1985 Chicago Bears: All Time Great

1985 Chicago Bears: All Time Great

1985 Chicago Bears: All Time Great

The Chicago Bears’ 1984 season ended with a humiliating 23-0 loss to the eventual Super Bowl champions, the San Francisco 49ers. Under Mike Ditka, the Bears improved from 8-8 in 1983 to 10-6 in 1984. The loss to the 49ers in the NFC championship game sparked another step in the team’s evolution. This next step propelled the Bears from playoff contender to one of the greatest teams of all time.

The Bears defense was the catalyst to their success. Future Hall of Famers Mike Singletary, Dan Hampton and Richard Dent led the defense. The defense was ferocious and they loved to sack the quarterback. They recorded 64 sacks in 1985. Dent sacked the quarterback 17 times while Hampton collected 6.5 sacks. The team didn’t record as many sacks as the 72 they accumulated in the 1984 season, but their interceptions went from 21 in 1984 to 34 in 1985. Mike Singletary was the leader of the defense and he was recognized as the Defensive Player of the Year in 1985.

The Bears’ aggression and ability to attack the opposing offense from all angles made them one of the greatest defenses of all time, but you can’t be considered the greatest team ever without an equally great offense. The Bears offense improved from scoring 325 points in 1984 to 456 points in 1985. Quarterback Jim McMahon threw 2392 yards and 15 touchdowns. Willie Gault led the team with 704 yards receiving while Dennis McKinnon led the team with 7 receiving touchdowns. Even with their great statistics, McKinnon and Gault didn’t lead the team in receptions. Running back Walter Payton owned that title.

The Bears defense brought the fire and the aggression, but Payton brought the grace. His combination of speed, vision and athleticism kept the Bears’ offense running on all cylinders. He led the team in receptions with 49 while collecting 483 yards in the passing game. Payton also ran for 1551 yards and 9 touchdowns.

The Bears terrorized teams on both sides of the ball. They were on their way to an undefeated season until they traveled to face the Miami Dolphins in Week 13. Without Jim McMahon, backup quarterback Steve Fuller led the offense. Fuller filled in admirably throwing one touchdown pass and rushing for two more. The offense scored 24 points, but the defense couldn’t contain Dan Marino. Marino threw for 270 yards and 3 touchdowns to lead the Dolphins to a 38-24 victory against the Bears. The win ensured that the 1972 Miami Dolphins would be the only team to remain undefeated for an entire season.

The term, “Greatest Team of All Time,” can get mentioned one too many times, but in the case of the 1985 Chicago Bears, it’s well deserved. They finished the season 18-1. They were second in the NFL in scoring and allowed a league low 198 points. The Bears beat teams by an average of 16.1 points per game. During the playoffs, where the competition level is at its highest, the Bears shutout the New York Giants and the Los Angeles Rams before crushing the New England Patriots 46-10 in Super Bowl XX. They outscored their opponents 91-10 in their three playoff games.

Greatness is hard enough to achieve, it’s even harder to maintain. The Bears continued their great play on defense in 1986 leading the league again in fewest points allowed. They finished with a 14-2 record, but they failed to advance past the divisional round. The group of players from the 1985 Bears would not return to the Super Bowl, and they were great for only one year, but in sports that’s all you need to be remembered.