NFL team season
The 1997 Chicago Bears season was their 78th regular season completed in the National Football League (NFL). The team finished with a 4–12 record under head coach Dave Wannstedt . It was the team's first 4-win season since they posted a 4–10 record in 1975 . The team allowed a franchise-record 421 points in 1997.[ 1]
[ 2]
1997 Chicago Bears staff Front office
Head coaches
Offensive coaches
Defensive coaches Special teams coaches
Strength and conditioning
[ 3]
1997 Chicago Bears roster Quarterbacks Running backs
Wide receivers
Tight ends
Offensive linemen Defensive linemen
Linebackers Defensive backs
Special teams
Reserve lists Practice squad
53 active, 7 inactive, 3 practice squad
Rookies in italics
[ 4]
Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance 1 at Green Bay Packers L 24–38 0–1 Lambeau Field 60,766 2 September 7 Minnesota Vikings L 24–27 0–2 Soldier Field 59,263 3 September 14 Detroit Lions L 7–32 0–3 Soldier Field 59,147 4 September 21 at New England Patriots L 3–31 0–4 Foxboro Stadium 59,873 5 September 28 at Dallas Cowboys L 3–27 0–5 Texas Stadium 64,082 6 October 5 New Orleans Saints L 17–20 0–6 Soldier Field 58,865 7 October 12 Green Bay Packers L 23–24 0–7 Soldier Field 62,212 8 Bye 9 at Miami Dolphins W 36–33 (OT) 1–7 Pro Player Stadium 73,156 10 November 2 Washington Redskins L 8–31 1–8 Soldier Field 53,052 11 November 9 at Minnesota Vikings L 22–29 1–9 Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome 63,443 12 November 16 New York Jets L 15–23 1–10 Soldier Field 45,642 13 November 23 Tampa Bay Buccaneers W 13–7 2–10 Soldier Field 43,955 14 November 27 at Detroit Lions L 20–55 2–11 Pontiac Silverdome 77,904 15 December 7 Buffalo Bills W 20–3 3–11 Soldier Field 39,784 16 December 14 at St. Louis Rams W 13–10 4–11 Trans World Dome 66,030 17 December 21 at Tampa Bay Buccaneers L 15–31 4–12 Houlihan's Stadium 70,930
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.
Week 1: at Green Bay Packers [ edit ] Game information First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
GB – Ryan Longwell 36-yard field goal. Packers 21–11. GB – Ryan Longwell 29-yard field goal. Packers 24–11. Fourth quarter
GB – Dorsey Levens 1-yard run (Ryan Longwell kick). Packers 31–11. CHI – Ricky Proehl 22-yard pass from Erik Kramer (pass failed). Packers 31–17. GB – Gabe Wilkins 1-yard fumble return (Ryan Longwell kick). Packers 38–17. CHI – Raymond Harris 68-yard run (Jeff Jaeger kick). Packers 38–24. Top passers
Top rushers
Top receivers
CHI – Raymont Harris – 4 receptions, 36 yards GB – Robert Brooks – 3 receptions, 71 yards, TD
Week 2: vs. Minnesota Vikings [ edit ] Week Two: Minnesota Vikings at Chicago Bears – Game summary
Period 1 2 3 4 Total Vikings 3 0 10 14 27 Bears 0 10 7 7 24
at Soldier Field , Chicago, Illinois
Date : September 7Game time : 12:00 p.m. CDTGame weather : 69 °F (21 °C)Game attendance : 59,263TV : Fox Box score
Game information First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
MIN – Greg Davis 28-yard field goal. Bears 10–6. MIN – Orlando Thomas 22-yard fumble return (Greg Davis kick). Vikings 13–10. CHI – Bobby Engram 10-yard pass from Erik Kramer (Jeff Jaeger kick). Bears 17–13. Fourth quarter
Top passers
Top rushers
Top receivers
Week 3: vs. Detroit Lions [ edit ] Week Three: Detroit Lions at Chicago Bears – Game summary
Period 1 2 3 4 Total Lions 3 10 10 9 32 Bears 7 0 0 0 7
at Soldier Field, Chicago, Illinois
Date : September 14Game time : 12:00 p.m. CDTGame weather : 69 °F (21 °C)Game attendance : 59,147TV : FoxBox score
Week 4: at New England Patriots [ edit ] Week Four: Chicago Bears at New England Patriots – Game summary
Period 1 2 3 4 Total Bears 0 0 3 0 3 Patriots 7 7 0 17 31
at Foxboro Stadium , Foxborough, Massachusetts
Date : September 21Game time : 12:00 p.m. CDT/1:00 p.m. EDT Game weather : 56 °F (13 °C)Game attendance : 59,873TV : FoxBox score
Game information First quarter
Second quarter
NE – Troy Brown 52-yard pass from Drew Bledsoe (Adam Vinatieri kick). Patriots 14–0. Third quarter
Fourth quarter
