The Most Iconic Chicago Bears Moments That Every Fan Remembers
Introduction
Over 100 years of football. Nine NFL championships. Thirty-nine Hall of Famers. One of the most loyal fanbases in all of American sport.
The Chicago Bears have given their fans moments that stop time plays, games, and seasons that get passed down from generation to generation like family stories. Moments that made grown men cry at Soldier Field. Moments that made entire city blocks erupt. Moments that defined what it means to be a Bears fan.
Some of these moments happened before television. Some were watched by 100 million people. Some are so recent the city is still celebrating. All of them belong to every Bears fan who has ever pulled on the navy and orange.
Here are the most iconic moments in Chicago Bears history the ones every true fan remembers, argues about, and keeps alive.
1. The 73-0 Championship: The Most Lopsided Game in NFL History (December 8, 1940)
Before the Super Bowl. Before prime time. Before professional football had even figured out what it was the Chicago Bears did something that has never been matched in over 100 years of NFL history.
On December 8, 1940, the Bears destroyed the Washington Redskins 73-0 in the NFL Championship Game at Griffith Stadium in Washington the most lopsided game in NFL history, regular season or playoffs.
The number is almost impossible to process. Seventy-three points. Zero for the other team. In a championship game. The Bears scored 11 touchdowns and intercepted eight passes three of which they returned for scores. They kicked so many extra points into the stands that officials asked coach George Halas to run scrimmage plays for conversions after the team's final two touchdowns because they were down to their last football.
The context makes it even better. Earlier that season, the Redskins had beaten the Bears 7-3 and Washington's owner called the Bears "crybabies" afterward for disputing calls during the game. Halas filed that away. When the teams met again in the championship, the Bears used a brand new offensive formation the T-formation to absolutely dismantle the Redskins under quarterback Sid Luckman.
The Bears ran out of footballs during the game because so many were kicked into the stands after touchdowns. Think about that. They literally couldn't find enough footballs to continue kicking extra points in the conventional way.
The 73-0 game isn't just a Bears record. It's one of the most extraordinary single events in the entire history of American sport and it belongs to Chicago.
2. The 1965 Draft: Butkus and Sayers in One Pick (January 1965)
Not every iconic Bears moment happens on the field. Sometimes the most historic thing a franchise can do is make two decisions that change everything.
In January 1965, the Chicago Bears made draft history. The Bears selected Dick Butkus with the third overall pick and Gale Sayers with the fourth two future Hall of Famers selected back-to-back in the first round of the same draft. Bears president George "Mugs" Halas said: "As far as we're concerned, we got the No. 1, 2 and 3 college football players in the country."
No team before or since has selected two Hall of Fame players in the first round of a single NFL Draft. That moment alone would secure the 1965 Bears a place in football history.
What followed was the stuff of legend.
Dick Butkus became the most feared middle linebacker the game had ever seen. Number 51 is synonymous with the position of middle linebacker. Butkus was selected to the Pro Bowl in his first eight seasons. He wasn't just a great player he was a force of nature who redefined what defensive football could look like. Offensive coordinators built entire game plans around avoiding him.
Gale Sayers was something else entirely. His career statistics speak for themselves a 5.0 yards-per-carry average, 22 touchdowns in his rookie season setting an NFL record, and a six-touchdown performance in a single game against the 49ers that tied an NFL record. Sayers is the youngest player ever inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame at just 34 years old. His career was heartbreakingly cut short by knee injuries but in the time he played, he was widely regarded as the most naturally gifted open-field runner the game has ever seen.
Two picks. Two legends. One draft. One of the greatest personnel decisions in NFL history.
3. Gale Sayers Scores Six Touchdowns in One Game (December 12, 1965)
If the 1965 draft was the setup, Gale Sayers delivered the payoff before his rookie season was even over.
On December 12, 1965, Sayers scored six touchdowns in a 61-20 Bears win over the San Francisco 49ers at Wrigley Field. It was the first time the Bears had scored 61 points in a regular-season game, the six-touchdown performance tied an NFL record, and Sayers finished the year with 22 touchdown scores an NFL rookie record.
