David Fulcher | Cincinnati Bengals

A lethal hitter and ravenous roamer in the secondary, he revolutionized the safety position in the late 1980s as the key chess piece in defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau's watershed zone blitz scheme that has become a staple of the 21st century NFL. LeBeau used the 6-3, 236-pound Fulcher's ability to play like a linebacker and cover like a free safety to trick offensive coordinators with calls such as "Fulcher 2 Stay." That was the first zone blitz call and one that Steelers safety Troy Polamalu used to ride into the Pro Football Hall of Fame 30 years later. A three-time Pro Bowler, he twice led the Bengals in tackles and interceptions. As the leader of the Bengals secondary known as "The SWAT Team," Fulcher had a sack and forced fumble in Super Bowl XXIII, racked up team-leading 107 tackles and eight interceptions in 1989 and in 1990 had an interception and two passes defensed in each of their two play-off games. His three post-season interceptions are tied for the most in franchise history with Ken Riley. His 31 career interceptions are third on the Bengals list and sixth among NFL safeties during his career. A College Football Hall of Famer, he settled in Cincinnati post-career and founded the non-profit Mentoring against Negative Actions for inmates to teach them life skills as well as raising awareness of the fight against multiple sclerosis.

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