1987 Chicago Bears season The 1987 Chicago Bears season was their 68th regular season and 18th post - season completed in the National Football League . The club posted a 11 - 4 record in the strike - shortened season , winning their fourth consecutive NFC Central title . But for the second year in a row , the Bears were upset by the Washington Redskins in the NFC Divisional Playoffs . A Frustrating Season . The 1987 season proved to be a frustrating one for not only the Bears , but probably for most associating with professional football . The league endured its second strike - shortened season in the last 6 seasons , and this was a strike that truly divided teams , including Chicago . In the windy city , the strike divided its players and tarnished its coach , and the season would be the last for greats such as Walter Payton , Gary Fencik ( both of whom retired ) , Willie Gault ( dealt to the Raiders ) , Wilber Marshall ( signed as a free agent by the Redskins ) , and for all intents and purposes , Otis Wilson . The Makings of the 1987 Strike . 1987 started with the usual drama in Platteville - everyone wondering if Jim McMahon would play at all during the year , McMahon openly feuded with coach Mike Ditka , upset over the new signal - caller Jim Harbaugh that the team picked on the first round . Tension was also building due to strike talk that loomed - always a bad omen for a team . First up for Chicago in 1987 was a matchup with the defending world champion New York Giants . As if this game wasn ' t tough enough in and of itself , it would be played on Monday Night Football , and the Bears would be led by 3rd - year QB Mike Tomczak . McMahon and Fuller were injured , Doug Flutie was traded , and rookie Jim Harbaugh needed to be groomed for a few years before he would be ready . The Bears pulled it out in their typical fashion , however , trouncing the world champs by a score of 34 - 19 behind a remarkable performance by Tomczak who completed 20 of 34 passes for 292 yards . Dennis McKinnon delighted the Soldier Field crowd that night by returning a punt 94 yards for a touchdown , it was the longest TD Punt return in the NFL in 1987 . The Bears , it appeared were back . The club won their second game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on September 20th , then the strike of ' 87 was called , forcing the cancellation of all NFL games the week of September 27th . Scabs . During the first days of the strike , the league pondered what to do , as most teams ' players were deeply divided over whether to strike or not . This was not 1982 , everyone learned , as the league decided to hire replacement players ( referred to as " scabs " and " spare Bears " ) . Cancelling half the season was not an option . Mike Ditka decided to make his feelings public about the strike , as he fully backed management on the work - stoppage . He referred to the spare players as his " real " players , a move which angered the true Bears out on strike . This turned out to be a wound not healed easily or quickly in the months to come . After The Strike . The strike turned out to only last four weeks , encompassing three games , and the Bears went 2 - 1 . The teams that hired the best replacement players did themselves a favor in the end , a group of which the Bears were a part of . When the " real " 1987 resumed , Jim McMahon was back at QB , and the Bears pulled off their biggest come - from - behind win in history , beating Tampa 27 - 26 after trailing 20 - 0 . The victory proved to be inspiring , as they then won the next two games , including a 26 - 24 victory over the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field . In this game , Chicago trailed with less than a minute left , when McMahon led the team down the field for a game - winning 55 - yard field goal off the leg of Kevin Butler . After the kick , Butler turned and " flipped the bird " to Packer coach Forrest Gregg , in effect saying " see you later " to the coach who was finally axed after the 1987 NFL season . After the inspiring Green Bay win , Chicago lost a close game at Mile High Stadium to the Denver Broncos 31 - 29 on Monday Night Football , then beat Green Bay at home and Minnesota on the road , in the infamous " Rollerdome " game ( Mike Ditka referred to the Hubert H . Humphrey Metrodome by this name , prompting the Vikings ' cheerleaders to parade around on skates throughout the contest . ) The Bears were 10 - 2 with three games left , but dropped 2 of them , and struggled into the playoffs . One of those losses was a 41 - 0 disaster at San Francisco at the hands of the San Francisco 49ers , and Mike Ditka threw his gum at a heckling fan , prompting assault charges to be filed against him . This was certainly not a good way to enter the playoffs . Postseason . The Bears lost 21 - 17 to the Washington Redskins in the divisional playoffs . They took a 14 - 0 lead , but the Redskins rallied behind quarterback Doug Williams to win a playoff game in Soldier Field for the second straight season . For Bears fans , they wondered where the magic of 1985 went .