The six touchdowns came in every way imaginable: rushing, receiving, and a punt return. Each one was different. Each one was brilliant. For fans who were at Wrigley Field that day, it was the clearest possible proof that they were watching something that would never be seen again.
Sayers was 22 years old.
4. Walter Payton's 275-Yard Game While Fighting the Flu (October 7, 1977)
Here's everything you need to know about Walter Payton:
He set the NFL single-game rushing record 275 yards against the Minnesota Vikings while playing through a 101-degree fever and severe flu. With no flash or theatrics, Payton carried defenders and broke tackles in his trademark fashion.
The idea of sitting out never entered his mind.
Payton once held the single-game rushing record with 275 yards against Minnesota in 1977 while suffering from the flu. He didn't just play he dominated. He ran like he always ran: with fury, grace, and a refusal to go down that defenders across the entire NFL had nightmares about.
That performance crystallized everything Bears fans had always known about Walter Payton. This was not a player who played well when conditions were ideal. This was a player who played his best when conditions were at their worst which, at Soldier Field in October, is almost always.
Sweetness. Number 34. The greatest Bear who ever lived.
5. Walter Payton Breaks Jim Brown's Rushing Record (October 7, 1984)
Jim Brown's all-time rushing record was supposed to be unbreakable. The Cleveland Browns legend had rewritten the record books during his career, posting 12,312 rushing yards for what many believed would stand as the permanent all-time mark.
Then came a Sunday afternoon in October 1984.
On October 7, 1984, the Chicago Bears met the New Orleans Saints. Walter Payton four inches shorter and 32 pounds lighter than Brown broke his record to claim the mantle for himself. It was the crowning moment for the franchise's greatest player. Chicago won 20-7, and Payton would carry them to the NFC championship later that season.
The record-breaking moment came on a routine handoff, a modest gain and then the referee stopped the game, the Soldier Field crowd rose to its feet, and the man they called Sweetness raised his arms in quiet acknowledgment of what he had just accomplished.
Upon retirement in 1987, Payton was the NFL's all-time leading rusher with 16,726 yards. His number 34 became synonymous with resilience, humility, and work ethic traits still woven into the Bears' identity decades later.
Every Bears fan who was alive on that Sunday in October 1984 remembers exactly where they were.
6. The Super Bowl Shuffle (December 3, 1985)
The audacity. The confidence. The sheer, beautiful arrogance of it.
The 1985 Chicago Bears recorded their iconic "Super Bowl Shuffle" music video on December 3, 1985 the day after suffering their only loss of the entire season against Dan Marino and the Miami Dolphins on Monday Night Football.
They lost on Monday. They recorded a rap video declaring themselves Super Bowl champions on Tuesday. With a month left in the regular season.
The cast of characters became legends: Walter Payton, the NFL's all-time leading rusher at the time; linebacker Mike Singletary, the defensive heartbeat; Jim McMahon, the punk-rock quarterback; and William "The Refrigerator" Perry, the 335-pound rookie who scored a touchdown.
The Super Bowl Shuffle wasn't just a song. It was a declaration. It was 1985 Chicago brash, bold, working-class, and absolutely certain that no one in professional football could stop them. And they were right.
An upcoming documentary from HBO about the iconic 1985 Chicago Bears, titled "The Shuffle," chronicles the story and even Mike Singletary is still at a loss for words about it 40 years later.
That's how you know it was something truly special. The people who made it still can't fully explain it.
7. Super Bowl XX: 46-10. The Greatest Team in NFL History (January 26, 1986)
Everything the 1985 Bears had built every practice, every regular-season win, every bold declaration came to its thunderous conclusion at the Louisiana Superdome on January 26, 1986.
The Bears thrashed the New England Patriots 46-10 in Super Bowl XX. The relentless Bears defense battered the overmatched AFC champions, yielding just seven yards rushing.
Seven. Rushing yards. For an entire game. In the Super Bowl.
