John Madden, 1936 - 2021

John Madden was known to successive generations as the winning coach in Super Bowl XI, as the man who revolutionized the role of analyst in sports broadcasting (receiving 16 Emmy awards in the process), and as the face of the most popular sports video game ever produced.

     

JOHN MADDEN ARRIVES AT WALTER PAYTON'S FUNERAL.

Madden never played, coached, or lived in Chicago, but he did have a Chicago connection that’s worthy of mention. From the early 1980s until he passed away this week, Madden was unequivocal that Bears immortal Walter Payton ranked as his favorite player of all time.

     Madden spoke at Payton’s funeral in 1999. “Too many people judge a running back only by how many rushing yards he has,” Madden said that day. “You seldom hear how many passes a running back caught for how many yards. And you hardly ever hear how good a blocker he is, either as a pass blocker, picking up a blitzing linebacker, or as a run blocker for the other running back—but that’s how coaches evaluate a running back. And that’s why Walter Payton is the best running back I’ve ever seen.”

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Bears First-Round Draft Picks

 The first two players selected in the 1965 NFL draft, running backs Tucker Frederickson (New York Giants) and Ken Willard (San Francisco 49ers) ended up being good but not great. The next two picks belonged to the Bears, who selected two of the greatest players of all time--Dick Butkus and Gale Sayers.
     From 1975 (Walter Payton) through 1990 (Mark Carrier), every player selected by the Bears in the first round of the NFL draft became a productive player, and most became stars. For the past 30 years, it has been a lot more bad than good. Brian Urlacher is the only certified all-timer in the group, at least so far, while Tommie Harris and Kyle Long were stars that shone briefly. 

     The Bears' selection of quarterback Mitchell Trubisky with the second overall pick in 2017 will go down in history, and not in a good way. As every Bears fan knows all too well, general manager Ryan Pace traded up to get Trubisky while the great Patrick Mahomes was still available. Of course, the Bears also traded up this year to acquire Justin Fields--and let's hope that is where the comparison ends.

JUSTIN FIELDS

Below is the complete list of Bears first-round draft choices. The player's overall draft position is in parentheses, and an asterisk indicates a Hall of Famer. 

1936 - Joe Stydahar, tackle, West Virginia (6)*
1937 - Les McDonald, end, Nebraska (8)
1938 - Joe Gray, back, Oregon State (10)
1939 - Sid Luckman, quarterback, Columbia (2)*
1939 - Bill Osmanski, fullback, Holy Cross (6)

1940 - Bulldog Turner, center, Hardin-Simmons (7)*
1941 - Tom Harmon, halfback, Michigan (1)
1941 - Norm Standlee, fullback, Stanford (3)
1941 - Don Scott, back, Ohio State (9)
1942 - Frankie Albert, quarterback, Stanford (10)
1943 - Bob Steuber, halfback, DePauw (9)
1944 - Ray Evans, tailback, Kansas (9)
1945 - Don Lund, back, Michigan (7)
1946 - Johnny Lujack, quarterback, Notre Dame (4)
1947 - Bob Fenimore, halfback, Oklahoma State (1)
1947 - Don Kindt, defensive back, Wisconsin (11)
1948 - Bobby Layne, quarterback, Texas (3)*
1948 - Max Bumgardner, defensive end, Texas (10)
1949 - Dick Harris, center, Texas (11)

1950 - Chuck Hunsinger, halfback, Florida (3)
1950 - Fred Morrison, fullback, Ohio State (10)
1951 - Bob Williams, quarterback, Notre Dame (2)
1951 - Gene Schroeder, end, Virginia (12)
1952 - Jim Dooley, back, Miami - Florida (8)
1953 - Billy Anderson, defensive back, Compton - Calif. (6)
1954 - Stan Wallace, defensive back, Illinois (6)
1955 - Ron Drzewiecki, halfback, Marquette (11)
1956 - Tex Schriewer, end, Texas (10)
1957 - Earl Leggett, defensive tackle, LSU (13)
1958 - Chuck Howley, linebacker, West Virginia (7)
1959 - Don Clark, back, Ohio State (7)

