However the most significant move was the drafting of RB Walter Payton in the first round. Despite the changes the Bears would still finish in Last Place with a , but a winning foundation was forming. The Bears end a string of seven straight losing seasons by posting a record of as the Bears finish in second place.
Schedule & Game Results
In his third season Running Back Walter Payton has a breakout season rushing for a team record 1, yards highlighted by a single game performance of yards on November 20th. The yards would establish a single game record that would stand nearly 23 years. Thanks to Payton the ears would win their final six games to finish with a record that was good enough for the NFC's Wild Card spot.
However, the Bears would be sorely overmatched in their first playoff game in 14 years, as the eventual Super Bowl Champion Cowboys stomped the Bears in Dallas. After the completion of the season Coach Jack Pardee leaves the Bears to take over the coaching reins for the Washington Redskins.
Armstrong's first season at the helm of the Bears would prove to be a disappointment as the team finished with a record. December 16th goes down as one of the most bittersweet days in Bears history, as the Bears earn a playoff spot on the final day of the season with a victory over the St. However, the news was tempered when team president George "Mugs" Halas Jr. Mugs the son of the legendary Bears founder had served in the front office since The Bears would hold a lead in the 3rd Quarter only to see the Eagles soar past them and on to the next round with a victory.
The Bears finish with a disappointing record, but the season is full of highlights. On October 6th Walter Payton breaks the Bears all-time franchise rushing total by eclipsing Gayle Sayer's 9, career total. The second highlight comes on Thanksgiving in Detroit when David Williams takes the overtime kickoff 95 yards for a Touchdown setting an NFL record for the fastest end to an Overtime.
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Mike Ditka's first season as Head Coach of the Bears is interrupted as a players strike shortens the season to nine games, and changes the NFL playoff format to allow eight teams in. However, the Bears would not make the postseason finishing with a record. In the midst of an season, that lands Bears in third place, George Halas the man who founded the Bears, and helped form and save the NFL in the 's dies of heart attack at the age of 88 on October 31st.
Halas who was better known as "Papa Bear" lived a very rich life prior to starting his pro football career Halas had played baseball for the New York Yankees, only to be replaced by Babe Ruth in Halas was then hired by A. Staley to build the football team, and represent the team in the meeting that formed the NFL. One year later Halas was given the team, and moved them to Chicago.
Halas would then turn the Bears into one of the premier sports franchise in the world after his signing of Red Grange in Halas would coach the Bears on and off until along the way setting the all time victories record at , a record that would stand into The Bears would go on to finish with a record to win their first division title in 21 years. However, a struggle down the stretch would cost them a home playoff game. The term "Monsters of the Midway" never meant more in As a line in their famous music video says "we're not there to cause no trouble we're just here to do the Super Bowl Shuffle.
The Bears would march through their first 12 opponents with no problem rushing out to a record. Along the way the Bears became a national obsession thanks in part to a music video entitled "The Super Bowl Shuffle" which they recorded before the season was even over. By December the question was no longer will the Bears win the Super Bowl, but can they go undefeated in the process? That answer would come on December 2nd when the Miami Dolphins, who were defending their legacy as the only undefeated team to win a Super Bowl, trounced the Bears However the setback would only be a minor one as the Bears went on to finish with a season.
After their incredible season the Bears would host their first home playoff game in 22 years in the Divisional Round against the New York Giants.
The game would end up being no contest as the Bears completely shut down the Giants on a bitterly cold and windy afternoon This game too would be no contest as the Bears shut out the Rams in front of a sold out Soldier Field to earn a trip to their first ever Super Bowl. After shutting out their first two opponents the Bears were enormous Super Bowl favorites. In fact the only danger the Bears were in was could they stay out of trouble.
Quarterback Jim McMahon would get in to some hot water with comments about New Orleans women, while the NFL was cracking down on his trademark message headbands. In a moment of levity McMahon would brush off the controversy by mooning a group of reporters. The Super Bowl was complete circus atmosphere, and the nation craved more as record number of viewers tuned into watch. The Bears would get off to a shaky start falling behind the New England Patriots The Bears were in danger of falling further behind when Walter Payton fumbled in Bears territory, but the Pats were unable to capitalize missing a short Field Goal.