NE – Adam Vinatieri 27-yard field goal. Patriots 17–3. NE – Curtis Martin 70-yard run (Adam Vinatieri kick). Patriots 24–3. NE – Lovett Purnell 20-yard pass from Scott Zolak (Adam Vinatieri kick). Patriots 31–3. Top passers
Top rushers
Top receivers
Week 5: at Dallas Cowboys [ edit ] Week Five: Chicago Bears at Dallas Cowboys – Game summary
Period 1 2 3 4 Total Bears 3 0 0 0 3 Cowboys 0 7 17 3 27
at Texas Stadium , Irving, Texas
Date : September 28Game time : 3:00 p.m. CDTGame weather : 78 °F (26 °C)Game attendance : 64,082TV : FoxBox score
Game information First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
DAL – Richie Cunningham 33-yard field goal. Cowboys 10–3. DAL – Michael Irvin 26-yard pass from Troy Aikman (Richie Cunningham kick). Cowboys 17–3. DAL – Deion Sanders 83-yard punt return (Richie Cunningham kick). Cowboys 24–3. Fourth quarter
DAL – Richie Cunningham 23-yard field goal. Cowboys 27–3. Top passers
Top rushers
Top receivers
Week 6: vs. New Orleans Saints [ edit ] Week Six: New Orleans Saints at Chicago Bears – Game summary
Period 1 2 3 4 Total Saints 0 3 10 7 20 Bears 3 0 0 14 17
at Soldier Field, Chicago, Illinois
Game information First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
NO – Mario Bates 49-yard run (Doug Brien kick). Saints 10–3. NO – Doug Brien 48-yard field goal. Saints 13–3. Fourth quarter
Top passers
Top rushers
Top receivers
Week 7: vs. Green Bay Packers [ edit ] Week Seven: Green Bay Packers at Chicago Bears – Game summary
Period 1 2 3 4 Total Packers 0 14 7 3 24 Bears 10 0 7 6 23
at Soldier Field, Chicago, Illinois
Date : October 12Game time : 12:00 p.m. CDTGame weather : 68 °F (20 °C)Game attendance : 62,212TV : FoxBox score
Game information First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
CHI – Erik Kramer 3-yard run (Jeff Jaeger kick). Bears 17–14. GB – Mark Chmura 12-yard pass from Brett Favre (Ryan Longwell kick). Packers 21–17. Fourth quarter
GB – Ryan Longwell 37-yard field goal. Packers 24–17. CHI – Chris Penn 22-yard pass from Erik Kramer (pass failed). Packers 24–23. Top passers
Top rushers
Top receivers
Week 9: at Miami Dolphins [ edit ] Week Nine: Chicago Bears at Miami Dolphins – Game summary
Period 1 2 3 4 OT Total Bears 7 8 3 15 3 36 Dolphins 7 6 6 14 0 33
at Pro Player Stadium , Miami Gardens, Florida
Date : Game time : 8:00 p.m. CST/9:00 p.m. ESTGame weather : 82 °F (28 °C)Game attendance : 73,156TV announcers (ABC) : Al Michaels, Dan Dierdorf and Lynn SwannBox score
Game information First quarter
Second quarter
CHI – Jeff Jaeger 39-yard field goal. Bears 10–7. CHI – Dan Marino sacked in end zone. Bears 12–7. CHI – Jeff Jaeger 23-yard field goal. Bears 15–7. MIA – Jerris McPhail 10-yard pass from Dan Marino (pass failed). Bears 15–13. Third quarter
CHI – Jeff Jaeger 47-yard field goal. Bears 18–13. MIA – Terrell Buckley 22-yard fumble return (pass failed). Dolphins 19–18. Fourth quarter
MIA – Troy Drayton 22-yard pass from Dan Marino (Olindo Mare kick). Dolphins 26–18. MIA – Karim Abdul-Jabbar 2-yard run (Olindo Mare kick). Dolphins 33–18. CHI – Bobby Engram 8-yard pass from Erik Kramer (Jeff Jaeger kick). Dolphins 33–25. CHI – Chris Penn 25-yard pass from Erik Kramer (Erik Kramer pass to Bobby Engram). Tied 33–33. Overtime
CHI – Jeff Jaeger 35-yard field goal. Bears 36–33. Top passers
Top rushers
Top receivers
Week 10: vs. Washington Redskins [ edit ] Week Ten: Washington Redskins at Chicago Bears – Game summary
Period 1 2 3 4 Total Redskins 14 10 7 0 31 Bears 0 0 0 8 8
at Soldier Field, Chicago, Illinois
Date : November 2Game time : 12:00 p.m. CSTGame weather : 42 °F (6 °C)Game attendance : 53,052TV : FoxBox score
Game information First quarter
Second quarter
WAS – Gus Frerotte 1-yard run (Scott Blanton kick). Redskins 21–0. WAS – Scott Blanton 38-yard field goal. Redskins 24–0. Third quarter
WAS – Leslie Shepherd 39-yard pass from Gus Frerotte (Scott Blanton kick). Redskins 31–0. Fourth quarter
Top passers
Top rushers
Top receivers
Week 11: at Minnesota Vikings [ edit ] Game information First quarter
Second quarter
MIN – David Palmer 7-yard pass from Brad Johnson (Eddie Murray kick). Vikings 14–7. CHI – Jeff Jaeger 29-yard field goal. Vikings 14–10. MIN – Chuck Evans 3-yard run (Eddie Murray kick). Vikings 21–10. Third quarter
