Let’s keep it rolling with number 7 on our list of the Chicago Bears’ greatest playoff wins of the Super Bowl era. The Bears have won 11 times in the playoffs since the Super Bowl began, so yes, if you were hoping for the Bears’ 16- 6 win over the Saints, you’ll find that one on the cutting room floor. Although an interesting side note in that story, I was in attendance at that game, and there was snow in the seats, and I remember Craig “Ironhead” Heyward getting hit with a snowball while standing
on the sidelines from a fan, and he turned around and was ready to fight somebody, but I digress.
What went into ranking these games? I think what team they beat matters. I think how they won matters. I believe individual performances within the game matter. Was it dramatic? Did they blow the opponent out? What made the game interesting or compelling from a Bears perspective? All of these factors went into determining how these games should be ranked.
But let’s get to number seven, which is a game that is one of the more famous non-Super Bowl playoff games in NFL history, and it had nothing to do with the result on the field.
After winning the Super Bowl, the Bears had lost in back-to-back seasons in the playoffs to the Washington Redskins. So when the Bears won the division and earned another playoff berth in 1988, it was probably a welcome change to see the Philadelphia Eagles as their opponent rather than Washington.
The first half was a pretty typical game that you would expect from two teams with tremendous defenses. The first half featured many punts, quite a few field goal attempts, and a couple of turnovers as well. The Bears did muster two first-half touchdowns by Dennis McKinnon and Neal Anderson, and they jumped out to a 17-9 halftime lead.
But as the second half kicked off, a fog rolled in off Lake Michigan and settled over Soldier Field. It was so dense, you could barely see the action on the field. It made passing the football almost impossible, and teams had to rely on running the football. With offenses so predictable, there wasn’t much second-half action. Both teams managed a field goal, and the Bears won the game 20 to 12, but not before the “Fog Bowl” became one of the most bizarre games in NFL history.
Listening to the video above (you have to watch it on YouTube due to NFL rights) of Wayne Larrivee calling a crucial interception in the game shows just how wild the game was.
The Bears won the Fog Bowl, but remained in a fog the following week when they lost to the San Francisco 49ers 28 to 3.
