The 1965 Chicago Bears season was their 46th regular season in the National Football League. The team improved upon the dismal 5–9 record of the previous season, and finished with a 9–5 record that earned them a third-place finish in the NFL Western Conference.
The Bears started the season 0–3, but thanks to rookies Gale Sayers and Dick Butkus, the team won 9 of the last 11 games. Sayers had a magnificent rookie season, and in one game against the San Francisco 49ers at Chicago's Wrigley Field on December 12, he scored six touchdowns in a 61–20 Bears win, the first time the Bears scored 61 points in a regular-season game. Sayers would set an NFL rookie record with 22 touchdowns in one season. The six-touchdown performance tied an NFL record and set a new Bears record. Quarterback Rudy Bukich completed 176 of 312 passes for 2,641 yards and 20 touchdowns.
The 1965 Bears draft class was named No. 8 on NFL Top 10 draft classes.
Off-season
NFL draft
Undrafted free agents
+ 1965 undrafted free agents of notePlayerPositionCollegeDoyle HillQuarterbackNorth Alabama
Roster
Regular season Schedule Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue 1 September 19 at San Francisco 49ers L 24–52 0–1 Kezar Stadium 2 September 26 at Los Angeles Rams L 28–30 0–2 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum 3 October 3 at Green Bay Packers L 14–23 0–3 Lambeau Field 4 October 10 Los Angeles Rams W 31–6 1–3 Wrigley Field 5 October 17 at Minnesota Vikings W 45–37 2–3 Metropolitan Stadium 6 October 24 Detroit Lions W 38–10 3–3 Wrigley Field 7 October 31 Green Bay Packers W 31–10 4–3 Wrigley Field 8 November 7 Baltimore Colts L 21–26 4–4 Wrigley Field 9 November 14 St. Louis Cardinals W 34–13 5–4 Wrigley Field 10 November 21 at Detroit Lions W 17–10 6–4 Tiger Stadium 11 November 28 at New York Giants W 35–14 7–4 Yankee Stadium 12 December 5 at Baltimore Colts W 13–0 8–4 Memorial Stadium 13 December 12 San Francisco 49ers W 61–20 9–4 Wrigley Field 14 December 19 Minnesota Vikings L 17–24 9–5 Wrigley Field Note: Intra-conference opponents are in bold text.
Game summaries
Week 1
Week 2
Week 3
Week 4
Rudy Bukich 16/22, 299 Yds
Week 5
Gale Sayers 297 all-purpose Yds
Week 6
Week 7
Week 8
Week 9
Week 10
Week 11
Week 12
Week 13
Gale Sayers' Six Touchdown Game. His last touchdown came on a 85-yard punt return.
Week 14
Standings
Awards and records Gale Sayers, NFL rookie record, most touchdowns in one season (22) Gale Sayers, NFL record (tied), most touchdowns in one game (6) Gale Sayers, club record, most touchdowns in one game (6)
References