A Tale Of Two Coaches... "The '85 Bears"

The 85 Bears (2016)

Directed by Jason Hehir

The Story:

The Chicago Bears have fired their coaching staff, but the defense begs the owners not to let Buddy Ryan go. They feel they are on the verge of something great. Ryan isn't fired, but he isn't promoted to head coach. Instead, they bring in Mike Ditka to lead the team. This doesn't sit very well with Ryan, but he focuses on the defense, and his players rally around him to form quite possibly the greatest defensive team ever in the history of the NFL.

Another excellent installment from ESPNs 30 For 30, the focus on the Bears is an amazing tale of two coaches, and really, two different teams that were playing on the same field.

There was Buddy Ryan's defense and that amazing wall of talent: Dent. Singletary. McMichael. Etc.

Then there was the rest of the team, anchored by the legendary Walter Payton that was under the leadership of Mike Ditka who brought in Jim McMahon to lead the team to greatness.

A good number of the players are on hand to talk about that season and how special it was.

And it's amazing to think that the Bears would only win 1 championship with that amount of talent.

Most of that is owed to the fact that perhaps Ditka wasn't that great of a coach after all. He needed Ryan, and Ryan didn't have the talent when he left town to ever really build anything that was Super Bowl worthy.

Ditka was never able to duplicate his success elsewhere either, and looking back through this documentary, he basically got handed lightning in a bottle, so it was more the team than the coach that brought Chicago the trophy.

The other likely reason they didn't repeat was that late-season injury to McMahon with one of the dirtiest plays you'll ever see.

If that were to happen in today's game, Goodell would probably have the culprit executed for such a vicious attack on a quarterback long after the play was over.

But then when Ditka turned outside of his own team to bring in Doug Flutie to try and save the game...

Well, the rest of that story is history.

Currently streaming on Netflix as of this writing.

Final Grade:  A-

This Is What It Sounds Like When We All Cry... R.I.P. Prince 1958-2016

 

 

What the $%&@* ?!?!

I would say that was probably the collective reaction to most of America and most of the music-loving world yesterday when we found out that Prince Rogers Nelson passed away.

Prince.

Surely it had to be a mistake, another internet hoax that people would debunk shortly.

I was driving home yesterday and was halfway through a Prince song, it ended, and then another Prince song started.

I looked at my radio and thought, maybe this station is doing rock block Thursday?

Then the song ended and the announcer repeated that the breaking news from 45 minutes earlier, Prince had passed away.

WTF!!!???

Well, one doesn't just spontaneously burst into tears while driving, but I was crying hard on the inside.

Trying to wrap my head around the fact that one of the greatest musical artists of all time, and most importantly for me, one of the pillars of my 80s musical childhood was gone.

Takes the wind right out of your sails.

I now have 2 musical regrets in my life:

I had concert tickets to see David Bowie back in 1989/1990. We ended up not going because Tacoma was a long way from Scio and college and life... so we didn't go see him.

About 5 years ago, Prince was coming to North Charleston, and I got tickets! But with little Ari on the way, momma didn't want to risk damaging little ones ears by attending the concert, and I really didn't want to go without her.  In hindsight, I wish I had taken one of my daughters and gone, because I know the concert would have been amazing. But we didn't go.

You always think, well, I'll get to their concert the next time they come around.

Sadly, eventually they stop coming around.

So if you ever get the chance to see your favorites, do it. Don't have any musical regrets in life!

Thankfully, I have the music. I can pull up life footage on YouTube or watch his amazing SuperBowl halftime show again.

Sure, it's not the same, but at least it's something.

The man was a creative force of genius and the world is a better place for having him in it, and we are now worse off for him no longer being here.

But oh, the music he did leave for us.

Pick the best Prince song.

It's nearly impossible.

Sure you can try and pick a favorite, but then you go, oh but there's this one, and there's that one...

He was incredible.

Take the Purple Rain Soundtrack out of the equation, and he still had a mountain of memorable hits.

Heck, I never even saw the movie until it was celebrating it's 20th, or 25th Anniversary. I had the soundtrack, I never even bothered with the film!

And yes, the film was as energetic and full of life as the star of the movie.

Prince created a mountain of music.

Then he became "The Artist Formerly Known As..."

Then he finally reconciled with the studio and reclaimed his name and was set to release new material.

My hope, that while his long fight with his record label may have slowed the output of released material, I have a feeling that Prince has a back catalog that could be released posthumously.

In addition to all of the music he gave us personally, we also have some Prince hits out there that he wrote but didn't perform.

Everyone remembers Nothing Compares 2 U by Sinead O'Conner.

But there was Stand Back by Stevie Nicks;  I Feel For You by Chaka Khan; Sugar Walls by Sheena Easton; and Manic Monday by the Bangles, among others.

Like I said, he's one of the pillars that gave us great 80s music, and his legacy will never be forgotten.

As for that best Prince song?

I really love Raspberry Beret.

But man, Kiss sure is great and lots of fun.

The awesome duet U Got The Look with Sheena Easton.

Then there's the hauntingly sorrowful guitar on Purple Rain that chokes you up.

And who can forget the ultimate party anthem, 1999?

So many great songs.

Thankfully I'm not behind the wheel of a car right now, so I guess it's okay to finally cry.

Thanks for a lifetime of musical memories, Prince.