The Bears would then not look back scoring the next 46 points in a relentless beating of the AFC Champions. Topping things off the Bears allowed William "The Refrigerator" Perry to score a Touchdown to continue the humiliation of the Patriots. However, an injury to Quarterback Jim McMahon hurt the offense, what is worse is that injury came via a cheap shot form a Green Bay Packers defender Charles Martin, who threw him down after he raised his arms for a Touchdown. If the Bears were going to repeat they were going to have to do it with Doug Flutie at Quarterback.
However, Flutie's inexperience wore on Coach Mike Ditka's patience leading him to even slap the Quarterback across the facemask over an interception. However, the Bears would not get past the Washington Redskins who stunned in front of a sold out Soldier Field. In a season marred by a month long player's strike that included the use of replacement players for three games the Bears continue to dominate the "Black and Blue Division" winning their fourth straight NFC Central title.
However, the year would be rest remembered for an end of an era as the player they called "Sweetness" retired after his 13 season. In his great career Walter Payton rushed for an all-time career record 16, yards. The Bears would jump out to a lead only to see the Redskins storm back and take a lead late the game. With time winding down on the Bears season, and Payton's career the Bears need to get into the endzone.
On a 4th down play the ball wound up in the hands of Payton who tried to extend he Bears season and his career. However, Sweetness was shoved out of bounds a few years short of the first down marker allowing the Redskins to get the ball and kneel down the rest of the game. Walter Payton would head to sidelines and would watch the rest of the game through his tears.
With Walter Payton retired the Bears do not miss a beat winning their fifth straight division title with a record, also earning home field advantage through out the playoffs in the process. The Bears would emerge from the fog with a The deal came as McMahon fell out of favor with Mike Ditka, and the Bears management over his wild ways. The deal cleared the way for Mike Tomzack to take over the starting job, a job he was used to over the last few season as McMahon regularly missed games due to injury. However, Tomzack and the Bears would experience frustration as a losing streak saw the Bears fall out of 1st place and into a disappointing season.
Coach Mike Ditka would earn legendary status when he comes back to coach just ten days after a midseason heart attack. The Bears would also recover in bouncing back from a season to finish in 1st Place with an record.
However, the Bears as the third seed would be forced to play in a wild card game to get to the Divisional Playoffs. The Bears finish with a strong record, as Mike Ditka earns his th career coaching win. However, the Bears are unable to win the division and make the playoffs as a Wild Card. The season would mark the end of an era in Chicago as Mike Singletary the two Defensive Player of the Year and leader of the Bears defense retires, and Coach Mike Ditka is fired after a disappointing season.
The season also sees the Bears play their 1,th franchise game a win against the Atlanta Falcons at Soldier Field on October 3rd. The Bears put together a season earning a trip to the playoffs as Wild Card. The Bears put together another season but miss out on the playoffs as the Atlanta Falcons get in thanks to a tiebreaker.
The Bears continue to muddle in the middle of the back as they take a step backward finishing in third place with a disappointing record of The Bears stumble out of the gate losing their first seven games on their way to a disappointing season. The only notable accomplishment is that the Bears collect their th franchise win on November 23rd with a win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
The Bears complete another terrible season, which leads to the dismissal of Coach Dave Wannstedt. The resulting fiasco which involved a press conference where no coach was introduced, and the hiring of Dick Jauron leads to the ouster of President Michael McCaskey, and the grandson of George Halas. McCaskey's firing was at the hands of his mother Virginia, who felt that the team was going in the wrong direction.
The Bears continue to struggle under new head coach Dick Jauron completing a season. The season is also marked by sadness as the Bears family loses Walter Payton who dies at the age of 45 on November 1st. The Bears would go on to rename their indoor practice facility in his honor. Another awful season is highlighted by the play of Rookie Linebacker Brian Urlacher the Bears first round of pick out of New Mexico. Not much was expected form the Bears going into their final year at Soldier Field before renovation.
However, the Bears were a young exciting team built on a strong defense. After losing their first game the Bears won their next four games and were in first place in the NFC Central. The next two games would become the stuff of legends a furious 4th quarter comeback against the San Francisco 49ers was capped by a Mike Brown interception return for a Touchdown in Overtime.
A week later against the Cleveland Browns the Bears trailed by 14 points under two minutes to play a Touchdown and a recovered onside kick set up an incredible game tying Hail Mary which sent the game to Overtime, where Brown repeated his feat of a week earlier to get the Bears to The Bears would only lose two more games the rest of the way, good enough to win their first division title in 12 years with a record, as exciting Running Back Anthony Thomas earned Offensive Rookie of the Year honors, and Dick Jauron earned coach of the year.
