Ray Lewis or Brian Urlacher.

If you were a general manager of an NFL team and believed your franchise was one elite middle linebacker away from contending for a Super Bowl, which one would you choose?

I don’t think there’s any doubt that both players will end up with busts in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Ironically, they both retired during the same offseason. Lewis announced that the 2012 season would be his last before winning his second Super Bowl with the Baltimore Ravens in early February.

Urlacher and the Chicago Bears were unable to agree on a new contract and he announced his retirement last week.

Both players compiled impressive resumes during their careers.

Lewis was named first team All-Pro seven times, the last of those honors coming in 2009. He was named the NFL Defensive Player of the Year twice (2000, 2003) and was MVP of Super Bowl XXXV. Throw in 41.5 sacks, 31 interceptions and over 2,000 tackles and it’s easy to see why, love him or hate him, Lewis is viewed as one of the greats of all time.

Urlacher was no slouch. He entered the league with a bang, earning NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year honors in 2000 and Player of the Year accolades in 2005. He also had 41.5 sacks, 22 interceptions and made over 1,300 career tackles. First team All-Pro honors came his way four times, the most recent in 2006.

One of the reasons why most of Lewis’ numbers outweigh those of Urlacher is because the former played four more seasons. Also, Lewis got much more attention during his career, and you can bet he planned it that way.

No matter what contributions Lewis made on the field, his showmanship often took center stage. His flamboyant entrance onto the field, pregame speeches to his teammates and postgame quotes were rarely missed by television microphones and cameras.

This is not to say that Urlacher wasn’t a motivator. But it was clear that he would rather his play do the talking.

Still, you can’t ignore the fact that Lewis was the leader of a staunch defense that led the Ravens to a win in Super Bowl XXXV. That season, the Ravens allowed an average of just 10.3 points per game and gave up only 60.6 rushing yards per contest. And Baltimore needed a defense that good.

Over the last 15 years, other linebackers have been very good, even great, for a stretch of three or four years. Former Steeler James Harrison falls into that category. But when you combine productivity and longevity, Lewis and Urlacher were the best of their time.

I would take Lewis over Urlacher because I believe, during his prime, he came up with more big plays that helped decide the outcome of games.

This is one instance, however, where there is no shame in being second.

Derek Pyda is a staff writer for the Butler Eagle.