CHI – Jeff Jaeger 22-yard field goal. Vikings 21–13. CHI – Ricky Proehl 59-yard pass from Erik Kramer (pass failed). Vikings 21–19. Fourth quarter
CHI – Jeff Jaeger 36-yard field goal. Bears 22–21. MIN – Leroy Hoard 1-yard run (Brad Johnson pass to Cris Carter ). Vikings 29–22. Top passers
Top rushers
Top receivers
Week 12: vs. New York Jets [ edit ] Week Twelve: Chicago Bears at Green Bay Packers – Game summary
Period 1 2 3 4 Total Jets 10 13 0 0 23 Bears 0 0 7 8 15
at Soldier Field, Chicago, Illinois
Game information First quarter
Second quarter
NYJ – John Hall 36-yard field goal. Jets 13–0. NYJ – John Hall 34-yard field goal. Jets 16–0. NYJ – Otis Smith 38-yard interception return (John Hall kick). Jets 23–0. Third quarter
Fourth quarter
Top passers
Top rushers
Top receivers
Week 13: vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers [ edit ] Week Thirteen: Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Chicago Bears – Game summary
Period 1 2 3 4 Total Buccaneers 0 0 7 0 7 Bears 10 3 0 0 13
at Soldier Field, Chicago, Illinois
Date : November 23Game time : 12:00 p.m. CSTGame weather : 27 °F (−3 °C)Game attendance : 43,955TV : FoxBox score
Game information First quarter
Second quarter
CHI – Jeff Jaeger 25-yard field goal. Bears 13–0. Third quarter
Fourth quarter
Top passers
Top rushers
Top receivers
Week 14: at Detroit Lions [ edit ] Week Fourteen: Chicago Bears at Detroit Lions – Game summary
Period 1 2 3 4 Total Bears 14 6 0 0 20 Lions 3 14 17 21 55
at Pontiac Silverdome , Detroit, Michigan
Date : Game time : 11:30 a.m. CST/12:30 p.m. ESTGame weather : None (played indoors)Game attendance : 77,904TV : FoxBox score
Game information First quarter
Second quarter
CHI – Jeff Jaeger 52-yard field goal. Bears 17–3. DET – Herman Moore 8-yard pass from Scott Mitchell (Jason Hanson kick). Bears 17–10. CHI – Jeff Jaeger 32-yard field goal. Bears 20–10. DET – Barry Sanders 40-yard run (Jason Hanson kick). Bears 20–17. Third quarter
DET – Jason Hanson 29-yard field goal. Tied 20–20. DET – Johnnie Morton 50-yard pass from Scott Mitchell (Jason Hanson kick). Lions 27–20. DET – Barry Sanders 25-yard run (Jason Hanson kick). Lions 34–20. Fourth quarter
DET – Barry Sanders 15-yard run (Jason Hanson kick). Lions 41–20. DET – Ron Rivers 13-yard run (Jason Hanson kick). Lions 48–20. DET – Tracy Scroggins 17-yard fumble return (Jason Hanson kick). Lions 55–20. Top passers
Top rushers
Top receivers
Week 15: vs. Buffalo Bills [ edit ] Week Fifteen: Buffalo Bills at Chicago Bears – Game summary
Period 1 2 3 4 Total Bills 0 3 0 0 3 Bears 0 17 0 3 20
at Soldier Field, Chicago, Illinois
Game information First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
Fourth quarter
CHI – Jeff Jaeger 38-yard field goal. Bears 20–3. Top passers
Top rushers
Top receivers
Week 16: at St. Louis Rams [ edit ] Game information First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
Fourth quarter
STL – Jeff Wilkins 26-yard field goal. Rams 10–7. CHI – Jeff Jaeger 27-yard field goal. Tied 10–10. CHI – Jeff Jaeger 21-yard field goal. Bears 13–10. Top passers
Top rushers
Top receivers
Week 17: at Tampa Bay Buccaneers [ edit ] Week Seventeen: Chicago Bears at Tampa Bay Buccaneers – Game summary
Period 1 2 3 4 Total Bears 0 7 0 8 15 Buccaneers 14 7 10 0 31
at Houlihan's Stadium , Tampa Bay, Florida
Date : December 21Game time : 12:00 p.m. CST/1:00 p.m. ESTGame weather : 65 °F (18 °C)Game attendance : 70,930TV : FoxBox score
Game information First quarter
Second quarter
CHI – Darnell Autry 3-yard run (Jeff Jaeger kick). Buccaneers 14–7. TB – Karl Williams 7-yard pass from Trent Dilfer (Michael Husted kick). Buccaneers 21–7. Third quarter
TB – Michael Husted 20-yard field goal. Buccaneers 24–7. TB – Errict Rhett 5-yard run (Michael Husted kick). Buccaneers 31–7. Fourth quarter
CHI – Rick Mirer 1-yard run (Rick Mirer run). Buccaneers 31–15. Top passers
Top rushers
Top receivers
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
Formerly the Decatur Staleys (1920) and the Chicago Staleys (1921)