The 1988 Chicago Bears season was their 69th regular season and 19th postseason completed in the National Football League. The Bears looked to improve on an 11-4 finish that won them the NFC Central Division but where they were eliminated for the second consecutive year by the Washington Redskins. The Bears won 12 games and lost 4, tying for the best record in the league with the Buffalo Bills and the AFC Champion Cincinnati Bengals, and earned home field advantage in the NFC. However, the Bears failed to advance to the Super Bowl as one of the top two seeds for a third straight season, falling to the eventual Super Bowl champion San Francisco 49ers in the NFC Championship Game at Soldier Field. This was the second time that the 49ers and Bears had met for a trip to the Super Bowl during the decade, with the 49ers defeating the Bears on their way to Super Bowl XIX.
Coach Mike Ditka suffered a heart attack during the season, but was back on the sidelines 11 days later. Ditka was named coach of the year for the second time in his career. This was Jim McMahon's last season as starter for the Bears as he was traded during the following offseason to the San Diego Chargers.
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“Ethnic life in the United States has become a sort of contest like baseball in which the blacks are always the Chicago Cubs.”
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