Best All-Time Pro Football Team

So, which was the best all-time professional football team?

The 2007 NFL season was dominated by the discussion of whether the New England Patriots were the best all-time pro football team. The Pat's went an undefeated 18-0, before losing to the New York Giants in Super Bowl XLII. The Patriots accomplishments were also marred by allegations of cheating in the "Spygate Scandal." [Check out Belichick Spygate Scandal.]

However, regardless, there's another team out there that I believe would give this Patriots squad one pretty fierce run for its money. And, conveniently, this team also gave another Patriots squad a heck of a beating 22 years ago in Super Bowl XX. That team would be the 1985 Chicago Bears.

The 1985 Chicago Bears were a team built around tough strong defensive play, and if ever a team was said to adopt the mentality of its head coach, it would have to be the 1985 Bears. They were every bit the perfect reflection of their ornery and hardened Head Coach, Mike Ditka.

A quick look at the 1985 Chicago Bears defensive roster during the 1985 season reads more like a Pro Bowl roster than a single NFL team lineup. It's hard to pick out a single player from this lineup, a lineup that gave new definition to the concept of team defense in that every direction in which you looked there was one more imposing figure than the next.

But if you were to start at the top, it would seem appropriate to actually start in the middle, with the legendary Mike Singletary. Singletary, regarded by many as one of the finest middle linebackers to ever play the position, headed up a tremendous linebacking corps that also featured linebackers Otis Wilson, Wilber Marshall, and Ron Rivera. And as good as the linebacking corps was, the defensive line, as a whole, may have been even better. The Bears defensive line also was made up of the likes of Dan Hampton, Steve McMichael, and the 350 lb William "The Refrigerator" Perry. Some say the Achilles Heel of the 1985 Bears may have been its offense. However, it's probably more accurate to say that the Bears' offense was overshadowed by its defense. Because, the '85 Bears offense ended up 2d in the league in scoring [thanks to a reader (egvvnd who submitted picture above) of this page for pointing this out].

"Bearification" of the Lion outside the Chicago Art Institute. Thanks to egvvnd at flickr.com for the picture.

So, it was a more than adequate offense. Undoubtedly, the Bears offense was set up often by its ferocious defense. However, it was headed by one of the greatest running backs of all time, Walter Payton. And while clearly a running team, and for obvious reasons with a player like Payton, the Bears were not afraid to put the ball in the air. QB Jim McMahon proved more than capable of getting the ball to his wide receivers, led by speedster Willie Gault.

The Bears were so dominant defensively that season in fact, that while compiling their 12-0 record to start the '85 season, they gave up more than 20 points only twice, and held opponents to under 20 points for 9 straight games in one stretch. And within that 9 game span, held their opponents to 10 or fewer points in 8 of 9 games. That stretch of brilliance made their performance against the Miami Dolphins in early December, their only loss of the season, so surprising. In giving up 38 points to the Dolphins that night, it represented the only time of 23 total games all season, including preseason and post season games, that the team gave up 30 or more points.

Despite that stutter step, the Bears continued their march, and the post season seemed almost a formality. The Bears steamrolled the competition by a combined score of 91-10, including a 46-10 demolishing of the New England Patriots, who were coming off of a storybook run of their own, in Super Bowl XX.

That's why we pick the '85 Bears as the best all-time NFL team.

Check out our other NFL stories about the Redskins-Cowboys Best All-Time NFL Rivalry and Jim Brown, the Best Pro Football Player Ever.

To read about great teams in other sports, visit:

• Best All-Time NCAA-College-Football Team
• Best All-Time SEC-Football Team
• Best All-Time NBA-Basketball Team
• Best All-Time SEC-Basketball Team
• Best All-Time Major-League-Baseball Team
• Best All-Time SEC-Baseball Team
• Best All-Time American Gymnastics Team

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