However, the magic ride would end quickly in the playoffs, as the Bears lost to the more experienced Philadelphia Eagles in the Divisional Round. With Soldier Field undergoing a major renovation the Bears were forced to play their home games at the University of Illinois in Champaign, which was over miles away from Chicago. The Bears would get off to a solid start by rallying in the 4th Quarter to win their first two games. However, the Bears would suffer a rash of injuries to every position as the wear and tear of having to travel for each game caught up with them quickly as the Bears endured a frustrating eight game losing streak.
The Bears would not recover, as they finished in third place in the NFC North with a terrible record of The Bears season got off to a rough start as they were humiliated in their two first games on the road. Following an early bye week the Bears returned home to Chicago and a brand new version of Soldier Field which had been completely refurbished. However with it would come more disappointment as they are beaten A week later the Bears would get their first win at new Soldier Field as they rallied with 18 points in the 4th Quarter to stun the Oakland Raiders However the struggles would continue as the Bears lost their next 2 games as starting QB Kordell Stewart is benched.
With Chris Chandler under center the Bears fare slightly better winning 2 straight home games against the Detroit Lions and San Diego Chargers to improve to After 2 straight losses Stewart would return to the field leading the Bears to a comeback win over the Denver Broncos in Week 12, and would look sharp starting the following week in a win over the lowly Arizona Cardinals. However with an eye to the future the Bears would start rookie Rex Grossman in the final 3 games.
Grossman would look sharp leading the Bears to two wins, as the Bears finished with a record by winning four of their last six games overall. However, it would not be enough to save Coach Dick Jauron's job as he replaced by Lovie Smith following the season. Under new Coach Lovie Smith the season would get off to a disappointing start as the Bears lost at home to the Detroit Lions However, a week later they would rebound with a satisfying win over the Green Bay Packers on the road. In Week 3 the Bears would battle the Minnesota Vikings close all day on the road, but the game would be lost as Quarterback Rex Grossman suffered a season ending knee injury.
The Bears began the season with many unanswered questions on offense as Quarterback Rex Grossman started the season on the bench with another injury forcing the Bears to start rookie Kyle Orton. In Week 1 the offense would manage just seven points spoiling a great day from the defense as they were beaten by the Washington Redskins A week later in their home opener they relied on their running game as Thomas Jones rushed for yards and two Touchdowns, while the defense played big again with a Mike Brown interception return as the Bears slammed the Detroit Lions The Bears offense would sputter the next two weeks as the Bears dropped to However, despite their lackluster offense the defense led by Linebacker Brian Urlacher would begin to resemble the old monsters of the midway as the Bears started winning games on the backs of their defense, which did not allow more than 17 points for the next eight weeks putting up numbers like their great Super Bowl XX Championship Team which was honored all season.
During the regular season the Bears completely shut down the Panthers in a win. However, the Panthers would show early that it would not be as easy this time as Steve Smith scored on a yard Touchdown catch just 55 seconds into the game. The Panthers would eventually take a lead before the Bears finally broke through late in the 2nd Quarter. However, the usual Bears tough defense looked vulnerable all day as the Panthers made it with a yard Field Goal as the first half ended.
The Bears would get with in two points on a one yard Touchdown catch by Desmond Clark, but the Panthers would answer again. The same pattern would repeat in the 4th Quarter as the Bears could not get over the hump, losing With Rex Grossman healthy and ready to go the Bears appeared to have their situation at Quarterback settled as they began the season on a roll winning their first game over the Green Bay Packers on the road. The Bears would dominate again the following week as they hammered the Detroit Lions in their home opener. After a dominant win over the Buffalo Bills improved them to , the Bears appeared to be heading to their first loss as they trailed the Arizona Cardinals in the 3rd Quarter of a Monday Night Game on the road, as Grossman struggled badly with four interceptions.
In the 4th Quarter the Bears defense would strike again, as Charles Tillman returned an Edgerrin James 40 yards with five minutes left to make the score After the Bears defense stopped the Cardinals cold, the Bears special teams gave them a lead as Rookie return man Devin Hester returned a punt yards for a Touchdown as the Bears improved to with a win.
It would be much easier the following week as the Bears jumped out to a halftime lead, and cruised to a win over the San Francisco 49ers. The Bears best start since would come to an end as the Miami Dolphins who came into Chicago with a record stunned the Bears intercepting Rex Grossman three times, returning one for a Touchdown in a win. However, despite their record concerns over Quarterback began to swirl as Rex Grossman continued to struggle in the Bears win over the Jets.
