Plasman was selected by the Bears in the third round of the 1937 NFL draft.[2] On November 6, 1938, he crashed into Wrigley Field's brick wall during a home game against the Green Bay Packers, suffering a severe scalp laceration, three fractured ribs, a broken wrist, and a fractured arm.[3] There were concerns about him ever playing again due to the wrist and arm injuries. However, he recovered and continued to not wear a helmet—as he did in the 1940 NFL Championship game on December 8, 1940, and Chicago's 1941 NFL Championship game victory on December 21, 1941, two weeks after the bombing of Pearl Harbor.[3] Plasman entered the Air Force in July 1942 and thus missed the 1942 and 1943 seasons, but returned for the 1944 season—when he was forced to wear a helmet due to the new NFL helmet rule.[3]
"Ferocious on his blocks, a great pass rusher and a receiver, too. The guy was terrific, a force out there. He was worthy of the Hall of Fame".[4]
