1971 Chicago Bears season

NFL team season

The 1971 Chicago Bears season was their 52nd regular season completed in the National Football League. The team finished with a 6–8 record, another below .500 showing, eventually costing head coach Jim Dooley his job. This was their 1st season at Soldier Field.

Offseason

NFL draft

1971 Chicago Bears draft
Round Pick Player Position College Notes
1 11 Joe Moore  Running back Missouri
2 28 Jim Harrison  Running back Missouri
2 36 Charlie Ford  Cornerback Houston
3 64 Tony McGee  Defensive end Bishop
3 71 Bob Newton  Tackle Nebraska
4 89 Jerry Moore  Defensive back Arkansas
6 135 Earl Thomas  Wide receiver Houston
7 167 Buddy Lee  Quarterback LSU
      Made roster    *   Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

Roster

1971 Chicago Bears final roster
Quarterbacks

Running backs

Wide receivers

  • 43 George Farmer
  • 45 Dick Gordon
  • 84 Jim Seymour
  • 21 Cecil Turner

Tight ends

  • 82 Earl Thomas
  • 89 Bob Wallace
 Offensive linemen

Defensive linemen

Linebackers

Defensive backs

  • 32 Charlie Ford CB
  • 17 Cliff Hardy
  • 29 Bob Jeter CB
  • 18 Jerry Moore
  • 44 Garry Lyle FS
  • 48 Ron Smith SS
  • 20 Joe Taylor CB

Special teams

Reserve lists


Practice squad

  • -- Leo Johnson WR


Rookies in italics

Schedule

Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance
1 September 19 Pittsburgh Steelers W 17–15 1–0 Soldier Field 55,049
2 September 26 at Minnesota Vikings W 20–17 2–0 Metropolitan Stadium 47,900
3 October 3 at Los Angeles Rams L 3–17 2–1 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum 66,957
4 October 10 New Orleans Saints W 35–14 3–1 Soldier Field 55,049
5 October 17 at San Francisco 49ers L 0–13 3–2 Candlestick Park 44,000
6 October 24 at Detroit Lions W 28–23 4–2 Tiger Stadium 54,418
7 October 31 Dallas Cowboys W 23–19 5–2 Soldier Field 55,049
8 November 7 Green Bay Packers L 14–17 5–3 Soldier Field 55,049
9 November 14 Washington Redskins W 16–15 6–3 Soldier Field 55,049
10 November 21 Detroit Lions L 3–28 6–4 Soldier Field 55,049
11 November 29 at Miami Dolphins L 3–34 6–5 Miami Orange Bowl 75,312
12 December 5 at Denver Broncos L 3–6 6–6 Mile High Stadium 51,200
13 December 12 at Green Bay Packers L 10–31 6–7 Lambeau Field 56,263
14 December 19 Minnesota Vikings L 10–27 6–8 Soldier Field 55,049
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Game summaries

Week 1

Week One: Pittsburgh Steelers (0–0) at Chicago Bears (0–0)
Period 1 2 34Total
Steelers 0 6 6315
Bears 0 3 01417

at Soldier Field, Chicago, Illinois

  • Date: September 19, 1971
  • Game time: 2:00 p.m.
  • Game weather: 63 °F (17 °C)
  • Game attendance: 55,049
  • Referee: Bernie Ulman
  • Pro-Football-Reference.com
Game information

Second quarter

  • PIT – Preston Pearson fumble recovery in end zone (kick failed). Steelers 6–0. Drive:
  • CHI – Mac Percival 33-yard field goal. Steelers 6–3. Drive:

Third quarter

  • PIT – Roy Gerela 32-yard field goal. Steelers 9–3. Drive:
  • PIT – Roy Gerela 29-yard field goal. Steelers 12–3. Drive:

Fourth quarter

  • PIT – Roy Gerela 42-yard field goal. Steelers 15–3. Drive:
  • CHI – Ross Brupbacher 30-yard fumble return (Mac Percival kick). Steelers 15–10.
  • CHI – George Farmer 8-yard pass from Kent Nix (Mac Percival kick). Bears 17–15. Drive:
Top passers
Top rushers
Top receivers
  • PIT – Ron Shanklin – 6 receptions, 113 yards
  • CHI – George Farmer – 4 receptions, 59 yards, TD

