As has been chronicled over the past three days, the ongoing struggle between the Chicago Bears and the Green Bay Packers is, to say the least, heated, bitter, and intense. Players and coaches throughout the last century have not minced words when expressing their mutual disdain. Nothing makes good theater when head coaches get it on, whether it was George Halas confronting Vince Lombardi before a game at Lambeau Field in the 1960s, or Mike Ditka and Forrest Gregg at odds in the 1980s.
However, very little argument could be made about the one singular incident that made this rivalry ramped up in vitriol, one that still ignites the border war to an explosion of fighting words.
The fourth most influential and memorable game in the Bears/Packers series took place on November 23, 1986, and the final score was never the biggest story of the day.
Chicago Bears and Green Bay Packers Headed In Different Direction In 1986
Fresh off their dominating 15-1 regular season and Super Bowl XX championship in 1985, the Chicago Bears were primed for a repeat in 1986. They had most all of the important pieces from the previous year back in place, and when they met the Packers in November, the Bears were flying high in the NFC Central with a 9-2 record. Coincidentally, they would not lose again in the regular season, finishing with a league-high 14 wins.
On the other hand, the Green Bay Packers were limping through another disastrous campaign; they were 2-9 entering week 12, and their eventual 4-12 record equaled their worst in the 1980s. In fact, it took until the last year of the 80s, 1989, for the Packers to have a winning record in the decade.
But, just as the previous 65 years of their rivalry transpired, the records mattered little when it came to their head-to-head matchups. The fact that the 1986 Packers were bottom-feeders only made their angst level grow, and the Bears knew that the game at Soldier Field on November 23 was going to be physical, and, as it turned out, borderline criminal.
The Head Coaches’ Hatred Led To The Game’s Most Pivotal Moment
It was no secret: Chicago Bears’ head coach Mike Ditka and Green Bay Packers’ head coach Forrest Gregg despised each other. It was so obvious that Bears’ quarterback Jim McMahon was brought in on this that foreshadowed the ugly scene to come.
Said McMahon: “I got a heads-up the night before by one of their teammates that said, ‘Our coach doesn’t like you. He said if we had a chance to take a shot on you to do it.’ I was kind of leery of that and there was so much bad blood all those years playing against the Packers.”
McMahon continued: “I knew it was coming. It came from the head coach because [Packers head coach] Forrest Gregg and [Bears head coach Mike] Ditka didn’t like [each other], and Forrest sure didn’t like me either. So, I knew it was coming. I just thought I’d be able to see it.”
And before halftime of their 1986 game, all hell broke loose as one of the most infamous plays in the storied rivalry between the Bears and the Packers happened.
Charles Martin, Chicago Bears’ Most Wanted
On a third down play near midfield in the second quarter, McMahon dropped back to pass but was intercepted on a diving snare by Packers’ cornerback Mark Lee. Television cameras focused on the play and a jubilant Lee after the takeaway, but what happened in the offensive backfield was the story.
Nearly three seconds after McMahon threw his pass, defensive lineman Charles Martin picked the quarterback up from behind, and in a move that would make any WWE wrestler jealous, pile-drived McMahon right shoulder-first into the rock-hard artificial turf of Soldier Field.
Referee Jerry Markbreit had never seen anything like it. “It was at least 20 seconds after the interception,” Markbreit, a retired NFL official who worked the game, told the Chicago Tribune, in 2005. “I don’t think he had an awareness of how late it was, or that the play was over. McMahon was walking to the sideline, had relaxed, and he picked him up and smashed him to the ground.”
See Also: Video of Charles Martin’s Illegal Play on Jim McMahon
What made the hit so egregious was the “Hit List” towel worn by Martin in the front of his pants. The numbers listed–9, 34, 83, 63, 29 represented Martin’s aim on McMahon, Walter Payton, Willie Gault, Jay Hilgenberg and Dennis Gentry.
Martin was only able to cross the top target–McMahon–off of his list because he was immediately ejected from the game. In fact, Martin was levied a two-game suspension by then NFL commissioner Pete Rozelle, the first-ever suspension for an on-field incident.
And, oh by the way, the Bears squeaked out a 12-10 win thanks to a Kevin Butler field goal with just 2:37 remaining in the game.
How Influential Was This Game For The Chicago Bears?
The play had major repercussions: In addition to Martin suspension, the Chicago Bears bore the brunt of the infamous play. McMahon, who had missed the prior four games due to a shoulder injury, suffered a torn rotator cuff thanks to Martin and was lost for the season. Consequently, the Bears were one-and-done in the playoffs, losing in the divisional round to the Washington Redskins, 27-13.
If the play never happened, would the Bears repeat as Super Bowl champs? It is impossible to say, but Bears’ fans surely seem to think so; the mere mention of Charles Martin’s name resonates bad vibes with Bear Nation even 38 years later. Such high hopes of a repeat crashed down on McMahon’s shoulder that day, who did not play for the remainder of the season, and the Chicago Bears have not tasted championship champagne since.
After the 1980s, the Packers and Bears began to trend in different directions as Green Bay became an NFL power for the first time since the Lombardi Era. However, the decade of the 1990s ended with extreme sadness and ultimate vindication for the Bears–all in the span of one week in 1999.
