Biggest Reason for Nearly 30 Years of Bears Futility

The Chicago Bears backed their way into the NFC Playoffs, and I don’t know if this is a good or bad thing for the Bears organization. Don’t get me completely wrong, any time a sports franchise *can* make the playoffs in their given sport, it is a good thing. Among the good, it brings money into the organization, it gives experience to the players on the roster, it helps provide excitement for their fanbase, and it can help a free agent decide to choose one team over another.

Why would it be bad for the Chicago Bears? Well, this is a team that is circling in place. A team that is just good enough to be entertaining and make the playoffs every couple of years or so, but far from a championship-level organization.

Look, I’m not reinventing the wheel here. This is what has been said about the Bears for the last 30 or more years. This is an organizational failure that begins at the McCaskey’s, rolls to Ted Phillips, and has poisoned every roster since. It is almost like the Bears sold their soul for the 1984 team, and we’ve been paying for it ever since.

The real poison goes beyond the constant revolving door at the quarterback position. It goes beyond failure in the general manager’s office, or a mostly incapable coaching staff since Mike Ditka was the head coach. A divorce that likely happened too soon. One which was created by a battle of power between Ditka and Michael McCaskey.

Since Ditka was let go after the 1992 season, the Bears have made the playoffs six times, including the 2020 season where they finished 8-8. They are 3-6 in those playoff appearances. Since they let Ditka go are 211-237 and have won 10 or more games only six times.

In retrospect, the Bears’ biggest rival, the Green Bay Packers are 284-164 since the 1992 season, have made the playoffs 19 times, won two Super Bowls (and lost another), and have won 10 or more games 18 times.

The easiest thing you can point to is the Packers have had both Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers, two of the game’s best quarterbacks to ever play the game, while the Bears have recycled seemingly 10,000 mediocre QBs over that same period of time. That is the easy issue to point to. But where the Bears have really failed is their horrible track record of selecting great players in the first-round.

I call this the curse of Mike Ditka, and it started with the fight between Ditka, Stan Thomas, and Bears ownership.

While I don’t have proof of any voodoo dolls that Ditka left behind, but we can look to the organization’s first-round picks since he left.

