Chicago Bears - Pro Football Betting, Online Sportsbook Casino
Chicago
Bears History
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Chicago Bears, professional
football team and one of five teams in the Central Division
of the National Football Conference (NFC) of the National Football
League (NFL). Under the league’s realignment plan, which
will take affect in 2002, the Bears will play in the North Division
of the NFC. The Bears play at Soldier Field in Chicago, Illinois,
and wear uniforms of navy blue, orange, and white.
Chicago has collected nine NFL titles and ranks behind only
the Green Bay Packers in overall league crowns. The Bears were
the NFL’s most dominant team during the 1930s and 1940s,
earning six league titles. George Halas, a cofounder of the
NFL, collected 324 career victories during his 30 seasons as
Chicago’s head coach. He coached many future Hall of Fame
members, including quarterback Sid Luckman and running backs
Red Grange and Bronko Nagurski. Chicago made eight trips to
the playoffs from 1984 to 1994 and won the Super Bowl in 1986.
Running back Walter Payton, the NFL’s all-time leading
rusher with 16,726 yards, produced ten 1,000-yard seasons in
these 11 years.
The Bears franchise was founded as the Decatur Staleys in 1920
by A. E. Staley of the Staley Starch Company. He hired George
Halas to organize, coach, and play on the team. On September
17, 1920, Halas and representatives from 11 other teams met
in Canton, Ohio, and organized the American Professional Football
Association—the precursor to the NFL. Halas assumed ownership
of the team in 1921 with his co-head coach, Dutch Sternaman.
They moved the team to Chicago’s Cubs Park (renamed Wrigley
Field in 1926). The club won the new league’s first title
in 1921, and a year later Halas and Sternaman renamed the team
the Bears.
Halas and Sternaman guided the Bears to eight consecutive winning
records from 1921 to 1928. Their many stars included running
backs Paddy Driscoll and Red Grange. Chicago’s offensive
line was anchored by center George Trafton, who knocked four
opposing linemen out of commission in the first 12 plays during
a 1920 contest.
A new era began in 1930 when another star running back, Bronko
Nagurski, joined the team. Chicago earned back-to-back NFL titles
in 1932 and 1933. Under Halas, the team strung together an NFL-record
18 consecutive victories from 1933 through 1934. The Bears went
undefeated in the 1934 regular season as rookie running back
Beattie Feathers became the first player ever to rush for more
than 1,000 yards in a single season. After holding all 13 regular-season
opponents to 16 or fewer points, the Bears fell to the New York
Giants in the NFL Championship Game, 30-13.
From 1939 to 1950 quarterback Sid Luckman directed Chicago to
four league crowns. The Bears defeated the New York Giants and
the Washington Redskins twice each in championship games. In
1940 the Bears’ new T-formation offense, which depended
on the quarterback to call plays and distribute the ball with
passes, pitches, and options, demolished Washington 73-0 in
what remains the most lopsided championship victory in NFL history.
In 1942 Chicago compiled its second undefeated season.
Chicago fell out of championship contention from 1951 to 1962,
reaching the playoffs in only one season. The Bears rebounded
in 1963 when assistant coach George Allen designed a zone defense
that starred future Hall of Fame members defensive end Doug
Atkins, linebacker Bill George, and tackle-guard Stan Jones.
George, originally a lineman, is credited with inventing the
position of middle linebacker, and Jones helped pioneer the
use of weights in training regimens. On offense, Mike Ditka
revolutionized the tight end position, becoming one of the league’s
best pass receivers. The 1963 Bears posted a 9-3 win-loss record
and defeated the New York Giants 14-10 for the NFL title.
In 1965 the Bears drafted linebacker Dick Butkus and running
back Gale Sayers. Both were eventually elected to the Hall of
Fame, but Chicago failed to reach the playoffs during their
careers. Halas retired as head coach in 1968, and a year later
the franchise posted its worst record ever at 1-13. The team
moved to Soldier Field in 1971, but the Bears posted losing
seasons from 1970 through 1975.
In 1977 the Bears made their first playoff appearance in 14
years. Walter Payton won the second of five consecutive NFC
rushing titles, gaining a career-high 1,852 yards. Ditka returned
to the club as head coach in 1982 and drove the Bears to six
Central Division titles from 1984 to 1990. In 1985 the team
achieved a 15-1 win-loss record, shut out the Giants and the
Los Angeles Rams (now St. Louis Rams) in the playoffs, and defeated
the New England Patriots in the Super Bowl, 46-10.
Ditka’s Bears led the league in defense three times during
the 1980s, led by linebacker Mike Singletary and ends Richard
Dent and Dan Hampton. In addition to Payton, Ditka’s offense
also starred running back Neal Anderson, wide receiver Willie
Gault, and quarterback Jim McMahon. Payton retired in 1987 with
16,726 yards and 110 rushing touchdowns.
Ditka coached Chicago to three more Central Division titles
before leaving the team in 1992. Former Dallas Cowboys defensive
coordinator Dave Wannstedt took over as head coach and rebuilt
the team during the mid-1990s. In 1994 he guided the Bears to
the playoffs, where they upset the Minnesota Vikings before
falling to the San Francisco 49ers in the second round. The
Bears struggled during the late 1990s, and Wannstedt was fired
after the 1998 season.
1986 Super Bowl XX Defeated New England Patriots, 46-10. |
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