The
Chicago Bears and Philadelphia Eagles are two organizations that are so much alike. They have rabid sports-loving fanbases. Each plays in a tough blue collar town that relishes cold weather and both have only won one Super Bowl. So it's somewhat of a surprise the two teams haven't crossed paths in the playoffs more often.
That's going to change next Sunday when the defending champions come to Soldier Field for the wild card playoffs. It will be a 3:40 start. It's a fitting first test for the Bears. They believe they're a team that can win a championship. In order to do that one has to beat the best and until they're officially eliminated, that crown belongs to the Eagles.
Philadelphia has won four of their last five games and is really starting to peak at the right time. The defense just pitched a shutout in Washington and quarterback
Nick Foles is again showcasing the form that made him Super Bowl MVP back in February. This is not an opponent to be taken lightly.
Then again the Bears would be wise to recall their history when it comes to prior clashes with the Eagles in the postseason.
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Eagles have given the Chicago Bears problems in the playoffs
The Bears and Eagles have met a total of three times in the postseason. As things stand, Philadelphia holds the edge two games to one. Each of those games tells a unique story with a rather common trend. One that Chicago may finally be in a position to change.
1979: Loss in Philadelphia 27-17
These were two teams on different paths of a rebuild at the time. The Eagles were nearing its completion and had a team lead by Dick Vermeil that was a year away from going to the Super Bowl. The Bears were finally starting to crawl out of a miserable decade but hadn't yet started assembling the pieces necessary.
Things actually started well for Chicago. They fought to a 17-10 lead in the first half and appeared to be controlling the ball. Unfortunately, two interceptions and a lost fumble opened the door for a dominant second half by the Eagles where they scored 17 unanswered points including two long TD passes from
Ron Jaworski. Philadelphia prevailed 27-17.
1988: Win in Chicago 20-6
This is one of the most iconic games in NFL history. Not so much because of the play on the field but because it featured arguably the most unique weather event ever witnessed in professional sports. After a strong first half, the Bears had the lead 17-9 courtesy of touchdowns from
Dennis McKinnon and
Neal Anderson.
However, things got weird in the second half as a massive fog bank rolled in off Lake Michigan, enveloping Soldier Field and completely covering the playing surface to where it was almost impossible to from the cameras or the sideline or even across the line of scrimmage. Philadelphia's offense couldn't find any rhythm because of it and the Bears coasted to a 20-6 victory.
2001: Loss in Chicago 33-19
The most recent class on the list and one that has an eerie similarity to this 2018 team. The Bears in 2001 had the #1 defense in the NFL and went from 5-11 the previous year to 13-3, winning the NFC North for the first time in a decade. They had a ton of momentum coming into the playoffs including homefield.
As before the Bears got off to a solid start and the game was a tight struggle through the first three quarters. After narrowing the gap to 20-17 to start the 4th though, the Eagles pulled away with 13 unanswered points to win 33-19.
Donovan McNabb threw for two touchdowns and ran for another. By comparison, the Bears QBs managed just 89 yards passing with three interceptions.
It's often been that separation of talent at quarterback that has defined these playoff meetings thus far.
