1984 Bears vs Dolphins SB XIX

[CSKreager]

We hear so much about the ‘85 Bears vs ‘85 Dolphins SB hypothetical, but many forget that the previous year, they also nearly hooked up in the Super Bowl.

The ‘84 Dolphins was Marino’s iconic 48 TD/5000 yard season and the ‘84 Bears set the all time record for sacks in a season.

How might that matchup have gone?

Remember this was a year before that MNF game so we hadn’t yet seen Marino vs the 46 Defense

[Brian wolf]

It would have went the same way ... an easy victory for Miami. Steve Fuller ?
The Dolphins would have sacked him five times. Just like the gameplan the Niners used, Marino would have scrambled to his right avoiding Richard Dent. Just like in 85, Dwight Stephenson would have been punishing the Bears tackles ...

Sweetness would have ran easily on this team but Marino would have put up at least 31 points. Too many receivers in man-to-man coverage ...

[74_75_78_79_]

Sorry if this has been asked before, and I know this is slightly off-subject being this pertains to the following season, but without reviving an old thread or starting a new one - how do you all think the '85 Bears make out if McMahon is out the entire season? Conventional wisdom would have to be that they lose the early game at Minnesota. But in either event, they likely finish at least at 'just' 13-3 which would still be the best record in the league. And as great McMahon was at QB when healthy, they're still dominant-enough at that record along with beating each of their playoff opponents convincingly. But Jim not being present would bring that team's imagination-catching "aura" down a notch, or two, due to one-less 'character' (and that 'character' being...the QB). Still SBXX World Champs, but it wouldn't be looked back upon with the same excitement in hindsight amongst the masses. Whereas sports and NON-sports fans will always remember the '85 Bears as they actually happened, only sports-fans would remember - and would have been the only ones to ever know of them at all - in such a non-McMahon case that I'm offering IMO. I also feel had Dolphins made it to SBXX, Bears with Steve at QB still get their revenge!

That said - and back to the '84 subject - I think if San Fran all have the flu for the NFCCG, and Bears do take advantage of that, they'd have a very good chance vs Miami with Jim back at QB! A bit more distance to go until '85 despite just a year away, but I'd actually give Chi-town a more-than-50% chance! Now Fuller in? Just don't see it. Bears would need #9's 'spark' vs a Miami D that would have still been quite more to handle than next year's even-lesser offering on that side of the ball!

[racepug]

I swear I read somewhere not too long ago that Mike Ditka was super pissed at Buddy Ryan at halftime of "Da Bears"' loss to MIA in 1985 and wanted him to "call off the dogs" vs. Marino (I imagine because he could see that B.R.s method of [constantly] blitzing wasn't working against Marino). The rest is history (I was looking forward to a re-match in S.B. XX. "Da Bears" were an absolute machine that year and I personally feel that they would have gotten revenge against MIA in that S.B. had the two teams met in N.O. But we'll never know for sure).