Chicago Bears Super Bowl XX History: The Touchdown That Wasn’t

A Chicago Bears controversy that started in Super Bowl XX lasts to this very day.

The Chicago Bears drafted running back Walter Payton with their first pick in the 1975 NFL Draft. By the time he and the Bears reached the 1985 Super Bowl, he had become the running back with the most yards in NFL history. He had also become one of the most trustworthy and durable players in the league. Payton was fiercely dedicated to the Bears and may have been their best player up to that point. He may be the best player they’ve ever had.

During the 1985 NFL season, the Bears went 15-1 and steamrolled their way to the league’s biggest game, the Super Bowl. Payton had a very big part in helping the Bears win those fifteen games and march through the playoffs. He rushed for 1551 yards on 324 attempts. He averaged 4.8 yards per carry and had 12 total touchdowns.

With all the success and help Payton offered the Bears he had to be considered one of the biggest reasons they made it to the big game. So, when the Bears went to the Super Bowl, they surely would have offered him an opportunity to become a greater part of their history. They had to give Payton his “moment in the spotlight” didn’t they?

Throughout the history of football, the number one defensive strategy of any team has been to shut down the opponent’s best player. It’s the best strategy to try to win. Against the Bears in Super Bowl XX, the New England Patriots knew that this might be the only way they could beat the Bears. So, they set out to stop Payton.

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If you have ever watched that game you will have easily noticed that the Patriots basically shut Payton down. He rushed for only 61 yards on 22 carries. His longest run was seven yards but the most “telling” stat was the fact he only had 2.77 yards per carry.

It’s true, the Patriots did an excellent job of bottling up Payton. That may have played a big factor in one of the most controversial moments in Chicago Bears history.

As the game went on, it was easy to see that the Bears were going to win. They were well ahead of the Patriots and all they had to do was keep the pressure on and watch the time melt away. In the third quarter, the Bears had the ball at New England’s one yard line. They were up 37-3 and this being at the one meant that Chicago should have an easy scoring opportunity.

Payton had scored on many short yardage runs in his career prior to that point. This one should have been easy for him. But, instead of putting Payton in to run the ball, head coach Mike Ditka gave the opportunity to the famed William “The Refrigerator” Perry. Perry took the ball and burst through New England’s defense for the score. Piece of cake.

It was that moment in the game and that moment in Bears history Bears fans felt that Ditka may have “slighted” Payton in not giving him the ball. Didn’t Payton deserve to score a touchdown in the biggest game of his life? That would have been the perfect moment to do it.

But there were other moments where Payton could have scored but he didn’t because the Patriots shut him down. For instance, Payton was stopped for a two-yard loss trying to run the ball in from New England’s three-yard line, on one play. He only gained two yards when trying to punch the ball in the end zone from the four-yard line on another play. New England’s ability to stop Payton had a huge factor in the decision to run Perry, from the one, instead of Payton. And Ditka cited that as a reason.

In recent interviews and conversations, Ditka has stated that he regrets not giving Payton the ball to score when he put Perry. He also regrets getting (or creating) more chances to score him to score. Ditka feels, as do many others, that the opportunity presented with Perry’s touchdown was the perfect one for Payton.

Anyone who has followed the life and career of Payton will know he was a selfless person. He never blamed anyone for anything and he never blamed Ditka, or anyone else, for missing out on Super Bowl glory. To Payton, all that mattered was that the Bears won the game. His glory was everyone else’s glory. His goal was to win and the Bears did that.

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Longtime fans of the Bears are somewhat divided over this. Some feel that Ditka did what he had to do. With the Patriots shutting Payton down, the best move was to give the ball to Perry. On the other side, there are those that say that moment in the game was the perfect (and perhaps the only) opportunity for Payton to score. To not have a touchdown in the biggest game of his Hall of Fame career was a slight to Payton. Perhaps it even robbed him of greater glory.

We cannot turn back time and give Payton the ball on the one yard line in the third quarter. That moment is forever frozen in time. But despite the fact he didn’t score in the Super Bowl, Payton’s glory and memory should not be shaken. He was still, arguably, the greatest running back to ever play the game. Payton was one of the greatest human beings to ever play any sport. Chicago loves him and they don’t love him less because he didn’t score a touchdown in Super Bowl XX.

His legacy is forever cemented in NFL lore. While scoring the touchdown may have given him a little more glory he does not deserve less for not scoring a touchdown.

What are your thoughts? Should Payton have gotten the ball instead of Perry? Is Walter’s glory diminished because he did not score a touchdown in Super Bowl XX?

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