1960 - Roger Davis, guard, Syracuse (7)
1961 - Mike Ditka, tight end, Pittsburgh (5)*
1962 - Ronnie Bull, running back, Baylor (7)
1963 - Dave Behrman, center, Michigan State (11)
1964 - Dick Evey, defensive tackle, Tennessee (14)
1965 - Dick Butkus, linebacker, Illinois (3)*
1965 - Gale Sayers, running back, Kansas (4)*
1965 - Steve DeLong, defensive end, Tennessee (6)
1966 - George Rice, defensive tackle, LSU (12)
1967 - Loyd Phillips, defensive end, Arkansas (10)
1968 - Mike Hull, running back, USC (16)
1969 - Rufus Mayes, tackle, Ohio State (14)

1970 - none
1971 - Joe Moore, running back, Missouri (11)
1972 - Lionel Antoine, tackle, Southern Illinois (3)
1972 - Craig Clemons, defensive back, Iowa (12)
1973 - Wally Chambers, defensive tackle, Eastern Kentucky (8)
1974 - Waymond Bryant, linebacker, Tennessee State (4)
1974 - Dave Gallagher, defensive end, Michigan (8)
1975 - Walter Payton, running back, Jackson State (4)*
1976 - Dennis Lick, tackle, Wisconsin (8)
1977 - Ted Albrecht, tackle, California (16)
1978 - none
1979 - Dan Hampton, defensive end, Arkansas (4)*
1979 - Al Harris, defensive end, Arizona State (8)

1980 - Otis Wilson, linebacker, Louisville (19)
1981 - Keith Van Horne, tackle, USC (11)
1982 - Jim McMahon, quarterback, Brigham Young (5)
1983 - Jimbo Covert, tackle, Pittsburgh (6)*
1983 - Willie Gault, wide receiver, Tennessee (18)
1984 - Wilber Marshall, linebacker, Florida (11)
1985 - William Perry, defensive tackle, Clemson (22)
1986 - Neal Anderson, running back, Florida (27)
1987 - Jim Harbaugh, quarterback, Michigan (26)
1988 - Brad Muster, fullback, Stanford (23)
1988 - Wendell Davis, wide receiver, LSU (27)
1989 - Donnell Woolford, defensive back, Clemson (11)
1989 - Trace Armstrong, defensive end, Florida (12)

1990 - Mark Carrier, defensive back, USC (6)
1991 - Stan Thomas, tackle, Texas (22)
1992 - Alonzo Spellman, defensive end, Ohio State (22)
1993 - Curtis Conway, wide receiver, USC (7)
1994 - John Thierry, defensive end, Alcorn State (11)
1995 - Rashaan Salaam, running back, Colorado (21)
1996 - Walt Harris, defensive back, Mississippi State (13)
1997 - none
1998 - Curtis Enis, running back, Penn State (5)
1999 - Cade McNown, quarterback, UCLA (12)

2000 - Brian Urlacher, linebacker, New Mexico (9)*
2001 - David Terrell, wide receiver, Michigan (8)
2002 - Marc Colombo, tackle, Boston College (29)
2003 - Michael Haynes, defensive end, Penn State (14)
2003 - Rex Grossman, quarterback, Florida (22)
2004 - Tommie Harris, defensive tackle, Oklahoma (14)
2005 - Cedric Benson, running back, Texas (4)

2006 - none

2007 - Greg Olsen, tight end, Miami - Florida (31)
2008 - Chris Williams, tackle, Vanderbilt (14)
2009 - none

2010 - none

2011 - Gabe Carimi, tackle, Wisconsin (29)

2012 - Shea McClellin, defensive end, Boise State (19)

2013 - Kyle Long, tackle, Oregon (20)

2014 - Kyle Fuller, cornerback, Virginia Tech (14)

2015 - Kevin White, wide receiver, West Virginia (7)

2016 - Leonard Floyd, linebacker, Georgia (9)

2017 - Mitchell Trubisky, quarterback, North Carolina (2)

2018 - Roquan Smith, linebacker, Georgia (8)

2019 - none

2020 - none

2021 - Justin Fields, quarterback, Ohio State (11) 

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1985 Bears Postseason Flashback: "Men Against Boys"

In the two weeks between the Bears’ dismantling of the Los Angeles Rams in the NFC championship game and their date with destiny in Super Bowl XX, Chicagoans were guardedly optimistic. Their teams had a history of near misses and other failures that made it impossible for many fans to fully savor the ride on which the Bears were taking them.

