I'm tired of hearing about...

[Herschie]

how the 1985 Bears would not fare well in today's game. That their pro set offense could be shut down, and their 46 picked apart. Yes, both of those things are true, their schemes are dated. However, people tend to forget that they had Buddy Ryan. The man was a defensive genius, and believe me, he would have figured something else out. The same goes for Ditka, he would be able to change his gameplan accordingly.

Also, don't forget all the great players that team had in Mike Singletary, Walter Payton, Dan Hampton, and others. You factor in those guys with today's plans, and it would be very interesting to see how they'd do. I'm not saying they'd dominate like they did back then, but they would definitely be very good.

About the only thing that could be their downfall is the fact that today's athletes are generally in better condition than yesterday's. But then, who knows? Their defensive line weighs roughly the same today as it did back then. Maybe they'd still dominate even today.

Or maybe I'm merely a Bears fan thinking what he wants to think. It would be interesting though.

[ImTellinTim]

Re: I'm tired of hearing about...

Who is even saying this?

[CW McGraw]

Re: I'm tired of hearing about...

I'm sick of people arbitrarily deciding that the modern way of playing football should be the standard by which players and teams are judged. Saying the 85 Bears aren't as good as saying as a modern team is like saying Napoleon Bonaparte is a worse general than like William Westmoreland (dude that was in charge of US forces during Vietnam) because Westmoreland had to command an army consisting of helicopters and planes and Napoleon didn't. Just because a task has more complexity to it doesn't mean being minimally competent at that more complex task is more impressive than being a ridiculous super genius at a more simple task. It's a flawed way to look at history and likewise evaluate the greatness of sports teams and figures.

[Marino]

Re: I'm tired of hearing about...

I'm tired of hearing about Tim Tebow.

[kingkilla56]

Re: I'm tired of hearing about...

Who is even saying this?

I think this is suppose to be a fill in the blank thread. If not thats what its gonna become.


Im tired of hearing about every single misstep of the replacement officials. Not only do they make the same damn mistakes the normal refs make constantly, this is the first time they are working on this stage and with these rules, so it may (and Im talking in hypotheticals of course) take them more than 2 games to perfect their craft in their new jobs, while also working their old ones.

[Herschie]

Re: I'm tired of hearing about...

Who is even saying this?

Ha! Mostly Packer fans. I hear in general how today's teams are better than yesterday's. Michael Jordan wouldn't be as good today. Babe Ruth would flop against today's pitching. I just think that the Bears had a great thing going in 1985, and, with a little adjusting led by Ditka and Ryan, they'd hold their own in today's NFL.

Maybe Madden could decide, much like how the computer decided who'd win with Cassius Clay against Rocky Marciano. But it'd be hard to do without somehow getting all the intangibles in there.

[Herschie]

Re: I'm tired of hearing about...

IIt's a flawed way to look at history and likewise evaluate the greatness of sports teams and figures.

Ah, if only the Bears hadn't been hungover that Monday night in Miami!

Kind of a side note since we're on the subject of history, I find it sort of ironic how the Dolphins handed the 12-0 Bears their first loss on a Monday night in Miami, and in 1997, the 0-7 Bears got their first win on a Monday night in Miami. They were supposed to play the day before, but the Marlins needed the stadium for Game 7 of the World Series.

I love sports history!

[ImTellinTim]

Re: I'm tired of hearing about...

Oh, I see. In that case. I'm tired about hearing about the preseason. This and that guy looks great or bad. Crowning this and that rookie as the next big thing. Everyone is about to be 0-0 and it's time to do it when it counts.

[SPTO]

Re: I'm tired of hearing about...

Actually I think when ESPN did that Greatest Teams of All Time bit with Bill Parcells he noted that the '85 Bears were the closest to a modern era team but size would be a problem for them and so on.

I do think that the '85 Bears would be successful today but maybe not as successful. One of the things that they did was intimidate the hell out of other teams and that was in no small part due to the aggressive nature of the defense. The way the game is called today most of the sacks and hard hits those guys put on the opponent would be flagged as illegal.

