An otherwise meaningless Bears victory over Baltimore may serve as an encouraging portent for Dave Wannstedt’s future.
Last week, Bears President Michael McCaskey said Wannstedt would be under “stricter evaluation” at the end of this season than he was after last year’s 4-12 campaign.
In a battle of two teams with losing records Sunday, Wannstedt managed to motivate his troops to take a 24-0 first-half lead and 24-3 victory.
It seems McCaskey would prefer retaining Wannstedt, who has two years left on his contract.
“We showed the hard work that so many of the players and coaches have been putting into the game,” McCaskey said after watching the Bears improve to 4-11 with a season finale looming with Green Bay.
“I always love to win a game. And if we can win it and be smiling in the second half, that’s a special treat.”
Bears players stopped short of placing Wannstedt’s coaching future at the top of their priority list.
“I don’t know if guys really have it in their minds about what happens to the coaching staff,” said defensive tackle Mike Wells. “We really can’t afford to do that. Obviously, we have a personal emotional interest in what the coaches do. They’re great people and we’re great friends with them. But it’s just the nature of this business.
“We have to start out by saying we won this game for ourselves and our team just to get the momentum going. And hopefully, this does well for Dave too.”
Knowledgeable fans: Even though all 66,944 tickets were sold for Sunday’s game, there were 26,091 no-shows.
“I understand exactly what the fans are thinking,” Wells said. “I actually like the way the fans are here in Chicago. If we win, they treat us great. If we lose, they get on us, which is great. It should be that way.”
Where has he been? In his first NFL start, James Allen rushed for 163 yards on 23 carries and one touchdown for the Bears.
“I’m not surprised,” Wells said. “I’ve seen him in practice. You just have to get a chance sometimes. He did a great job and I’m proud of him.”
Poor choices: The Bears can’t win for winning, or so it seems, as Sunday’s triumph served to worsen their draft position in April.
Regardless of how high the Bears have selected in the first round in recent years, they have not fared well. But throughout their history, the Bears have been very successful finding stars in the first round.
In fact, seven of the Bears’ first-round picks have made it to the Pro Football Hall of Fame: offensive tackle Joe Stydahar, drafted in 1936; quarterback Sid Luckman, ’39; center Bulldog Turner, ’40; quarterback Bobby Layne, ’48; running back Gale Sayers, ’65; middle linebacker Dick Butkus, ’65, and running back Walter Payton, ’75. Plus, the Bears started auspiciously in 1936 by landing Hall of Famer Dan Fortmann in the ninth round.
What have they done lately? The Bears’ recent drafts have been fruitless, however. Stan Thomas (1991), Alonzo Spellman (’92), John Thierry (’94) and Rashaan Salaam (’95) did not perform to the standards of first-round picks.
Computer football: On Dec. 5, the second annual computer football championship took place in the Halas Hall auditorium. Chicago Boys and Girls Clubs competed in teams of four with a coach, and used the Madden NFL ’98 video game. The National Electronic Football Challenge encourages the spirit of cooperation, teamwork, and other skills, such as problem-solving, analyzing and communication.
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Send e-mail to Fred Mitchell at kick3485@aol.com
Fred Mitchell appears Mondays on CLTV’s “Sports Page” at 9 p.m.