The Bears themselves were confident that they could not lose. Oddsmakers made them double-digit favorites, and the Bears swaggered into New Orleans as conquering heroes. Certainly no team ever entered the Super Bowl with a more colorful cast of characters. Their propensity for unpredictable quotes made the Bears an ongoing media event. One New Orleans sportscaster—not content with the actual outrageous statements of the Bears—falsely reported that quarterback Jim McMahon had called the local women “a bunch of sluts.” This was a rare instance in which the controversial McMahon was blameless. However, he did moon photographers at a workout to show them, he said, the part of his anatomy that was being treated with acupuncture.

The AFC champion New England Patriots were almost forgotten in the general hubbub surrounding the Bears. It wasn’t that the Patriots weren’t deserving (they had won 12 of their last 14 games); it was just that they weren’t the Miami Dolphins—with whom the Bears wished to settle accounts. But the Dolphins hadn’t made it to New Orleans, and the Patriots would have to do.

In a meeting of the Bears’ defensive coaches and players the night before the Super Bowl, Buddy Ryan all but confirmed the rumors that he was leaving to become head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles. “Whatever happens tomorrow,” he told the players, “I want you to know that you’re my heroes.” He then left the room, overcome with emotion. 

The group began watching some film of the Patriots. After just a few minutes, Dan Hampton concluded that the session had gone on long enough. He kicked the projector off its stand. Steve McMichael then hurled a chair through the chalkboard on which some plays had been diagrammed. “Let’s get the hell out of here!” said Hampton. Without anyone saying another word, the players all got up and walked out of the room. The meeting was over, and the Bears were ready.

  

“I’LL MEET YOU GUYS AT THE QUARTERBACK.”

Once the game started, New England had a brief glimmer of hope. On the second play of the game, Walter Payton fumbled at the Bears’ 19-yard line and the Patriots recovered. “Here we go again,” thought all the Chicagoans who’d learned from bitter experience not to trust their teams too much. But New England quarterback Tony Eason misfired on three pass attempts, and the Patriots settled for a field goal.

Although they were behind 3-0 with the game barely a minute old, it was already perfectly plain by now that the Bears would win. The Patriots had no more idea how to move the ball against them than they’d had four months earlier, when they rushed for only 27 yards in a 20-7 loss at Soldier Field. 

Convinced by the September 15 game that his team couldn’t run on the Bears, New England coach Raymond Berry felt he had no choice but to come out throwing. Therefore, Eason felt the full force of the Bears’ merciless pass rush on almost every play. In the Bears’ defensive huddle, Hampton said, “I’ll meet you guys at the quarterback.”

“We knew that if we got them into a passing situation,” Mike Singletary said, “we’d have things wrapped up.” 

The Bears’ next two possessions resulted in field goals by Kevin Butler. Then Richard Dent stripped the ball from Patriots running back Craig James, and Singletary pounced on it at the New England 13. Two plays later, Matt Suhey carried 11 yards for a touchdown.

At the end of the first quarter, the Bears led 13-3. New England had run ten plays for minus-19 yards. “It was like trying to beat back the tide with a broom,” said Patriots guard Ron Wooten. The second quarter saw more of the same. “I tried to scramble,” Eason said, “but there was no place to go.” The Patriots simply could not block the Bear defenders. Eason was 0-for-6 passing and had been sacked three times when he was removed from the game, for his own good, five minutes before halftime.

It was 23-3 at the intermission. By now even the most pessimistic Chicagoan must have known that nothing could stop the Bears. “It’s the men against the boys out there,” said NBC analyst Pete Axthelm.

