Chicago Bears – New England Patriots
These two famous NFL franchises have shared a lot of success in their history, but have only met 14 times on the field, including in the biggest game of them all.
The New England Patriots have won 10 of these 14, and naturally, Tom Brady had something to do with this record, winning all 5 times he faced the Bears as a Patriot.
Chicago win the big one
We’re pretty sure the Chicago Bears are happy to let the Patriots have their ten regular season wins, as ‘Da Bears’ won the one that really mattered, in the only time they have met in the playoffs, Super Bowl XX.
Using the word ‘beat’ here doesn’t really do the Bears’ performance justice. Absolute destruction is more apt. On the biggest stage in the NFL, Chicago ran out 46-10 winners, securing their first ever Super Bowl win in the process (the Bears were hugely successful in the pre Super Bowl era though, winning 8 championships).
Rather fittingly, considering he was part of one of the best defences in NFL history, defensive end Richard Dent would win the MVP trophy (he shared 1.5 sacks, forced two fumbles, and blocked a pass). It’s nice when it doesn’t automatically go to the winning quarterback.
Brian at the Bears
When most people hear the name Brian Hoyer, they probably see him as the perennial Tom Brady back-up, but the former Michigan State man, has actually started for eight different teams in the NFL, the second most in NFL history.
One of these teams was the Chicago Bears, and Hoyer, statistically, actually enjoyed one of his best seasons while at the franchise. He is the only Bears QB’S to throw for over 300 yards in four straight games, but unfortunately, broke his arm in a game vs the Green Bay Packers. Hoyer was subsequently placed on injured reserve, and ultimately moved on to San Francisco at the end of the season.
Hoyer is, inevitably, back at the Patriots for his third stint at the club, and has seen action this season, following Mac Jones’ injury.
Coaching royalty
Chicago’s George Halas, and New England’s Bill Belichick, are two of the best coaches in NFL history, and have the numbers to prove it. Halas has 314 career victories (ranked first overall), and Belichick 291, which puts him third on the list (at the time of writing). Their winning percentages are also amongst the highest in NFL history.
Bet high!
When teams don’t play too often, as is the case here, it can be hard to find patterns for action. One thing that jumped out to us though, was that in the last two games between these sides, at least 65 points have been scored. It’s a small sample size, admittedly, but it seems these teams like to put on a show when they get together.