Week 2

1 234Total
• Bears 0 0317 20
Vikings 0 7100 17
Scoring summary
Q2MINGrim 4 yard pass from Cuozzo (Cox kick)MIN 7–0
Q3CHIPercival 45 yard field goalMIN 7–3
Q3MINGrim 52 yard pass from Cuozzo (Cox kick)MIN 14–3
Q3MINCox 14 yard field goalMIN 17–3
Q4CHIGordon 36 yard pass from Nix (Percival kick)MIN 17–10
Q4CHIPercival 45 yard field goalMIN 17–13
Q4CHIGordon 19 yard pass from Nix (Percival kick)CHI 20–17
  • Dick Gordon 10 Rec, 115 Yds

[1]

Week 6

Week Six: Chicago Bears (3–2) at Detroit Lions (4–1)
Period 1 2 34Total
Bears 7 14 0728
Lions 6 14 3023

at Tiger Stadium, Detroit, Michigan

  • Date: October 24, 1971
  • Game time: 2:00 p.m. EST
  • Game weather: 60 °F (16 °C)
  • Game attendance: 54,418
  • Referee: Jack Reader
  • Pro-Football-Reference.com
Game information

First quarter

  • DET – Errol Mann 28-yard field goal. Lions 3–0. Drive:
  • CHI – Don Shy 21-yard run (Mac Percival kick). Bears 7–3. Drive:
  • DET – Errol Mann 49-yard field goal. Bears 7–6. Drive:

Second quarter

  • CHI – George Farmer 54-yard pass from Bobby Douglass (Mac Percival kick). Bears 14–6. Drive:
  • DET – Ron Jessie 102-yard kickoff return (Errol Mann kick). Bears 14–13.
  • DET – Larry Walton 16-yard pass from Greg Landry (Errol Mann kick). Lions 20–14. Drive:
  • CHI – Bob Wallace 15-yard pass from Bobby Douglass (Mac Percival kick). Bears 21–20. Drive:

Third quarter

  • DET – Errol Mann 29-yard field goal. Lions 23–21. Drive:

Fourth quarter

  • CHI – Bobby Douglass 1-yard run (Mac Percival kick). Bears 28–23. Drive:
Top passers
Top rushers
  • CHI – Don Shy – 18 rushes, 99 yards, TD
  • DET – Steve Owens – 16 rushes, 81 yards
Top receivers
  • CHI – George Farmer – 6 receptions, 95 yards, TD
  • DET – Altie Taylor – 4 receptions, 41 yards

Chuck Hughes became the first NFL player to die on the field during a game.

Standings

NFC Central
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 W L T PCT DIV CONF PF PA STK
Minnesota Vikings 11 3 0 .786 5–1 9–2 245 139 W2
Detroit Lions 7 6 1 .538 2–3–1 3–6–1 341 286 L2
Chicago Bears 6 8 0 .429 2–4 5–6 185 276 L5
Green Bay Packers 4 8 2 .333 2–3–1 2–7–2 274 298 L1

Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.

References

  1. ^ Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2015-Dec-14.
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Chicago Bears
  • Founded in 1919
  • Formerly the Decatur Staleys (1919–1920) and the Chicago Staleys (1921)
  • Based in Chicago, Illinois
  • Headquartered in Lake Forest, Illinois
Franchise
Records
Stadiums
Culture
Lore
Rivalries
Minor league affiliates
Retired numbers
Key personnel
Division championships (21)
Conference championships (4)
League championships (9)
Media
  • Broadcasters
  • Radio:
  • Personnel:
  • Television:
    • WFLD (pre-season and most regular season games through Fox, official pre-game and post-game alternate)
    • Marquee Sports Network (official post-game and in-season programming)
  • Personnel:
    • Lou Canellis (gameday television host, pre-season sideline reporter)
    • Adam Amin (pre-season play-by-play)
    • Jim Miller (pre-season analyst)
Current league affiliations
  • Category:Chicago Bears
  • WikiProject Chicago Bears
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Chicago Bears seasons
Formerly the Decatur Staleys (1920) and the Chicago Staleys (1921)
Bold indicates NFL Championship (1920–69) or Super Bowl (1966–present) victory
Italics indicates NFL Championship (1920–69) or Super Bowl (1966–present) appearance


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