Veteran Steve Grogan replaced the shell-shocked Eason and fared somewhat better, but the Bears continued to pour it on. McMahon hit Willie Gault for 60 yards on their first play of the second half; he concluded the 96-yard drive eight plays later with a quarterback sneak from one yard out. A 28-yard interception return by Reggie Phillips and a one-yard plunge by William Perry gave the Bears their last two touchdowns.

The score was 44-3 when head coach Mike Ditka called off the dogs and replaced his starters early in the fourth quarter. New England finally scored a touchdown on an eight-yard pass from Grogan to Irving Fryar after a 12-play drive against the Bears’ second-team defense. Later, an obscure defensive end named Henry Waechter ended the day’s scoring when he sacked Grogan in the end zone for a safety.

Ditka took a lot of flak for not trying harder to get Payton a touchdown at some point—especially since Perry, the coach’s favorite novelty act, got the chance to score from the one-yard line in the third quarter. Ditka admitted that he should have realized before it was too late that Payton hadn’t scored in the game. But it was difficult to see how a token touchdown in a blowout game, even if it was the Super Bowl, would have added much luster to Payton’s incomparable career. What really mattered was that he and his teammates were world champions.

 

RYAN AND DITKA ARE CARRIED OFF THE FIELD.

When it was over, both Ditka and Ryan were carried off the field in triumph. The Bears had been splendid on both sides of the ball, and the final score of 46-10 made it the most lopsided Super Bowl up to that time. Practically any one of a dozen Bears could have taken MVP honors, which ended up going to Dent. McMahon, for example, passed to six different receivers for 256 yards and ran for two touchdowns, while Gault caught four balls for 129 yards. Ryan’s defenders disrupted everything that New England tried to do, limiting the Patriots to a mere 123 yards on offense—seven on the ground.

“It will be many years,” Paul Zimmerman wrote in Sports Illustrated, “before we see anything approaching the vision of hell that Chicago inflicted on the poor New England Patriots in Super Bowl XX. It was near perfect, an exquisite mesh of talent and system, defensive football carried to its highest degree. It was a great roaring wave that swept through the playoffs, gathering force and momentum until it finally crashed home in New Orleans’ Superdome in pro football’s showcase game.”

After exceeding even the wildest dreams of their fans all season, the Bears outdid themselves when it mattered most. In three postseason games, they scored 91 points and yielded only 10. Their opponents averaged fewer than 145 yards per game and converted three third downs out of 36.

The 1985 Bears showed football fans a level of excellence that had seldom been attained. They talked big, played bigger, and shuffled into a place in history. 

  

 

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1985 Bears Postseason Flashback: "The Super Bowl Shuffle"

The lead-up to the Bears’ first Super Bowl was enlivened by “The Super Bowl Shuffle,” the audacious rap song by the Chicago Bears Shufflin’ Crew that was heard almost incessantly throughout December 1985 and January 1986--and has endured, somewhat surprisingly, as a landmark of sorts in the subsequent 35 years.
    

Despite having sustained their first defeat of the season (after 12 straight victories) shortly before the recording session, the Bears remained quite sure that they were headed to the Super Bowl, and the “Shuffle” was a bold statement to that effect. The project was the brainchild of Dick Meyer, a lifelong Bears fan who enlisted Willie Gault, the fleet wide receiver and aspiring actor/singer, to be his point person with the players. “A substantial portion” of the proceeds was to be donated to charity.
     Meyer and Melvin Owens wrote the lyrics, which were tailored to each of the ten featured “singers”: Walter Payton, Gault, Mike Singletary, Jim McMahon, Otis Wilson, Steve Fuller, Mike Richardson, Richard Dent, Gary Fencik, and William Perry. Bobby Daniels and Lloyd Barry wrote the music, and Meyer acted as producer and choreographer.
     In addition to the ten front men, fourteen other Bears participated in supporting roles. The players might have done the project as a lark, but “The Super Bowl Shuffle” was a genuine phenomenon. It sold more than half a million copies as a 45-RPM record, ascended to No. 41 on the national pop music charts, and was nominated for a Grammy award. At the end of the day, some $300,000 was donated to the Chicago Community Trust to provide food, shelter, and clothing for needy families.

