CBS Sports: NFL 1985- NFC Championship- Los Angeles Rams @ Chicago Bears: Pat Summerall Intro

Source:CBS Sports- Chicago Bears DB Gary Fencik.

"Bears vs Rams-1986. From January 8th 1986" 

From Thomas Lover

Pat Summerall was as Tina Turner: said simply the best. Or as Summerall longtime partner and friend said about him, Pat Summerall was the voice of the NFL. He was the guy that you wanted to hear call your team's football game every Sunday because of his great voice, as well as his knowledge for the game since he use to play himself, as well as his great sense of humor. And yet I feel the need to correct a point that Summerall said here. 

The way you hear people talk about the Chicago Bears pre-Mike Ditka and with Walter Payton, you would think that the Bears were in some deep depression or something with one 10 plus loss, losing season after the other. 

The facts are the 1977 Bears were 9-5, finished 2nd in the NFC Central and made it to the divisional round of the NFC Playoffs. The 1979 Bears were 10-6, almost won the NFC Central and made to the NFC Wildcard in the playoffs. The 1983 Bears, Ditka 2nd season, were 8-8 and just missed out on making the NFC Playoffs to the Los Angeles Rams. Yes, from 75-83, the Bears with Walter Payton did have some bad teams, but it was not like they were 4-12 every year with no help of every even being competitive again, let alone winners and a consistent playoff team. 

What made the 85 Bears different from even the 84 Bears that were 10-6 and won the NFC Central, was that they became consistent, especially on defense. And after the first 4 games had the best defense in the entire NFL, that dominated almost every single game they played for the rest of the season, that didn't even give up a single point in the NFC Playoffs. 

And when QB Jim McMahon was in the game and he played 11 games for them that season, which at the time was a career high, the Bears now had a passing attack that allowed for them to score points, especially touchdowns on offense.