| 1928 Chicago Bears season | |
|---|---|
| Owner | George S. Halas, Dutch Sternaman |
| Head coach | George Halas |
| Home stadium | Wrigley Field |
| Results | |
| Record | 7–5–1 |
| League place | 5thNFL |
The1928 season was theChicago Bears' 9th in theNational Football League. The team was unable to improve on their 9–3–2 record from 1927 and finished with a 7–5–1 record under head coachGeorge Halas, earning them a fifth-place finish in the team standings. Despite playing ten of their thirteen games at home, this marked the team's worst record to date.
The season had its high points, including two shutout wins over the crosstown rivalChicago Cardinals, a shutout win over the defending championNew York Giants, and convincing victories overFrankford,Dayton, andPottsville. However, two losses each toDetroit and theGreen Bay Packers made in 1928 a disappointment to the normally contending Bears. Chicago's problem was that the old guard was aging withJoey Sternaman,Paddy Driscoll, andGeorge Halas, who also played, were now in their early 30s.
The pace of playing 3 games in 8 days around Thanksgiving was at the time a standard practice. The Thanksgiving game was not a substitute for the Sunday game but just an extra game which also hurt the veteran Bears down the stretch as in previous years.[citation needed]
Joe Sternaman andWilliam Senn starred on offense with 4 and 5 touchdowns each. Sternaman also shared kicking duties with Driscoll. The passing game became more important and the Bears scored 11 touchdowns on the air, versus 13 on the ground. This was a league-wide trend, foreshadowing the ascendancy ofDon Hutson andSammy Baugh of the 1930s.[1]
| Game | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Attendance | Venue | Recap | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 23 | Chicago Cardinals | W 15–0 | 1–0 | 4,000 | Normal Park | Recap | |
| 2 | September 30 | atGreen Bay Packers | T 12–12 | 1–0–1 | 8,500 | Green Bay City Stadium | Recap | |
| — | October 7 | atMinneapolis Marines | W 12–6 | — | "capacity" | DePaul Field | [2] | |
| 3 | October 14 | New York Giants | W 13–0 | 2–0–1 | 15,000 | Wrigley Field | Recap | |
| 4 | October 21 | Green Bay Packers | L 6–16 | 2–1–1 | 15,000 | Wrigley Field | Recap | |
| 5 | October 28 | Detroit Wolverines | L 0–6 | 2–2–1 | 20,000 | Wrigley Field | Recap | [3][4] |
| 6 | November 4 | New York Yankees | W 27–0 | 3–2–1 | 10,000 | Wrigley Field | Recap | |
| 7 | November 11 | Dayton Triangles | W 27–0 | 4–2–1 | 5,000 | Wrigley Field | Recap | |
| 8 | November 18 | Pottsville Maroons | W 13–6 | 5–2–1 | 5,000 | Wrigley Field | Recap | |
| 9 | November 25 | Detroit Wolverines | L 7–14 | 5–3–1 | 15,000 | Wrigley Field | Recap | [5][6][7] |
| 10 | November 29 | Chicago Cardinals | W 34–0 | 6–3–1 | 10,000 | Wrigley Field | Recap | |
| 11 | December 2 | Frankford Yellow Jackets | W 28–6 | 7–3–1 | 12,000 | Wrigley Field | Recap | |
| 12 | December 9 | Green Bay Packers | L 0–6 | 7–4–1 | 14,000 | Wrigley Field | Recap | |
| 13 | December 15 | atFrankford Yellow Jackets | L 0-19 | 7–5–1 | 7,000 | Frankford Stadium | Recap |
| NFL standings | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | PF | PA | STK | |||
| Providence Steam Roller | 8 | 1 | 2 | .889 | 128 | 42 | T1 | ||
| Frankford Yellow Jackets | 11 | 3 | 2 | .786 | 175 | 84 | W2 | ||
| Detroit Wolverines | 7 | 2 | 1 | .778 | 189 | 76 | W4 | ||
| Green Bay Packers | 6 | 4 | 3 | .600 | 120 | 92 | W1 | ||
| Chicago Bears | 7 | 5 | 1 | .583 | 182 | 85 | L2 | ||
| New York Giants | 4 | 7 | 2 | .364 | 79 | 136 | L5 | ||
| New York Yankees | 4 | 8 | 1 | .333 | 103 | 179 | W1 | ||
| Pottsville Maroons | 2 | 8 | 0 | .200 | 74 | 134 | L1 | ||
| Chicago Cardinals | 1 | 5 | 0 | .167 | 7 | 107 | L4 | ||
| Dayton Triangles | 0 | 7 | 0 | .000 | 9 | 131 | L7 | ||
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| Division championships (21) | |
| Conference championships (4) | |
| League championships (9) | |
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