Chicago Bears Shufflin’ Crew (featured singers, in order of appearance)
34 - Walter Payton, running back
83 - Willie Gault, wide receiver
50 - Mike Singletary, linebacker
  9 - Jim McMahon, quarterback
55 - Otis Wilson, linebacker
  4 - Steve Fuller, quarterback
27 - Mike Richardson, cornerback
95 - Richard Dent, defensive end
45 - Gary Fencik, safety
72 - William Perry, defensive tackle/fullback

Chicago Bears Shufflin’ Crew Band (in alphabetical order)
  8 - Maury Buford, punter (cowbell)
29 - Dennis Gentry, running back (bass)
98 - Tyrone Keys, defensive end (keyboard)
33 - Calvin Thomas, running back (saxophone)
18 - Mike Tomczak, quarterback (guitar)

Chicago Bears Shufflin’ Crew Chorus (in alphabetical order)
21 - Leslie Frazier, cornerback
23 - Shaun Gayle, safety
75 - Stefan Humphries, guard
51 - Jim Morrissey, linebacker
89 - Keith Ortego, wide receiver/punt returner
48 - Reggie Phillips, cornerback
53 - Dan Rains, linebacker
20 - Thomas Sanders, running back
31 - Ken Taylor, cornerback/punt returner

 

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George S. Halas Jr., The Man Called "Mugs"

Judging by the fierce reaction to this week's end-of-season press conference by Bears chairman George McCaskey and president Ted Phillips, the majority of fans are not convinced that these two have any idea how to lift their franchise out of mediocrity. Phillips is the only person not named Halas or McCaskey to hold the title of Bears president. During his 22-year tenure, the Bears have a .486 winning percentage and have played a total of nine postseason games, winning three.

 

GEORGE HALAS JR. and JIM FINKS.

When the legendary George Halas retired as head coach after the 1967 season, the Bears had an all-time winning percentage of .680 over 48 seasons and had won nine world championships. Only a few years later, at a Bears game in 1973, George Halas Jr. turned to his dad and said, "I am so sick of this!" By "this," the man known as Mugs meant the Bears' recent history of losing, which was about to extend to five consecutive sub-.500 seasons. (It was the first such streak of more than two years in franchise history.)

     In September 1974, the Halases did something about it. They hired the Bears' first general manager other than Papa Bear himself--and the man they chose for the job proved to be exactly what the doctor ordered.

     He was Jim Finks, who had just concluded a ten-year stint in a similar role with the Minnesota Vikings, which resulted in Super Bowl appearances after the 1969 and 1973 seasons and the NFL Executive of the Year award in 1973.

     The Bears opened the 1974 season two days after Finks was hired, with a team that did not yet have his fingerprints on it. They beat the Detroit Lions in the opener, but soon reverted to form and finished 4-10.
     Finks had spent the season evaluating the Bears' coaches and players, and he delivered his verdict shortly after clock ticked down on a season-ending 42-0 loss at Washington. Head coach Abe Gibron was sent packing, and so were a good many of his players. Jack Pardee took over as head coach, and Finks and his staff set about planning for the 1975 draft.
     The first player that Finks drafted for the Bears, with the fourth overall pick in 1975, was the immortal Walter Payton. Long-time starters Mike Hartenstine, Virgil Livers, Revie Sorey, and Bob Avellini also were products of that same draft.
     During his years with the Bears, Finks never missed on a first-round pick. After Payton, his other first-rounders were Dennis Lick, Ted Albrecht, Dan Hampton, Al Harris, Otis Wilson, and Keith Van Horne. He got future Hall of Famer Mike Singletary in the second round in 1981.        

     Finks was no longer employed by the Bears when his rebuilding project culminated in the 1985 world championship. He had resigned in 1982 after Papa Bear hired head coach Mike Ditka without consulting him. 