1. Curtis Conway, WR (12 yrs, 7 in CHI)
   1. Drafted 7^th overall
   1. 594 receptions
   1. 8,230 yards
   1. 55 career TDs
2. John Thierry, DE (9 seasons, 5 with CHI)
   1. Drafted 11^th overall
   1. 33.5 sacks
   1. 6 FF, 2 INT
   1. 212 tackles
   1. 70 career starts, 30 with the Bears
3. Rashaan Salaam, RB (4 seasons, injury-prone)
   1. Drafted 21^st overall
   1. 1,684 yards rushing, 120 receiving yards
   1. 18 TDs, 14 fumbles
4. Walt Harris, DB (13 seasons, 6 with CHI)
   1. Drafted 13^th overall
   1. Career starter
   1. 35 INT, 17 FF
   1. 764 Tackles, 16 tackles for loss
5. No Pick, 4-12 record
6. Curtis Enis, RB (3 seasons, injury-prone – among other things)
   1. Drafted 5^th overall
   1. 6 TD (4 rushing)
   1. 1,497 rushing yards
   1. 41.6 yards per game
7. Cade McNown, QB (2 seasons)
   1. Drafted 12^th overall
   1. 15 starts, 3,111 yards
   1. 16 TDs, 19 INT
   1. 67.7 QB Rating
8. Brian Urlacher, LB/S (13 seasons)
   1. Drafted 9^th overall
   1. Hall of Fame in 2018, HOF All-2000s Team
   1. 2000 Def Rookie of the Year
   1. 2005 Def Player of the Year
   1. 1,361 tackles, 1,046 solo, 138 tackles for loss
   1. 41.5 sacks, 22 INT, 11 FF
9. David Terrell, WR (5 seasons, 4 with CHI)
   1. Drafted 8^th overall
   1. 128 receptions
   1. 1,602 yards
   1. 9 TDs
10. Marc Colombo, OT (10 seasons, 3 in CHI)
    1. Drafted 29^th overall
    1. 7 starts as a Bear
    1. Played very good as a Dallas Cowboy, started 52 of 56 games
11. Michael Haynes, DE (3 seasons)
    1. Drafted 14^th overall
    1. 4 starts, 43 games
    1. 5.5 sacks
    1. 79 tackles
    1. 1 FF, 1 INT (TD)
12. Rex Grossman, QB (10 seasons, 6 in CHI)
    1. Drafted 22^nd overall
    1. 31 starts in 36 games in CHI
    1. 10,232 passing yards
    1. 56 TD, 60 INT
    1. 71.4 QB Rating
13. Tommie Harris, DT (8 seasons, 7 in CHI)
    1. Drafted 14^th overall
    1. 3 Pro Bowl Seasons
    1. 91 starts, 117 games
    1. 231 tackles, 56 tackles for loss
    1. 31.5 sacks
    1. 50 QB Hits
14. Cedric Benson, RB (8 seasons, 3 in CHI)
    1. Drafted 4^th overall
    1. 6,017 career rushing yards, 1,593 in CHI
    1. 10 TDs (as a Bear)
    1. Three, 1,000 yard rushing seasons (none in CHI)
15. No Pick, 13-3
16. Greg Olsen, TE (14 years, 4 in CHI, Current NFL)
    1. Drafted 31^st overall
    1. 742 receptions
    1. 8,683 yards
    1. 60 TDs
    1. 3 x Pro Bowl
17. Chris Williams, OT (6 seasons, 5 in CHI)
    1. Drafted 14^th overall
    1. Started 38 of 50 games in CHI
    1. Started 19 of 22 games outside CHI
    1. Injuries derailed much of his CHI career
18. No Pick, 7-9
19. No Pick, 11-5
20. Gabe Carimi, OT (4 seasons, 2 with CHI)
    1. Drafted 29^th overall
    1. Started 16 of 18 games in CHI
    1. Chronic knee issues, dislocated, ACL, experimental surgery
    1. Never recovered
21. Shea McClellin, DE (5 seasons, 4 in CHI)
    1. Drafted 19^th overall
    1. 35 starts, 66 games
    1. 8.5 sacks, 23 QB hits
    1. 202 tackles, 17 tackles for loss
22. Kyle Long, OT (7 seasons)
    1. Drafted 20^th overall
    1. Started 76 of 77 games
    1. 3 x Pro Bowl
    1. Injuries derailed career
23. Kyle Fuller, CB (6 seasons)
    1. Drafted 14^th overall
    1. 19 INT, lead NFL with 7 in 2018
    1. 2 x Pro Bowl
    1. 1 x All-Pro
    1. Current CHI player
24. Kevin White, WR (4 seasons, 3 in CHI)
    1. Drafted 7^th overall
    1. Available for 17 games in 4 seasons
    1. 25 receptions
    1. 285 yards
    1. Injury-prone
25. Leonard Floyd, DE (5 seasons, 4 in CHI, Current NFL)
    1. Drafted 9^th overall
    1. Started 69 of 69 games
    1. 28.0 sacks (10.5 in 2020)
    1. 207 tackles, 37 tackles for loss
    1. 62 QB Hits
26. Mitchell Trubisky, QB (4 seasons, current CHI player)
    1. Drafted 2^nd overall
    1. 10,357 passing yards
    1. 64 TDs, 36 INT
    1. 63.6% Completion Percentage
    1. 87.4 QB Rating
    1. 1,035 rushing yards, 8 rushing TD, 5.6 Y/A
27. Roquan Smith, LB (3 seasons, current CHI player)
    1. Drafted 8^th overall         
    1. Started 41 of 43 games
    1. 358 tackles, 30 tackles for loss
    1. 11 sacks, 13 QB Hits
    1. 5 turnovers
28. No Pick, 8–8
29. No Pick, 8-8 (playoffs)

Yes, drafting can be a bit of a crap shoot in any sport. That’s no different in the NFL. In fact, sometimes it can be more difficult in the NFL as someone like Gabe Carimi, a player that seemed to be everything an NFL team would want in an offensive lineman, can blow out a knee a couple of times and they are rendered useless. But, knowing that you can have someone blow up like that, makes taking giant risks on guys like Mitch Trubisky even more harmful.

Look, I am a rare breed that still thinks there is something inside Trubisky. He’s not an elite-level dude, he isn’t a franchise guy that you know you can build an entire team around for the next 10 years. He is an adequate QB that makes more good decisions than bad, and will get burnt at times. You aren’t going to lose because of him, but you might not necessarily win because of him either.

The Bears have gotten their best value out of their defensive picks. Guys like Urlacher, Harris (Tommie), Fuller, and Smith (Roquan). They have guys that are Pro Bowl like guys, a HOF guy, and a couple of guys that could be or could have been HOF-level guys.

But ultimately, the Bears have drafted poorly (an understatement) in the first round. Guys that have an average career of 7 years (not including any player currently playing in the NFL). This number is saved because of guys like Conway, Thierry, Walt Harris, and Urlacher.

A team doesn’t have to draft a future Hall of Fame player in every draft, but when you are drafting in the first round, you shouldn’t have nine players that were with your team for only four seasons. You are looking for constant starters, guys that develop into Pro Bowl level guys and in some better cases end up being All-Pro type players. That just isn’t happening enough for the Bears since the 1992 season. Thing is, they’ve only had seven players make the Pro Bowl of this group, and only six of them have done it with the Bears.

So yes, the Bears have not had luck drafting quarterbacks, but their draft woes extend past just the QB. They have essentially had major issues drafting any offensive player, and if it weren’t for a handful of defensive players – they’d have a sketchy track record there as well.

Whether it was Ryan Pace, Phil Emery, Jerry Angelo, Mark Hatley, Rod Graves, Dave Wannstedt, Bill Tobin, or McCaskey – none of them have been able to consistently draft talent. If they did, the Bears would have more than one Super Bowl trophy in Halas Hall.