The 1984 season was the Chicago Bears' 65th in the National Football League and their third under head coach Mike Ditka. The team improved from their 8–8 record from 1983, to a 10–6 record, earning them a spot in the NFL playoffs for the first time since 1979.
This was the first of five consecutive NFC Central titles for the Bears. They opened their 1984 training camp in a new location, Platteville, Wisconsin as head coach Mike Ditka needed his team to get away from any distractions they might face at home. The team was on the verge of discovering a group of young leaders for the first time, and began to show the dominating defense that would emerge in full the following season, and pushed much farther than anyone expected them to go.
Highlights of the season included a Week 2 shutout of the Denver Broncos 27–0 behind a huge day from star running back Walter Payton, a Week 3 victory against Green Bay, the first game between Ditka and Packers head coach Forrest Gregg, and a 17–6 victory against the defending Super Bowl champion Los Angeles Raiders. The Week 2 game against Denver featured a famous image from Payton's career: a 50+ yard run down the sideline, led by 2nd-year guard Mark Bortz, an 8th round draft pick that was converted from defensive tackle. Payton reached a major milestone as he surpassed Jim Brown as the game's all-time leading rusher in yards in the third quarter of a Week Six home game against the New Orleans Saints. The Bears beat the Saints 20–7. The 1984 Bears ran for the second-most rushing attempts in a season, with 674.
In the Divisional Round of the playoffs, the Bears defeated the Washington Redskins 23–19 for their first playoff victory in the Super Bowl era as well as their first since their victory over the New York Giants in the 1963 NFL Championship Game. However, the Bears' season ended in the NFC Championship Game 23–0 to the eventual Super Bowl XIX champions, the San Francisco 49ers.
Offseason 1984 NFL draft
Undrafted free agents + 1984 undrafted free agents of notePlayerPositionCollegeMike BassKickerIllinoisChris JensenWide receiverLake Forest
Personnel
Coaches / Staff
Roster
Preseason
Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue 1 August 4 St. Louis Cardinals L 10–19 0–1 Soldier Field 2 August 11 Green Bay Packers L 10–17 0–2 Milwaukee County Stadium 3 August 18 Cincinnati Bengals L 17–25 0–3 Soldier Field 4 August 26 Buffalo Bills W 38–7 1–3 Hoosier Dome
Regular season Schedule Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance 1 September 2 Tampa Bay Buccaneers W 34–14 1–0 Soldier Field 58,789 2 September 9 Denver Broncos W 27–0 2–0 Soldier Field 54,335 3 September 16 at Green Bay Packers W 9–7 3–0 Lambeau Field 55,942 4 September 23 at Seattle Seahawks L 9–38 3–1 Kingdome 61,520 5 September 30 Dallas Cowboys L 14–23 3–2 Soldier Field 63,623 6 October 7 New Orleans Saints W 20–7 4–2 Soldier Field 53,752 7 October 14 at St. Louis Cardinals L 21–38 4–3 Busch Memorial Stadium 49,554 8 October 21 at Tampa Bay Buccaneers W 44–9 5–3 Tampa Stadium 60,003 9 October 28 Minnesota Vikings W 16–7 6–3 Soldier Field 57,517 10 November 4 Los Angeles RaidersW 17–6 7–3 Soldier Field 59,858 11 November 11 at Los Angeles Rams L 13–29 7–4 Anaheim Stadium 62,021 12 November 18 Detroit Lions W 16–14 8–4 Soldier Field 54,911 13 November 25 at Minnesota Vikings W 34–3 9–4 Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome 56,881 14 December 3 at San Diego Chargers L 7–20 9–5 Jack Murphy Stadium 45,470 15 December 9 Green Bay Packers L 14–20 9–6 Soldier Field 59,374 16 December 16 at Detroit Lions W 30–13 10–6 Pontiac Silverdome 53,252
Standings
Game summaries
Week 2: vs. Denver Broncos The Bears limited the Broncos to 130 total yards as three different Denver quarterbacks (John Elway, Gary Kubiak, and Scott Stankavage) completed just nine passes with two interceptions. Seven different Bears players led by Walter Payton rushed for 302 yards.
Week 3: at Green Bay Packers
Week 4: at Seattle Seahawks
Six Bears turnovers and a 21-0 run by the Seahawks in the 3rd quarter were the key as Chicago's season-opening win streak was blunted, 38-9. The two teams combined for just 504 yards of offense with 22 penalties eating up 181 yards.
Week 5: vs. Dallas Cowboys
Mike Ditka for the first time as Bears head coach faced Tom Landry, who'd coached Ditka in Super Bowl VI. Landry's Cowboys were outgained in yardage 400 to 313 but forced two Bears turnovers to win 23-14. The Bears rushing attack still managed 283 yards.
Week 6: vs. New Orleans Saints
Walter Payton ran for 154 yards and a touchdown on his way to breaking Jim Brown's career rushing yardage and 100-yard games records.
Week 9: vs. Minnesota Vikings
Week 10: vs. Los Angeles Raiders
Week 13 vs. Minnesota Vikings
Bears clinch division title
The Football Database. Retrieved 2018-Oct-28.
Week 15: vs. Green Bay Packers
Postseason See full article, 1984–85 NFL playoffs
The first-round matchup sent the 10–6 Bears to Washington, a team that had lost to the Los Angeles Raiders in Super Bowl XVIII. Washington was heavily favored, but Chicago came away with a 23–19 victory that featured touchdown passes from Fuller, as well as Payton on a halfback option pass.
With the momentum of defeating the defending NFC champions, the Bears then travelled to San Francisco for their first appearance in a championship game of any sort since their championship year in 1963. The line for the game came down steadily as the week wore on, but the Bears were shut out 23–0. Fuller had performed poorly in games against tough opponents, and the offense sputtered as the 49ers were able to render Walter Payton ineffective. The team had gone farther than many had expected them to go in 1984, and the season set the stage for their Super Bowl winning 1985 season.
Schedule
Game Date Opponent (seed) Result Record Venue Attendance Divisional Round December 30 at Washington Redskins (2) W 23–19 1–0 Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium 55,431 NFC Championship January 6, 1985 at San Francisco 49ers (1) L 0–23 1–1 Candlestick Park 61,040
NFC Divisional Playoff (Sunday, December 30, 1984): at Washington Redskins
NFC Championship Game (Sunday, January 6, 1985): at San Francisco 49ers The Football Database. Retrieved 2022-Jul-1.
Point spread: 49ers by 10 Over/under: 40.0 (under) Time of game:
BearsGame statistics49ers13 First downs 2532–149 Rushes–yards 29–15987 Passing yards 23613–22–1 19–35–29–50 Sacked–yards 3–837 Net passing yards 228186 Total yards 38784 Return yards 847–43.1 3–39.01–0 Fumbles–lost 1–07–50 Penalties–yards 3–2031:53 Time of Possession 28:07
References
External links
1984 Chicago Bears Season at www.bearshistory.com