Richard Dent earned the Super Bowl MVP award after recording 1.5 sacks and forcing two fumbles. Even today, analysts rank the 1985 Bears among the greatest teams in NFL history. Their physical style still defines what analysts mean when they say "Bear Down."
That championship team included six future Hall of Famers and remains the only Super Bowl championship in Bears history. The dominance of that season 15-1 regular season record, NFC Championship Game blowout, Super Bowl destruction has never been matched in the decades since.
For Bears fans of a certain generation, January 26, 1986 is the greatest day in team history. It was the day Chicago proved to the entire country that their team wasn't just good. It was historically, incomparably, once-in-a-generation great.
8. The Fog Bowl (December 31, 1988)
Not every iconic Bears moment is about triumph. Some are about something stranger and more atmospheric a game that became legendary not because of what happened on the field, but because of what descended over it.
The "Fog Bowl" became legendary when Soldier Field became enveloped in a rare fog bank rolling in from Lake Michigan. It became so dense that people couldn't see the field from the sidelines, let alone the stands. Chicago held an eight-point lead going into the second half when the fog became a factor. The two sides settled into a physical third and fourth quarter where completing passes was almost impossible.
Players described being unable to see their teammates 20 yards away. Fans in the upper deck couldn't see the field at all. Coaches on the sideline couldn't follow the play. Television cameras captured an eerie white blur where a football game was supposed to be.
The Bears held on to win. But the Fog Bowl lives in Bears lore not as a victory but as proof of Soldier Field's unique, sometimes surreal character. There is no other stadium in the NFL that could produce a game like that. There is no other city where it would feel so perfectly, mysteriously appropriate.
9. Devin Hester's Super Bowl Opening Kickoff Return (February 4, 2007)
Super Bowl XLI did not go the way Bears fans hoped. But in its first six seconds, it produced one of the most electric moments in Super Bowl history.
On the opening kickoff of Super Bowl XLI, return specialist Devin Hester took the ball from his own 8-yard line and sprinted 92 yards for a touchdown against the Indianapolis Colts. It was the first and still only opening kickoff returned for a touchdown in Super Bowl history.
Hester is widely regarded as the best kick returner of all time. And in the biggest game of his career, on the biggest stage in American sport, he produced the most dramatic possible opening statement. The Bears were going to give the Colts everything they had.
The Bears ultimately lost 29-17. But Hester's return that six-second sprint down the sideline in front of a global audience is burned permanently into the memory of every Bears fan who watched it live. Some moments are worth the heartbreak that follows.
10. The 2025 Playoff Win Over the Packers: A New Era Begins (January 11, 2026)
For 15 years, Bears fans waited for a playoff win. Through coaching changes, quarterback struggles, rebuilding seasons, and years of watching the Packers celebrate while the Bears went home the faithful kept the faith. They kept wearing the navy and orange. They kept showing up.
On January 11, 2026, the wait ended.
The Bears became the first team in NFL history to win six games in which they trailed in the last two minutes during the 2025 season. Their heroics included Caleb Williams' 46-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver DJ Moore in overtime to beat the Packers in the regular season.
In the NFC Wild Card playoff game at Soldier Field, against the Green Bay Packers, the Bears' oldest and most bitter rivals down 21-9 heading into the fourth quarter, the Bears stormed all the way back to win one of the most miraculous playoff victories the city had ever seen.
Caleb Williams, the No. 1 overall pick of the 2024 NFL Draft, had arrived knowing the Bears' past everything from the iconic 1985 championship team to their recent struggles and embraced the enormous expectations to restore their glory. In the playoff game against Green Bay, he delivered.
The city of Chicago had waited a long time for a moment like that. When it came, Soldier Field all 61,500 fans, in their navy and orange, on a January night in Chicago shook.
A new chapter is being written. And it started with a win over the Packers. Which is exactly how it should be.
The Moments That Define a Fanbase
What makes these moments more than just football is what they represent for the people who experienced them.