A week later in New England the Bears defense was unable to save them from a loss as Grossman was picked off three times in a frustrating loss to the Patriots. Grossman' struggles continued the following week as the Bears returned home to face the Vikings as he was picked off three times, and had a mere 34 yards passing. Interception return the Bears would win Hester would star again the following week as he returned two kickoff over yards for a Touchdown, setting a rookie record with TD returns, as the Bears went on to finish the season with a record.
Despite having the best record in the NFC fans were concerned over the play of Rex Grossman, who ended the season with a mediocre Quarterback rating of In the playoffs the Bears faced off against the Seahawks for the second time, only this time it was not as easy, as the defending NFC Champions gave the Bears all they could handle and more taking a lead to the 4th Quarter.
With their season on the line the Bears needed a clutch yard Field Goal by Robbie Gould to force overtime.
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After extending the lead to late in the second quarter, the Bears defense was stunned as the Saints marched quickly up the field to cut the lead to at halftime. However, the Bears defense would take over the rest of the way, forcing a penalty in the endzone that resulted in a safety and gave control of the game back to the Bears. When the game began it started with a bang for the Bears as Devin Hester returned the opening kick 92 yards for a Touchdown. The rain would play further havoc moments later as Gabe Reid fumbled a squib kick. However, the Bears would quickly recover forcing Manning to fumble on the first play from scrimmage.
The Bears then used a big run by Thomas Jones to set up a second Touchdown as they ended the first quarter with a lead. It would be all down hill the rest of the way for the Bears as the Colts took control of the game with ten unaswered points in the 2nd Quarter. With the rain continuing to fall the Bears offense looked water logged as the Colts extended the lead to Coming off their loss in Super Bowl XLI, the Bears hoped they could improve their offense and continue to step forward, as Cedric Benson was given the starting running back job, after the departure of Thomas Jones to the New York Jets.
However, in the opener the offense continued to struggle as the Bears were beaten by the San Diego Chargers In their home opener the Bears offense led by Quarterback Rex Grossman, who was booed by the Soldier Field faithful continued to struggle. However, thanks to a yard punt return for a touchdown by Devin Hester the Bears were able to beat the Kansas City Chiefs After Grossman played poorly in a loss to the Dallas Cowboys, he would be benched in favor of Brian Griese. However, Griese did not play any better as he was picked off three times in his first start as the Bears were beaten by the Detroit Lions Griese would rebound to win the following game as the Bears defense smothered the Green Bay Packers, forcing five turnovers in a primetime win in Lambeau Field.
Opponent Game Logs
However, a week later the defense would struggle as Minnesota Vikings rookie Running Back Adrian Peterson rushed for yards with three touchdowns as the Vikings beat the Bears In danger of slipping to , the Bears lead by Brian Griese drove the field 97 yards to stun the Philadelphia Eagles , on a pass to Mushin Muhammad with nine seconds left.
A week later in Soldier Field it would be a different story as Griese was picked off four times as the Bears were stunned by the Lions again Griese continued to struggle the following week against the Oakland Raiders before leaving with a shoulder injury. Coming off the bench would be Rex Grossman who gave the Bears the lead on a yard bomb to Bernard Berrian as the Bears scored two touchdowns in the final three minutes for a win.
Grossman would get the starting job back, as the Bears continued to struggle losing to the Seattle Seahawks The offense continued to struggle and the defense continued to live up to expectations as the Bears hosted the Denver Broncos. However, thanks to Devin Hester the Bears were able to win in overtime , as the Bears return specialist scored a kick off return, and a punt return touchdown, while totaling a record return yards.
Entering December at , the Bears still had an outside chance at the playoffs, but from scrimmage the Bears continued to struggle on both sides of the ball as they dropped three straight games and faded out of the playoff picture. With Kyle Orton getting the starting Quarterback job in the final games of the year the Bears would close the season with two straight wins, as they posted a disappointing record. Coming of a season the Bears hoped they could return to the Super Bowl, as they faced the Indianapolis Colts for the first time since losing the big game 19 months earlier.
However, the Bears suffered disappointing three point losses in their next two games, including a overtime loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in their home opener in which they held a lead in the 4th Quarter. In consistency would mark the season for the Bears as they held a record heading into the final month of the season.
