The 2005 Chicago Bears defense is catching many comparisons to the 1985-86 Super Bowl winning “Monsters of the Midway” because of their dominance, and this year’s team has the chance to go down in history as the “Modern Day Monsters..” if they can duplicate their predecessors Super Bowl feat. Until then, perhaps a comparison to the 2001, then NFC Central Division, Championship team is more apt.
This year’s team has escaped losses by the skin of their teeth on several occasions thanks to big defensive plays late in the game or in OT much like the 2001 team which seemed to win every game on an interception return for a TD. At 9-3, if the Bears win out, they will match the 13-3 mark of the 2001 Bears. It’s becoming more and more apparent that these two Bears teams, especially if you watch the games, and not the 1985-86 Super Bowl winning team, have a more similar resemblance. However, I think this comparison has everything to do with offense, not defense.
The 1985 Bears defense did not spend the majority of the game on the field. They had an All Pro offensive backfield with Walter Payton and Jim McMahon as well as a deep threat in Willie Gualt as the team’s play makers, who had no problem controlling the ball and putting the pigskin in the end zone. This year’s team has a former All Pro receiver in Muhammed, who came over from Carolina, who is not being utilized to his full capacity as Coach Lovie Smith took the ball out of rookie QB Kyle Orton’s hands after a 5 INT fiasco in week three against Cincinnati. The Bears have scrapped any deep routes down the middle of the field and will only occasionally throw a 30 yard go route to Muhammed down the sideline so that it has very little chance of being picked. Lovie Smith has decided to cut his losses on the offensive end by running the football 3 downs and punting every possession if necessary. He wants to take care of the ball and use his offense as a defensive catalyst instead of vice versa to leave their opponents in vulnerable positions on the field to give his big play defense a chance to make big plays.
They say defense wins championships, and if this is the case the Bears appear to be in good position, especially in a NFC where teams such as the Eagles, Falcons, and the Panthers, who the Bears beat impressively a couple weeks ago, are not playing their best football. Seattle most likely presents the biggest challenge for the Bears at this point. But I think the question of this teams ultimate success revolves around its offense. The 2001 Bears didn’t have enough offense to get past their 1st playoff opponent as they went down to Philadelphia 31-19, and at some point, one would speculate, the Bears defense will endure injury problems or their legs will simply tire out from spending so much time on the field over the course of the season. But if somehow this miracle season which started 1-3 can end with a Super Bowl victory, the 2005 Bears defense would have to go down in history as a better defense than the “Monsters of the Midway” as they would have been more responsible for their team’s success with the sizeable offensive disadvantage that they have. And if this year’s Bears make the big game but don’t come out on top, they should at least be considered equals to the 1985 defense, and maybe they wouldn’t even have to go that far.
Only time will tell, but we could be witnessing history this season. This years Bears could be enshrined in the same untouchable place as the ‘85 team that has Bears fans and analysts mocking me for even hinting that this years defense is better. I’ve even held off writing this article for a couple weeks thinking the Bears’ luck will run out any week now and they’ll fall to reality, but they continue to rise to the occasion. I’m going to come out and say it because I want to be the first. The 2005 Bears are the Modern Day Monsters of the Midway.
Jimmy Boyd is a documented member of the Professional Handicappers League.
Read all of his articles at http://www.procappers.com/Jimmy_Boyd.htm