Some of Brian Urlacher's fondest memories from his Hall of Fame career with the Bears involve playing in front of raucous Soldier Field crowds.
Dubbed the "4th Phase" in conjunction with the offense, defense and special teams, the fans provided a true home-field advantage, particularly for the defense and especially when the game was on the line late in the fourth quarter.
Although Urlacher no longer suits up for the Bears, the eight-time Pro Bowl selection is helping the club revive the nostalgic 4th Phase tradition, channeling fan energy into an unmatched fourth-quarter experience at Soldier Field.
Beginning with the season opener and continuing at every home game this year, a video is being played entering the fourth quarter featuring Urlacher's voice urging fans to "Bring da noise, bring da passion and Bear down!" The video doubles as a nod to the past as well as a rallying cry for today's fans behind a new young team that has won three straight games.
The video also features current Bears defensive backs Jonathan Owens, Jaquan Brisker and Kevin Byard III speaking directly to the fans.
Urlacher taped his portion of the video in August when a small contingent of Bears employees traveled to his home in Arizona. He also shared stories about his career, showed them dozens of game balls he earned as a player and introduced them to his pet goats that the Bears "GOAT" keeps in his expansive backyard.
"The fans are a huge factor in every game," Urlacher said. "When the games are tight, it's nice to have that little push in the fourth quarter. When the fans are in it on third downs when you're on defense, it's a big deal.
"We always practiced with the loud noises because we couldn't hear each other at Soldier Field on third down. You couldn't hear a word. It's a great thing to get the fans more involved. That's always going to help the team perform better."
Selected by the Bears with the ninth pick in the 2000 draft out of New Mexico, Urlacher played all 13 of his illustrious NFL seasons in Chicago. He was a four-time first-team All-Pro, was named NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2000 and was selected NFL Defensive Player of the Year in 2005.
Urlacher helped the Bears win four division titles and reach the Super Bowl in 2006. He started 180 of 182 games played, recording a team-record 1,779 tackles, 41.5 sacks, 22 interceptions, 16 fumble recoveries and 11 forced fumbles. The only players who've started more games for the Bears are Hall of Fame running back Walter Payton (184) and center Olin Kreutz (183).
Urlacher recalls that the "4th Phase" was always loud when the Bears played the Packers, but the one game that topped even those traditional rivalry battles was a 39-14 victory over the Saints in the 2006 NFC championship that propelled the Bears to Super Bowl XLI.
"That '06 Saints game was unbelievable," Urlacher said. "They cheered the whole time. We gave them a lot to cheer about, too, and it was pretty special."
Urlacher is hoping that the 4th Phase can affect games at Soldier Field like it did when he played.
"It's huge," he said. "When our crowd was loud, we had to use hand signals to communicate because you couldn't hear each other talk. An offense has to do the same thing. The snap count's a big deal. If they're using hand signals, you can pick up hand signals. Plus, as a defense, it's like, 'Our crowd's behind us, let's go make some plays.' Third downs are the biggest plays in the game. That's when you want your crowd behind you."