That being said if we could magically bring those guys back to their '85 form and plop them into the modern day NFL I think they'd do alright. A lot of people (who probably never saw him play and just looked at stats) seem to poopoo Jim McMahon but the guy had intangibles and played the game with reckless abandon. He had a fairly strong arm and great escapability. His problem was that he'd take it too far and end up taking punishing blows to the body which curtailed his effectiveness later in his career but even then in a backup/sometimes starter role he was very effective. Walter Payton would've been successful in ANY era and they had one guy with world class speed and a couple others who weren't exactly slowpokes in Gault, Gentry and McKinnon respectively.

The defense had some very good tough minded guys who played the game the right way and usually came up big when the situation demanded it.

So yeah the '85 Bears would be a pretty good team today.


I agree with those that say you can't automatically assume that today's game is the be all and end all. Strategically it's probably more complicated today with the passing offenses which bodes ill for the running game. One thing that today's game lacks in a major way is real engagement between the defensive and offensive lines. Yes I know zone blocking is pretty popular for some teams and is pretty effective but it nullifies the one on one battles which were more prevalent in the '80s and most of the '90s. In fact from a purely strategical point of view I think the '80s and '90s gave viewers a better game than what we see today.

In short, what we're witnessing today is the reverse of the ground and pound philosophy of the '60s and '70s so it doesn't seem so "bad" to most people but it negates a whole aspect of the game much the same way as the pass was neglected then, the run game is neglected to a great degree today. Even college football which has historically had more variety in styles of play between teams has become very homogenized to the point that they're spitting out players that would only be effective in one type of offense. (the spread)



Oh and i'm sick of hearing about Tim Tebow too. I hope he flames out in NYJ.

[slickdtc]

'85 Bears are like the '02 Bucs. Defense was incredible, multiple HOF'ers or soon-to-be HOF'ers (Sapp, Brooks, Barber most likely) and an offense that gets overlooked but had some players as well that just fit well for that team. Those Bucs are a decade old now, but still rather modern. That's probably the best comparison. Because the Ravens offense was truly terrible outside of Jamal Lewis.

[wwharton]

Re: I'm tired of hearing about...

'85 Bears are like the '02 Bucs. Defense was incredible, multiple HOF'ers or soon-to-be HOF'ers (Sapp, Brooks, Barber most likely) and an offense that gets overlooked but had some players as well that just fit well for that team. Those Bucs are a decade old now, but still rather modern. That's probably the best comparison. Because the Ravens offense was truly terrible outside of Jamal Lewis.

That Shannon Sharpe guy was pretty good too.

[Chip Douglass]

Re: I'm tired of hearing about...

'85 Bears are like the '02 Bucs. Defense was incredible, multiple HOF'ers or soon-to-be HOF'ers (Sapp, Brooks, Barber most likely) and an offense that gets overlooked but had some players as well that just fit well for that team. Those Bucs are a decade old now, but still rather modern. That's probably the best comparison. Because the Ravens offense was truly terrible outside of Jamal Lewis.

'85 Bears are like the '02 Bucs...with a vastly better offense. The '85 Bears finished 2nd in points scored compared to the Bucs' 18th.

The 1985 Bears were dominant in 1985, which is really all that matters when you're comparing teams that played in different eras. If you include the playoffs, the Bears had the highest net point differential (+339) in the history of the league.

[Herschie]

Re: I'm tired of hearing about...

The 1985 Bears were dominant in 1985, which is really all that matters

True, lucky us, 1985 is the only season that matters in NFL history!

[ImTellinTim]

Re: I'm tired of hearing about...

'85 Bears are like the '02 Bucs...with a vastly better offense. The '85 Bears finished 2nd in points scored compared to the Bucs' 18th.

The 1985 Bears were dominant in 1985, which is really all that matters when you're comparing teams that played in different eras. If you include the playoffs, the Bears had the highest net point differential (+339) in the history of the league.

Their playoff run was absolutely ridiculous. Two shutouts and a 91-10 scoreline.

[Herschie]

Re: I'm tired of hearing about...

Their playoff run was absolutely ridiculous. Two shutouts and a 91-10 scoreline.

Interesting they beat the Cowboys 44-0 in the regular season. Well, the Rams beat the Cowboys 20-0 in the playoffs, and the Bears beat the Rams 24-0 in the NFC Championship Game. The Rams were 20 points better than the Cowboys, and the Bears were 24 points better than the team that beat the Cowboys. Add 'em together, and you get 44. Spooky!