I know that the '85 Bears can be an overdone reference point for many Bear fans, but there is, to my mind, no doubt that Jim Finks and his staff conducted a master class in building through the Draft. The following is excerpted from a 2013 article by Bob Doll titled:
’85 Bears Built by Outstanding Draft Classes
...Let me reminisce if I may…in 1981, the Bears selected many notables; Todd Bell (4), Mike Singletary (2) and Keith Van Horne in the first round. The Bears did not do much else that draft, but here was a Hall of Fame MLB and two other Pro Bowl caliber players too.
The 1982 draft brought Kurt Becker (6), Dennis Gentry (4), and none other than the punky QB himself Jim McMahon in the first round. You can say what you will about McMahon, but as a Bear fan, I loved him! All the Packer fans I knew at the time (and there weren’t many at that time) despised him and the team…chuckle, chuckle.
It is my journalistic and professional opinion that it was the 1983 draft class where the Bears struck gold and paved the way for football excellence for years to come. I say that because the team added Pro Bowl and Hall of Fame talent in very late rounds and their top picks also translated to immediate productivity. The Bears snatched both Mark Bortz and Richard Dent in the 8th round! Tom Thayer (4), Dave Duerson (3), Mike Richardson (2), and two first round picks that became Willie Gault and Jim Covert. Now those are some building blocks for sure!
For an encore, the 1984 draft class included Shaun Gayle (10), Ron Rivera (2) and Wilber Marshall in the first round. Those were some exceptional players, and the Bears used both a 1 and 2 to select LB’s in that draft. The 1984 Bears made the playoffs that year and were defeated in the NFC Championship game, but the pieces were in place for future domination. I sometimes wonder how many championships the Bears would have won if McMahon had stayed healthy through his career.
And that was pretty much the last time the Bears struck gold in rounds 6 and lower. The ’85 Bears were built through the draft….something Jerry Angelo was unable to replicate or even approach for that matter in his nine attempts.
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