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Title details for Da Bears! by Steve Delsohn - Available

Da Bears!

How the 1985 Monsters of the Midway Became the Greatest Team in NFL History

by Steve Delsohn
ebook
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1 of 1 copy available
An acclaimed sports journalist and native Chicagoan tackles what many call the greatest team in NFL history. Da Bears! tells the full story of the ’85 legends—with all the contro­versy and excitement—on the field and off.
 
It’s been 25 years since the Chicago Bears won Super Bowl XX with what Bill Parcells called “the best de­fensive team I’ve ever seen” and an offense surprisingly good for a franchise where offense was often a dirty word. Now, for the first time, an incredibly candid book takes you through all the games and behind the scenes—into the huddles, the locker rooms, the team meetings, and of course the bars—for an intimate ac­count of that unforgettable season.
 
Here’s how a team that got booed in its regular-season opener ended up winning its first world cham­pionship in 22 years, led by the most capable, colorful, and un-PC characters ever to strap on helmets—including Jim McMahon, the hard partyer and so-called punk rocker who became a star quarterback and an antihero; William “Refrigerator” Perry, the rookie giant who turned into a full-blown national sensation; Mike Ditka, the legendarily combative head coach called “Sybil” for his mercurial moods; his nemesis, defensive coordinator, Buddy Ryan, who insulted and broke down his players, then built them back up again, military-style; Walter Payton, the hard-nosed running back and mischievous prankster; and middle linebacker Mike Singletary, known for his leadership and his jarring hits.
 
From the inner workings of their innovative and attacking 46 defense to the inside story of their cocky “Super Bowl Shuffle” music video (shot, amazingly, right after their one loss of the season, to Miami), all the setbacks and triumphs, ferocious hits and foibles, of this once-in-a-lifetime team are recaptured brashly and boldly—the Chicago way.

  • Creators

  • Publisher

  • Release date

    September 28, 2010

  • Formats

    • Kindle Book

    • OverDrive Read

      • ISBN: 9780307464699

    • EPUB ebook

      • ISBN: 9780307464699
      • File size: 4156 KB

  • Languages

    • English

  • Reviews

    • Publisher's Weekly

      February 28, 2011
      Delsohn provides a fast, unfiltered history of the 1985 Super Bowl Champion Chicago Bears, "the most dominant team" that longtime NFL commentator John Madden claims to have ever seen. To mark that memorable 15-1 season's 25th anniversary, ESPN "Outside the Lines" reporter Delsohn (Talking Irish) tracked down several characters to speak candidly about a season rife with controversy and conflict. We learn that head coach Mike Ditka and defensive coordinator Buddy Ryan rarely spoke to (and often contradicted) each other, quarterback Jim McMahon routinely called audibles on and off the field, and several Bears recorded the seminal "Super Bowl Shuffle" before the playoffs even began. Delsohn grew up in the Windy City and is a Bears fan, but not a fan boy, and his assessment of the team seems fair. Most notably, he addresses the sheer brutality of the Bears' defense, led by middle linebacker Mike Singletary. Many of the Bears' tackles have since been outlawed by the NFL, including the crushing blow right linebacker Wilber Marshall delivered with his helmet to Detroit Lions quarterback Joe Ferguson, who was reportedly knocked unconscious before he hit the ground.

    • Booklist

      October 1, 2010
      The 1985 Chicago Bears rolled through the regular season with a 151 record and demolished three opponents in the playoffs by a combined score of 9110, including a 4610 dismantling of the New England Patriots in the Super Bowl. It was arguably the most dominant NFL team in a generation. Delsohn, currently a reporter for ESPN, provides a context by detailing the process by which the team was assembled, including the then-controversial hiring of head coach Mike Ditka and the retention of defensive coordinator Buddy Ryan. The Ditka-Ryan dynamic was infamously contentious but may have contributed to the internal competitiveness ultimately directed against opponents on Sunday. Quarterback Jim McMahon emerges as a pivotal talent and leader; Delsohn ascribes the teams inability to establish a dynasty to McMahons subsequent injuries. The details of the Ditka-Ryan imbroglio are hilarious in hindsightnot so much at the timeand the insight offered into the teams other dominant personalities (Walter Payton, Richard Dent, Mike Singletary) are also enlightening. Relying primarily on interviews with key participants and secondary sources, Delsohn gives Da Bears a fine tribute on the twenty-fifth anniversary of their triumph.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2010, American Library Association.)

Formats

  • Kindle Book
  • OverDrive Read
  • EPUB ebook

subjects

Languages

  • English

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