1.) 1985, Bears @ Buccaneers: Walter Payton reaches 100 touchdowns
October 6, 1985 | Bears win 27-19
The eventual Super Bowl champions entered Tampa Bay undefeated, but the winless Buccaneers weren’t particularly interested in rolling over.
Chicago trailed 12-3 at halftime before Jim McMahon helped engineer a second-half comeback, completing 14 of 17 passes after intermission.
The biggest story, however, belonged to Walter Payton.
Payton scored on a four-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter, becoming just the sixth player in NFL history to reach 100 career touchdowns.
He added his 101st on a nine-yard run with 52 seconds remaining, sealing Chicago’s 27-19 victory.
McMahon finished with 292 passing yards, while Payton recorded 63 rushing yards and two touchdowns. The defense also held Tampa Bay running back James Wilder to just 29 yards on 18 carries.
The victory moved Chicago to 5-0, its best start since the 1963 championship season.
2.) 2012, Bears @ Jaguars: Peanut and Briggs make NFL history
October 7, 2012 | Bears win 41-3
The 2012 Bears defense had developed a rather enjoyable habit of turning opposing quarterbacks’ mistakes into points.
That trend continued in Jacksonville.
After entering halftime tied 3-3, Chicago exploded for 38 unanswered points in the second half, highlighted by a pair of defensive touchdowns.
Charles Tillman intercepted Blaine Gabbert and returned it 36 yards for a touchdown in the third quarter. Lance Briggs followed with a 36-yard interception return of his own in the fourth.
The two became the first teammates in NFL history to return interceptions for touchdowns in consecutive games, having accomplished the same feat against Dallas six days earlier.
Tillman’s touchdown was also the eighth defensive score of his career, establishing a new Bears franchise record.
The offense eventually joined the fun, with Jay Cutler throwing for 292 yards and two touchdowns, Brandon Marshall catching 12 passes for 144 yards, and Matt Forte rushing for 107 yards.
Chicago improved to 4-1 heading into its bye week.
3.) 2000, Bears @ Packers: Chicago finally breaks through
The 2000 season had not exactly gotten off to the start Chicago was hoping for.
The Bears entered Week 5 at 0-4 before heading north to Lambeau Field, where Brett Favre and the Packers were waiting.
Naturally, that is where everything finally clicked.
Cade McNown opened the scoring with a one-yard touchdown run before connecting with Marcus Robinson for touchdown passes of 68 and 58 yards. Robinson somehow turned just two catches into 126 yards and two touchdowns as Chicago built a 24-3 lead midway through the third quarter.
Green Bay eventually made things interesting.
Favre threw three second-half touchdown passes as the Packers cut the deficit to three, but Paul Edinger’s 47-yard field goal with just over three minutes remaining gave Chicago enough breathing room to hold on for a 27-24 victory.
McNown finished 11-of-20 for 203 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions, while adding 51 yards and another score on the ground.
Maybe most importantly, the Bears did not turn the football over once while forcing three Green Bay giveaways.
The victory gave Chicago its first win of the season, and doing it at Lambeau Field certainly made an otherwise rough start a little easier to swallow.
If you are going to finally get into the win column, beating the Packers is a pretty good way to do it.
Gary Baugher Jr. is a second year contributor to WCG, bringing football insight backed by over 16 years of experience in organized football and more than 30 years as a passionate fan of the game. You can follow him on Twitter at @iamcogs.
