He played college football for the New Mexico Lobos, where he received consensus All-American honors as a senior, and was selected ninth overall by the Bears in the 2000 NFL draft.

During his career, he was selected to eight Pro Bowls, recognized as a first-team All-Pro four times, and won NFL Defensive Player of the Year in 2005.

He spent his youth immersed in sports, and developed an interest in football, basketball, track, and later table tennis; he graduated from Lovington High School in 1996.

While his mother worked several jobs to keep her family afloat, Urlacher spent his teenage years playing sports for Lovington High School and training in weight rooms.

[3] Urlacher led the Lovington High School Wildcats to an undefeated 14–0 season, and a division 3-A state championship in 1995.

[5] Their head coach, Dennis Franchione, converted Urlacher to linebacker, but often left him on the sidelines in favor of more experienced players.

[24] He managed to regain a starting spot on the Bears roster after Barry Minter, the team's veteran middle linebacker, was forced to miss the Week 3 game on account of an injury.

[24] He suffered a rib cage injury during this period but still won the league's Rookie Defensive Player of the Month in October.

[2] He also caught a touchdown pass from punter Brad Maynard off a fake field goal attempt against the Washington Redskins in Week 14, which clinched a first-round bye.

[31] The 2001 Chicago Bears won 13 games, marking the team's best finish since 1986, but lost to the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC Divisional Playoffs.

[37] Teammate Devin Hester commented on Urlacher's performance, stating, "We watched the film and everybody was saying that he just turned into the Incredible Hulk the last four minutes of the game, just killing people and running over and tackling whoever had the ball.

"[38] The Bears won the NFC Championship against the New Orleans Saints 39–14, but lost Super Bowl XLI to the Indianapolis Colts 29–17.

He was elected to the 2006 All-Pro Team and 2007 Pro Bowl, while also earning consideration for the League's Defensive Player of the Year award.

[40] Nevertheless, he finished the season on a high note, registering five interceptions, five sacks, one fumble recovery, 123 tackles, and a defensive touchdown.

As frustration built, Urlacher criticized the Bears offense, stating that the addition of quarterback Jay Cutler had changed the team's identity.

"[48] During the 2010 offseason, Bears general manager Jerry Angelo bolstered the team's defense by signing free agent Julius Peppers.

[49] With Peppers' help, Urlacher and the Bears improved to an 11–5 record in the 2010 NFL season, winning the NFC North and earning a first-round bye for the 2011 playoffs.

In the playoffs, the Bears beat the Seattle Seahawks in the divisional round, before falling to the division rival Green Bay Packers in the NFC Championship game.

[55] On August 14, 2012, Urlacher had an arthroscopic debridement procedure on his left knee, and stated that his goal was to play in the 2012 season opener.

[61] Urlacher led the Bears in tackles until Week 13 against the Seahawks, in which he sustained a hamstring injury that sidelined him for the remainder of the season.

Urlacher has appeared in several commercials for McDonald's, Domino's Pizza, Comcast, Nike, Campbell's Chunky soup, Old Spice, and Glacéau.

Nike also aired special commercials about Urlacher's high school career containing clips and commentary of plays he made.

During media day before Super Bowl XLI Urlacher wore a hat promoting Glacéau vitamin water, a non-NFL approved sponsor, for which he was fined US$100,000.

[79] In December 2014, Urlacher participated in the USO Chairman's Holiday tour, which provided entertainment to US troops in five countries around the world.

[81] Sega Sports selected Urlacher to appear on the cover of NFL 2K3, while other companies, such as Nike, McDonald's, Old Spice, and Vitamin Water, have featured him in several television advertisements and promotions.

On a national level, Urlacher's jersey sales have rivaled those of other NFL superstars, such as Brett Favre and Michael Vick.

Like his father, Kennedy became a standout football player in high school and plays for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.

Kennedy's mother, Tyna Robertson, was already well known to the media, having made claims of sexual assault against famed dancer Michael Flatley and a doctor from Naperville, Illinois.

In 2017, Urlacher appealed to a Cook County court to remove Kennedy from Robertson's custody after her husband, Ryan Karageorge, was shot and killed in their residence.

[102] On August 27, 2020, Urlacher made a post to his Instagram story criticizing NBA players for boycotting playoff games over the police shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wisconsin, and "liked" a now-deleted post supporting shooting suspect Kyle Rittenhouse and stating "Patriot Lives Matter," generating significant news and opinion coverage.