Soldier Field

Soldier Field is the stadium where the Bears play.  Municipal Grant Park Stadium was originally opened in 1924 as a memorial for American soldiers.  The name was changed to Soldier Field in 1925.  Soldier Field is known for it’s stone columns, which are still there to this day.  In 1984, Soldier Field was made a National Landmark.  Many different sports have been played at Soldier Field including boxing matches, track and field events, NASCAR races,FIFA World Cup matches, and even a Tractor pull.

In 2003, Soldier Field underwent extensive renovations.  This cause much controversy.  There were many people who felt that these renovations were taking away from all that Soldier Field stood for.  The Chicago Tribune “The eyesore on the Lake Shore”, and many Chicagoans thought that the renovations were taking away a symbol of Chicago.  There were others, though, that saw the renovations as a good thing, in terms of architectural design.  The New York Times named Soldier Field one of the 5 best new buildings of 2003.  Many people agree today that the new stadium is fairly ugly, and many call it a space ship that landed on Soldier Field because the new stadium bowl was built over parts of the old stadium, but that on the inside the stadium is a very nice place.  In 2004, because of the new renovations, Soldier Field’s National Landmark status was taken away out of fear that it would be lowering the standards at which the landmarks were chosen.

Soldier Field holds major significance in the history of the city of Chicago.

“Papa Bear”

George Halas, the founder of the Chicago Bears, is a very important figure in the history of the Bears franchise and in the entire NFL.  Halas was a player and the coach for the Decatur Staleys in 1920.  In that same year, Halas became a charter member in starting what would later become the National Football League.

In 1921, Halas was given control of the team by Augustus E. Staley and moved the team to Chicago.  In 1922, Halas would change the name of the team from the Staleys to the Bears.  Halas chose the Bears as a tribute to the Chicago Cubs, who let the team play at Wrigley Field.  Halas was a major player for the entire Bears franchise even in its early years.  He not only played both offense and defense on the team, he also handled all the business of the team, including ticket sales.  It’s even been said that he sold tickets before games.  Halas’ team would enjoy much success in those early seasons, having 84 wins and only 31 losses between the years 1920 and 1929.  Halas retired as both a player and a coach in 1930, but remained owner of the team.  He continued to coach on and off until finally retiring in 1967, as the oldest coach in league history.  He would still remain owner of the team, however, until his death in 1983.

George Halas was a pioneer in both the making of the Chicago Bears, and the National Football League, a true “Papa Bear”.

The Season Thus Far

Well the Bears are now 3-1 after beating the Detroit Lions last week, by a score of 48-24.  The season got off to a rough start when the Bears lost their opening game to the Green Bay Packers, 15-21.  Since then, however, the Bears have gone on to win their next three games against the Pittsburg Steelers, the Seattle Seahawks, and the Lions.

Opening week against the Packers was a rough week for the Bears.  Quarterback Jay Cutler would throw four interceptions and only one touchdown pass during the course of the game.  Running back Matt Forte would only run for 55 yards against a strong Green Bay defense.  The Bears defense started strong giving up no points in the first quarter and getting a safety in the second quarter.  This would be the end of the defensive stand, however, as the Bears defense would give up 21 points over 3 quarters and have no turnovers.  This was a big loss for the Bears, and they would have to win an important game the next week against the Steelers to get the teams moral going.

In week 2, the Bears beat the Steelers 17-14, though the offense was still lacking.  Jay Cutler threw 2 touchdown passes and had no interceptions, a major improvement from week 1.  Matt Forte had another tough week, only rushing for 29 yards.  The Bears defense had a good day giving up only 2 touchdowns to the Steelers and getting 1 turnover.  This was a major win that the Bears really needed going into week 3.

Week 3 the Bears had a good matchup against a hurt Seahawks team.  Jay Cutler had another good week, throwing 3 touchdown passes and only 1 interception.  The running, however, improved only slightly.  Matt Forte only had 66 yards rushing on the day.  The defense had a rough 1st quarter, giving up 10 points.  They were able to rally in the 2nd quarter and only give up 9 more points for the rest of the game while the offense made a comeback.  The final score of the game was Bears 25, Seahawks 19.

Week 4 was a good week for the Bears.  Jay Cutler had another good week throwing 2 touchdown passes and rushing for 1 touchdown.  The Bears running game finally picked up, with Matt Forte running for 121 yards and 1 touchdown.  Garrett Wolfe also ran for 1 touchdown.  Johnny Knox proved his worth, running back the opening kickoff of the second half for a touchdown.  The Bears defense played well, after giving up 21 points in the first half, gave up only 3 in the second half.  They also had 2 turnovers.  The final score was Bears 48, Lions 24.

Well the Bears started off slow but in the last 3 games have really picked up and are starting to look like a winning team.  Jay Cutler has begun to prove himself in his first season with the Bears, and the defense has proven it’s worth this season as well.  Here’s hoping things only get better from here.

The History of the Bears

A little background on the Bears.  In 1919 the A.E. Staley company founded the Decatur Staleys.  The team became a charter member of the NFL in 1920.  In 1921 the team moved to Chicago, and after the team was bought by George Halas was renamed the Bears.  The Bears enjoyed early success in their early years, winning the championship in 1921 and 1924.  Between the years 1920 and 1929, the Bears had only one losing season.  The Bears would also take two more championship games in during the 1930s.  1940 would be the start of a great decade for the Bears with the introduction of one of their many star players, Sid Luckman.  Between the years 1940-1947 Luckman would lead the Bears to 5 championship games, winning 4 of them.  One of these championship games would go down in history as the most lopsided game the NFL has ever seen, where the Bears beat the Washington Redskins 73-0.  During the 40’s, the team would also wirte their theme song and invent the T-formation.  The Bears have a storied history of great players.  The Bears currently have the most players in the Hall of Fame, with 26.  The Bears also have the most recorded regular season wins in the NFL.  The Bears are a great team with a great history.