NFL) from 1964 through 1979. He was born in Winston-Salem, North Carolina and played college football ...

, DE, Minnesota Vikings
1972—

Joe Greene Charles Edward Greene (born September 24, 1946), better known as "Mean" Joe Greene, is an American former professional football player who was a defensive tackle for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL) from 1969 to 1 ...

, DT, Pittsburgh Steelers
1973—

Alan Page Alan Cedric Page (born August 7, 1945) is an American retired judge and former professional football He gained national recognition as a defensive tackle in the National Football League (NFL) during 15 seasons with the Minnesota Vikings an ...

, DT, Minnesota Vikings
1974— Joe Greene, DT, Pittsburgh Steelers
1975—

Curley Culp Curley Culp (March 10, 1946 – November 27, 2021) was an American football defensive lineman who was a defensive tackle in the American Football League (AFL) and National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Arizona State Unive ...

, DT, Houston Oilers
1976—

Jerry Sherk Jerry Martin Sherk (born July 7, 1948) is an American former professional football player who was a defensive tackle for the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League (NFL) for 12 seasons between 1970 until 1981. He made the Pro Bowl line ...

, DT, Cleveland Browns
1977—

Harvey Martin Harvey Banks Martin (November 16, 1950 – December 24, 2001) was an American professional football player who was a defensive end in the National Football League (NFL) for the Dallas Cowboys from 1973 until 1983. He starred at South Oak Cliff ...

, DE, Dallas Cowboys
1978—

Randy Gradishar Randy Charles Gradishar (born March 3, 1952) is an American former professional American football, football player who was a middle linebacker in the 1970s and 1980s for the Denver Broncos of the National Football League (NFL). A native of Ohio, ...

, ILB, Denver Broncos
1979—

Lee Roy Selmon Lee Roy Selmon (October 20, 1954 – September 4, 2011) was an American professional football player who was a defensive end for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football as a defensive tackle at ...

, DE, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
1980—

Lester Hayes Lester Craig Hayes (born January 22, 1955) is an American former professional football player who was a cornerback for the Oakland / Los Angeles Raiders of the National Football League (NFL). Hayes was commonly referred to as "the Judge" and ...

, CB, Oakland Raiders
1981—

Joe Klecko Joseph Edward Klecko (born October 15, 1953) is an American former football player, of Polish descent, best remembered for his days as a defensive lineman, a member of the New York Jets' famed "New York Sack Exchange." Temple Owls Before going ...

, DE, New York Jets
1982—

Mark Gastineau Marcus Dell Gastineau (born November 20, 1956) is an American former football player who was a defensive end for the New York Jets from 1979 to 1988. A five-time Pro Bowler, he was one of the quickest and most feared pass rushers of his generatio ...

, DE, New York Jets
1983— Jack Lambert, MLB, Pittsburgh Steelers
1984— Mike Haynes, CB, Los Angeles Raiders
1985—

Howie Long Howard Matthew Moses Long (born January 6, 1960) is an American sports analyst and former professional football player. He played in the National Football League (NFL) for 13 seasons as a defensive end, spending his entire career with the Raide ...

, DE, Los Angeles Raiders/

Andre Tippett Andre Bernard Tippett Sr. (born December 27, 1959) is an American former professional football player who was an outside linebacker in the National Football League (NFL) for 11 seasons with the New England Patriots. He played college football ...

, OLB, New England Patriots (tie)
1986—

Lawrence Taylor Lawrence Julius Taylor (born February 4, 1959), nicknamed "L.T.", is an American former professional football player who spent his entire career as an outside linebacker for the New York Giants ( 1981–1993) in the National Football League (NF ...

, OLB, New York Giants
1987—

Reggie White Reginald Howard White (December 19, 1961 – December 26, 2004) was an American professional football player who played defensive end in the National Football League (NFL) for 15 seasons during the 1980s and 1990s. He played college football for ...

, DE, Philadelphia Eagles
1988—

Mike Singletary Michael Singletary (born October 9, 1958), also known by his nickname Samurai Mike, is an American professional football coach and former middle linebacker. After playing college football for the Baylor Bears, Singletary was drafted by the Chi ...

, MLB, Chicago Bears
1989— Tim Harris, OLB, Green Bay Packers
1990—

Bruce Smith Bruce Bernard Smith (born June 18, 1963) is an American former football defensive end who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 19 seasons, primarily with the Buffalo Bills. He played college football at Virginia Tech, where he was ...

, DE, Buffalo Bills
1991—

Pat Swilling Patrick Travis Swilling (born October 25, 1964) is an American former professional football player who was a linebacker in the National Football League (NFL). He played for the New Orleans Saints, Detroit Lions, and the Oakland Raiders. He had ...

, OLB, New Orleans Saints
1992—

Junior Seau Tiaina Baul "Junior" Seau Jr. (; ; January 19, 1969May 2, 2012) was an American professional football player who was a linebacker in the National Football League (NFL), mostly with the San Diego Chargers. Known for his passionate play, he was a ...

, LB, San Diego Chargers
1993—

, DE, Buffalo Bills
1994—

Deion Sanders Deion Luwynn Sanders Sr. (born August 9, 1967) is an American football coach and former player who is the head coach at the University of Colorado Boulder. Nicknamed "Prime Time", he played in the National Football League (NFL) for 14 seasons ...

, CB, San Francisco 49ers
1995—

Bryce Paup Bryce Eric Paup (born February 29, 1968) is an American former professional football player who was an outside linebacker for eleven seasons in the National Football League (NFL) with the Green Bay Packers, Buffalo Bills, Jacksonville Jaguars an ...

, OLB, Buffalo Bills
1996—

Kevin Greene Kevin Darwin Greene (July 31, 1962December 21, 2020) was an American professional football player who was a defensive end and linebacker for the Los Angeles Rams, Pittsburgh Steelers, Carolina Panthers, and San Francisco 49ers of the Nation ...

, LB, Carolina Panthers
1997—

Dana Stubblefield Dana William Stubblefield (born November 14, 1970) is an American former professional football player who was a defensive tackle in the National Football League (NFL). After graduating from Taylor High School in North Bend, Ohio, Stubblefiel ...

, DT, San Francisco 49ers
1998—

, DE, Green Bay Packers Source:

References

{{NFL awards National Football League trophies and awards American football mass media

Winners

See also

References