In the clamor to describe Houston Texan J.J. Watt as one of the greatest ever at his position — which seems legitimate — he was credited with being the first defensive lineman to score three touchdowns in a season since 1985.

That is when the Chicago Bears’ William “Refrigerator” Perry allegedly accomplished the feat. While Watt almost surely is the real thing, that stat is not legit.

But now that The Fridge’s name has been resurrected, let’s revisit his storied career, even if that statistic is bogus.

Fact is, Perry never scored as a defensive player during his entire career, let alone three times in that memorable rookie year of 1985. Perry was indeed a defensive tackle, but he was used in an historically spiteful situation substitution scheme and scored all three of his regular season touchdowns on offense — as a so-called blocking fullback.

The inside story, which involves a nasty attitude by venomous head coach Mike Ditka, makes this even more interesting, but more on that melodrama later.

First, let’s give credit where credit is due.

Watt does seem to be on his way to deserving mention among the best ever to play on the front seven, including Reggie White and Lawrence Taylor. It seems inevitable that five years after he stops beating up NFL offenses, Watt’s name will be worthy of first-ballot consideration by the Pro Football Hall of Fame selection committee.

Never mind the stats, although they are mind boggling. Just watch him and appreciate his rare talent.

His place in history became topical again Thursday night during the Texans’ otherwise embarrassing loss to the visiting Indianapolis Colts, 33-28.

During the game, Watt returned a recovered fumble 45 yards for a touchdown. In so doing, Watt joined company with George Halas (1927), Jay Arnold (1938) and Bill Stacy (1961) as the only players who, in one season, managed to score via an interception, a fumble recovery and a reception.

Watt, a fourth-year player, further justified his $100 million contract by pestering the Colts with two sacks, three pass deflections — including a near interception — four total hits on quarterback Andrew Luck and three total tackles for a loss.

Based on his pregame raving, Indianapolis coach Chuck Pagano wasn’t surprised. He called Watt a “freak” and a “game wrecker.” After the game, Pagano predicted that Watt will be recognized as “one of the best defensive players, probably, when it is all said and done, to play the game.”

Pro Football Focus, which stakes its reputation on being able to quantify the quality of performance, credits Watt with 20 quarterback hits, which is a dozen more than any other NFL player so far this season.

While not meaning anything negative about The Refrigerator, whose life has been miserable these last few years, Watt’s ability and achievements are far superior to those of Perry in 1985 and on a par with those of the greatest defensive linemen of all time.

Although his faux legend was sometimes as big as his size 25 ring (per measurements for his Super Bowl XX jewelry), Perry was best known just for his sheer size and, in reality, was the pawn in an insidious sideshow spurred by Ditka’s vitriol.

Ditka hand-picked Perry, a massive nose tackle at Clemson, in the first round of the 1985 draft, No. 22 overall. It was a move that did not have the blessing of Chicago’s defensive coordinator, Buddy Ryan, who called Perry “fat” and a “wasted draft pick.”

Then, even as Ryan and the Bears’ 46 defense received the vast majority of credit for the team’s 15-1 record that season, Ditka wanted to wrest some recognition, and vengeance, for himself. And that is how Perry became the oversized pawn in this drama.

It really began in the 1984 NFC Championship Game when Ditka was miffed because San Francisco 49ers head coach Bill Walsh used guard Guy McIntyre as a blocking back on short-yardage and goal-line situations in a formation called “Angus.” This ploy helped the 49ers embarrass the Bears, 23-0, at Candlestick Park, on their way to a Super Bowl IX Championship.

At the time, Ditka, the former All-Pro tight end with a constant tough-guy attitude and sneer, had an obvious dislike for Walsh and his fancy West Coast offense. Ditka was seething after that game.

“I apologize to the fans and to the team,” Ditka said. “I never thought in my wildest dreams we wouldn`t score a point. I thought we’d handle the 49ers. I just didn’t think they were that much of a better football team.”

As the 49ers went on to win their second Super Bowl of the decade with an 18-1 overall record, Ditka simmered and later admitted that loss was “a tremendous catalyst for our 1985 season.”

So it was on October 13, 1985 that Ditka brought his Bears back to Candlestick. It was then that he unveiled The Refrigerator as an offensive weapon. Never mind that Walter Payton rushed for 132 yards, or that 49ers quarterback Joe Montana was sacked seven times and the West Coast offense failed to score.

Ditka took most satisfaction in ordering the Bears to run out the clock in that 26-10 victory by using The Fridge as a massive blocking back — a direct back-at-ya for Walsh using McIntyre in that championship game.

Ditka celebrated so much on the plane ride back to Chicago that he was arrested for driving under the influence on his way home. He admitted the arrest was embarrassing and preached that nobody has the right to drink and drive, but years later admitted it was also one of the happiest moments in his career.

Sadly, the jovial giant known as The Refrigerator became somewhat of a caricature of himself in TV commercials that played up his, ah, huge — albeit brief — success. It was after that San Francisco game that he scored three touchdowns that season, two rushing and one receiving.

Perry scored one more time, and even that was fraught with dark historical undertones. In the third quarter of Super Bowl XX, Ditka put in The Fridge to score on a three yard run that boosted the score to 44-3 on the way to a 46-10 win over the New England Patriots.

But in his zeal to showcase The Fridge on an international stage, Ditka denied future Hall of Famer Walter Payton the opportunity to score the only Super Bowl touchdown of his career. Payton appeared dejected as he sat on the bench.

Years later, Ditka acknowledged the oversight, saying that Payton not scoring a touchdown in that game was one of the biggest regrets of his coaching career.

Perry never scored again in an otherwise mediocre pro football career that lasted until 1993 in Chicago, then another year-plus in Philadelphia and ended in 1996 with the London Monarchs of the WLAF. He was featured in rap music, comedy TV shows, and was twice honored as an All-Player Legend in Madden 25.

In 2008, he was diagnosed with Guillain-Barr syndrome, a chronic inflammation of the nerves that began his steady physical demise. He also faced financial challenges and in 2011 managed to keep that size 25 Super Bowl XX ring only because an eight-year-old fan recognized an item up for auction and, with help from his mom, bought the ring for $8,500 and returned it to Perry.

Unlike Watt, Perry never will be considered for the Pro Football Hall of Fame. But, unlike Perry, Watt may never get a Super Bowl ring with the Texans unless they find a way to win consistently.

Meantime, we at least have the opportunity to watch why Watt already deserves to be recognized — as Pagano pointed out — as one of the greatest defensive linemen ever to play the game.

–Frank Cooney, founder and publisher of The Sports Xchange and NFLDraftScout.com, has covered the NFL the 1960s, including the 49ers-Bears games in the 1984 and 1985 seasons, and is a selector for the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He worked with both Walsh and Ditka in their post-coaching media careers.