Meet the 5 Greatest NFL Players Born on the 4th of July

FORT LAUDERDALE, FL - FEBRUARY 06: Floyd Little speaks on stage after he was announced as one of the newest enshrinees into the Hall of Fame during the Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2010 Press Conference held at the Greater Ft. Lauderdale/Broward County Convention Center as part of media week for Super Bowl XLIV on February 6, 2010 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images) /

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#4: Rick Casares

Seems the Chicago Bears were quite adept at finding great players born on July 4th. Probably the best of the best was fullback Rick Casares. Ask anybody who had to play Chicago around the late ’50s and early ’60s. They’d all likely agree that he was one of the toughest players going at the time. Just a thickly built man who knew how to dole out punishment to anybody who tried tackling him. Never mind the fact he served in the U.S. Army during the Korean War.

So his career was actually cut a bit short, but he certainly made the most of it. Casares was both a punishing blocker and athletic runner in his own right. He gave the Bears offense that physical identity they loved to have in those days. His 1,133 yards in 1956 helped them reach the championship game. By 1963 he wasn’t the focus of the offense anymore but that didn’t stop him from contributing to the teams’ championship victory. A criminally underrated player to this day.

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