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Bears Cowboys carry decades of history into Sunday’s clash at Soldier Field

When the Cowboys take the field Sunday at Soldier Field, history will be impossible to ignore. These are two of the NFL’s flagship franchises, yet together they have gone 70 years without hoisting a Lombardi Trophy.

Dallas dominated the 1990s behind the Triplets, collecting three Super Bowl rings. The 1985 Bears remain football folklore, their swagger growing larger over four decades. On their march to that title, they delivered a 44 to 0 demolition of Dallas, the worst home loss in Cowboys history.

Hall of Fame lineman Dan Hampton never forgot it. “That was a milestone victory. We had never beaten Dallas and on the flight down there, Gary Fencik showed me an article where Everson Walls said even though we were undefeated we hadn’t played anybody yet,” Hampton told me.

“After the blowout, reporters came running over to me, and I jokingly said we still hadn’t played anyone yet” (Laughs). “I’m originally from Arkansas and grew up hating Dallas, so it was extra special that day as we had never beaten them, not in badminton, tiddlywinks, or anything else.”

— Dallas Cowboys (@dallascowboys) September 18, 2025

The names Landry, Ditka, Dorsett and Payton now belong to Canton. Dorsett and Payton combined for over 29,000 rushing yards while Landry and Ditka stacked 397 coaching victories. Add Emmitt Smith’s all time record and the ground total pushes 50,000 yards.

This Sunday looks different. Brian Schottenheimer and Ben Johnson bring rookie head coaching résumés. D’Andre Swift and Javonte Williams carry the ground game. Legends are long gone.

Former Cowboys quarterback Babe Laufenberg joined me to size it up. “I always think it is about 4 or 5 weeks into a season before you start to get a feel for what teams will be both offensively and defensively,” Laufenberg said. “Two weeks in, Dak appears very comfortable in this offense and is playing with a great deal of confidence. His decision making has been decisive.”

And what of Chicago? “Well, the Bears have a beat up secondary and with CeeDee Lamb and the addition of George Pickens, I think Chicago will have their hands full,” he said. “This is the same unit that just gave up five touchdowns a week ago to Jared Goff.”

Sunday marks the 29th meeting between the teams. Dallas leads the series 16 to 12.