The 73-0 game is proof that the Bears helped build this sport from the ground up. The 1965 draft is proof that genius personnel decisions create generational legends. Walter Payton's records are proof that the greatest Bears play their hardest when everything is working against them. The Super Bowl Shuffle is proof that the 1985 Bears were bigger than sport they were a cultural moment. Hester's kickoff return is proof that even in defeat, Bears fans can witness history. And the 2025 playoff win is proof that the loyalty of this fanbase through 15 years of waiting was never misplaced.
The navy and orange has meant something through all of it. It meant something when the Bears ran Redskins defenders into the ground in 1940. It means something today when Caleb Williams takes the field at Soldier Field with a city's hopes on his shoulders.
That continuity that unbroken thread of identity through winning, losing, heartbreak, and triumph is what makes Chicago Bears moments feel different from the highlights of other teams.
They're not just moments. They're our moments.
Wear the Moments
Every time you put on a Chicago Bears sweatshirt in navy and burnt orange, you're wearing all of these moments at once. The 1940 championship. Sweetness. The Shuffle. The Super Bowl. Hester on the kickoff. Caleb Williams in January.
The history doesn't live in a museum. It lives in every fan who keeps it alive.
Browse our Chicago Bears Sweatshirt Collection premium crewnecks and hoodies built for fans who know the history and wear it proudly. Available in sizes S through 5XL in ash, sand, and white colorways.
Bear Down. Always.
Quick Timeline: The Most Iconic Chicago Bears Moments
| Year | Moment |
|---|---|
| 1940 | 73-0 NFL Championship win over Washington — most lopsided game in NFL history |
| 1965 | Bears draft Dick Butkus (3rd) and Gale Sayers (4th) — two Hall of Famers, one draft |
| 1965 | Gale Sayers scores 6 TDs in one game vs the 49ers |
| 1977 | Walter Payton rushes for 275 yards vs Vikings — with the flu |
| 1984 | Payton breaks Jim Brown's all-time rushing record vs the Saints |
| 1985 | The Super Bowl Shuffle recorded — one month before the playoffs |
| 1986 | Super Bowl XX: Bears defeat Patriots 46-10 |
| 1988 | The Fog Bowl — one of the strangest and most atmospheric games in NFL history |
| 2007 | Devin Hester returns the Super Bowl XLI opening kickoff 92 yards for a TD |
| 2026 | Bears defeat the Packers in the NFC Wild Card — first playoff win in 15 years |
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the most iconic moment in Chicago Bears history?
Most Bears fans point to Super Bowl XX the 46-10 victory over the New England Patriots following the legendary 1985 season as the franchise's most iconic moment. The 73-0 championship win in 1940 is a close second for historical significance.
What was the Super Bowl Shuffle?
The Super Bowl Shuffle was a rap music video recorded by members of the 1985 Chicago Bears on December 3, 1985 before the playoffs had even begun. It became one of the most famous moments in NFL pop culture history and was nominated for a Grammy Award.
Did Walter Payton hold the NFL rushing record?
Yes. Walter Payton broke Jim Brown's all-time rushing record in October 1984 and retired in 1987 as the NFL's all-time leading rusher with 16,726 career rushing yards.
Who was Devin Hester?
Devin Hester is widely regarded as the greatest kick returner in NFL history. His most iconic moment was returning the opening kickoff of Super Bowl XLI 92 yards for a touchdown the only opening kickoff return for a touchdown in Super Bowl history.
Did the Chicago Bears win the 2025 NFC North?
Yes. The 2025 Chicago Bears finished 11-5, won the NFC North title under first-year head coach Ben Johnson, and defeated the Green Bay Packers in the NFC Wild Card playoff game their first playoff win in 15 years.
Who are the most legendary Chicago Bears players of all time?
The Bears' legendary roster includes Walter Payton, Dick Butkus, Gale Sayers, Sid Luckman, Mike Singletary, Brian Urlacher, Richard Dent, Devin Hester, Mike Ditka (as both player and coach), and George Halas the founder and "Papa Bear" of the franchise.
