1943 Chicago Bears Season

The 1943 Chicago Bears season was their 24th regular season and 8th postseason completed in the National Football League. The club posted a 8-1-1 record under temporary co-coaches Hunk Anderson and Luke Johnsos. Having been denied chance at an undefeated, the Bears won the Western Division yet again and defeated the defending champion Washington Redskins, who gave them their only loss of the season, in the NFL title game to claim their sixth league title, and third in four years establishing themselves as the NFL Dynasty of the 1940s.

Bears quarterback Sid Luckman had one of the greatest seasons for a quarterback in NFL history, and certainly the greatest passing season in the history of the early NFL. "Luckman was essentially the player who first fulfilled the position of quarterback as we know it today: the player expected to handle every snap and attempt almost every pass," says Cold Hard Football Facts. "He was also the first to put up modern-looking numbers. When you consider Luckman's numbers in 1943, consider that the league-wide passer rating that year was a meager 48.5. Hell, his 28 TDs, 12 INTs and 107.5 passer rating would be downright impressive in today's game, let alone back in the virtual Stone Age of the NFL. His 10.9, meanwhile, is simply mind blowing in any era. The Bears scored 30.3 in 1943. Again, great in any era."