     

Sadly, neither George Halas Jr. nor his dad lived to see the Bears' resounding victory in the 1986 Super Bowl. Mugs passed away suddenly on the morning of December 16, 1979. He was only 54 years old. That afternoon, the Bears dedicated their game (the season finale) to Mugs and routed the St. Louis Cardinals 42-6 to make the playoffs for just the second time since the 1963 championship.

     George Halas Jr. had been groomed for his whole life to take over the Bears some day. If he had survived his dad, who passed away on Halloween in 1983 at age 88, Mugs would have taken control of the franchise and eventually passed it on to his children, Christine and Stephen. In that case, Mugs's sister and brother-in-law, Virginia and Ed McCaskey--along with their ten children and 21 grandchildren--would have been stockholders but would not have been running the show all these years.

     It's only fair to wonder how different the Bears' recent history might have been. 

 

 

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1985 Bears Postseason Flashback: January 12, 1986

We are revisiting the three postseason games that confirmed the 1985 Bears as one of the greatest teams in pro football history—the NFC playoff games against the New York Giants and Los Angeles Rams and the Super Bowl against the New England Patriots—on the 35th anniversary of each. We hope you enjoy the ride.

 

OTIS WILSON and WILBER MARSHALL.

After the Bears dispatched the New York Giants 21-0 on January 5, they hosted the Los Angeles Rams in the NFC championship game on January 12. It was another cold and windy day in Chicago, and the Rams looked as if they longed for the temperate climes of southern California. Bears defensive end Dan Hampton said he could see defeat in their eyes even at the opening coin toss. When the Rams won the flip and elected to receive, the crowd of 63,522 cheered, figuring the Bear defenders would push them backward.

From the start, Los Angeles quarterback Dieter Brock (10-for-31 passing) and running back Eric Dickerson (17 carries for 46 yards) were wholly ineffective. Dickerson, supposed to be the man who would eventually break Walter Payton’s lifetime rushing mark, had gained a playoff-record 234 yards against Dallas the week before. The Bears held him to less than three yards per attempt and forced him to fumble twice. “If they would have run him more,” said defensive coordinator Buddy Ryan, who had predicted three fumbles by Dickerson, “he would have had three.” 

In the third quarter, Dickerson and Mike Singletary—Southwest Conference rivals at S.M.U. and Baylor, respectively, renewed their acquaintance in the Rams’ backfield. Dickerson had just taken a handoff when he blasted into Singletary filling the gap and stopped dead in his tracks. He moved not one inch forward after meeting up with the Bears’ middle linebacker. “I like this kind of party!” Singletary shouted to the Rams. “I’m gonna be here all day!” 

Bears quarterback Jim McMahon, meanwhile, was brilliant. Despite the weather, he hit on 16 of 25 passes for 164 yards. On the Bears’ first series, he ran 16 yards for a touchdown on a play that was called as a pass. Later he passed for a touchdown on a play called as a run. “The coach sent in a play I didn’t agree with,” McMahon said, “so I called my own.” His 22-yard strike to Willie Gault put the Bears ahead 17-0, and the outcome was decided. The Bears would be NFC champions. 

The fans began to chant: “Super Bowl, Super Bowl.” Late in the fourth quarter, the hapless Brock dropped back to pass and was flung to the turf by defensive end Richard Dent. The ball popped loose. Linebacker Wilber Marshall picked it up at midfield and headed into Rams territory with Otis Wilson escorting him. 

Just then, it started to snow. 

Marshall and Wilson romped 52 yards to the Los Angeles end zone all alone, while the crowd cheered both them and the snow. As the final minutes ticked away, the Bears briefly abandoned the business-as-usual demeanor that had characterized them all year. They embraced one another on the sideline, and head coach Mike Ditka congratulated each man individually. Safety Dave Duerson said that Ditka even became choked up. 

The final score was 24-0. “The way we were playing defense,” said Ditka, “it didn’t matter what we scored.” The Bears became the first team ever to post back-to-back playoff shutouts. They were headed to the Super Bowl as confident as a team could be—and rightly so.

 

 

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