The Bears would make a late push for the playoffs with three straight wins, winning two straight in overtime, as they entered the final week of the season with the playoffs still in reach. However, a disappointing loss to the Houston Texans ended the Bears season at Following the season in an attempt to solve the Bears Quarterback issues, the team would trade Kyle Orton along with two first round draft picks to the Denver Broncos for Pro Bowl Quarterback Jay Cutler.
The game would be close throughout but it would be the interception that would spoil the night for the Bears, as Cutler was picked off four times in a loss. The loss would prove costly as Brian Urlacher suffered a season ending wrist injury. Jay Cutler would avoid the big mistake a week later, as the Bears hosted the Pittsburgh Steelers in their home opener.
After tying the game on a seven yard pass from Cutler to Johnny Knox, the Bears would win the game thanks to a 44 yard field goal by Robbie Gould with 15 seconds left. The Bears would also win their next two games to enter the bye week with a record of Playing on Sunday Night again after the bye, the Bears often shot themselves in the foot, with three failed trips in the redzone during a loss to the Atlanta Falcons.
A week later the Bears would be haunted by an old teammate as Cedric Benson ran for a career high yards, as the Cincinnati Bengals hammered the Chicago Bears The Bears would recover to beat the Cleveland Browns a week later, but the Bears struggles would continue as they lost four straight games and six of their next seven games, while never factoring in the playoff chase. One of the biggest disappointments was the play of Jay Cutler, whose season was plagued with interceptions, throwing a 26, while collecting 27 touchdown passes.
The Bears would close the season with two straight divisional wins highlighted by a overtime win against the Minnesota Vikings as Jay Cutler connected with Devin Aromashodu on a 39 yard touchdown pass to end a Monday Night thriller. The two wins would not salvage the season as the Bears posted a disappointing record of Coming off a disappointing season, the Bears looked to improve their defense by adding Free Agent Sackmaster Julius Peppers from the Carolina Panthers.
However, their offensive line continued to be a weak spot as Quarterback Jay Cutler continued to take a lot of hits and sacks on offense in Coordinator Mike Martz's system. In the season opener it appeared the Bears were on the way to a disappointing loss at Soldier Field when Calvin Johnson scored a later Touchdown to give the Detroit Lions a lead. However, up on further review the catch in the back of the endzone was ruled incomplete as the Bears escaped with a win.
In Week 2, the Bears battled the Dallas Cowboys in a back forth tilt that saw Jay Cutler play one of his best games since joining the Bears, passing for yards with three passes as the Bears stunned the Cowboys The Bears would improve to a week later with a Monday Night win over the rival Green Bay Packers as Robbie Gould kicked a 19 yard field goal with four seconds left in a thrilling win at Soldier Field.
Ted Phillips General Manager: Ryan Pace Head Coach: Lou Canellis gameday television host, pre-season sideline reporter Sam Rosen pre-season play-by-play Jim Miller pre-season analyst. National Football League Conference: National Football Conference Division: Championship seasons in bold Book: Retrieved from " https: American football team records and statistics Chicago Bears lists. Views Read Edit View history. This page was last edited on 16 December , at By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Bears 16, Cardinals Falcons 23, Bears Bears 27, Ravens 24 OT.
Bears 41, Bills 9.
The Packers' victory over the Bears that counted for 50 years
Bears weather see below is just around the corner. The grills are prepped until the Star Wars museum lands. For everyone looking to keep up with the conversation this fall, here is your Faker's Guide to the Chicago Bears. The team's first logo, a black bear atop a football, was introduced in the early s. The familiar wishbone "C" was introduced in The Bears originally were named the Decatur Staleys for the semipro team fielded by the A. Staley food starch company in Halas took over the team in and founded it as an NFL franchise, moving it to Chicago in Halas adopted navy blue and orange team colors to mirror his alma mater, the University of Illinois.
Halas won six championships in four decades. He died in Her husband, Ed McCaskey, took over as chairman. They remained in Wrigley from through , so at least someone won something there. The Bears' home on the lakefront since the season, except for , when they played at the University of Illinois in Champaign while Soldier Field was being made to look like a spaceship. The team picked up the former University of Chicago moniker in the s when quarterback Sid Luckman set all kinds of team passing records that stood for decades while he led the Bears to four victories in five title games.
During the regular season, the Redskins defeated the Bears , after which Redskins owner George Preston Marshall called the Bears crybabies and quitters. Before the championship game in Washington, George Halas showed his team the comments. They scored 28 points in the first half and 45 in the second for the greatest margin of victory in NFL history.