Monsters: The 1985 Chicago Bears and the Wild Heart of Football by Cohen, Rich (2013) Hardcover Hardcover

Within football lore, the 1985 Chicago Bears are spoken about in rarified air. Despite this, I have never really known much about the team and their historic run beyond the laundry list of notable NFL players and coaches that came from that ‘85 Bears team. I would attribute this to being born a decade and a half after “those” Bears played, but I have always had a fascination with that team, what made them so dominant, and the larger-than-life personalities. Labeled a “must-read” by NFL.com writer Chris Wesseling, Monsters: The 1985 Chicago Bears and the Wild Heart of Football fulfills all that fascination and more.Writing from the perspective of a beloving fan, Rich Cohen seamlessly intertwines his own perspective as a Chicagoan and Bears fan with interviews of players and coaches and commentary on the sport and its changes. The book takes on more than just telling the story of the 1985 Bears and its players. Cohen not only follows the stories of the unique individuals that made this team through anecdotes from players, coaches, and those close to the team, but he also provides the history of the game itself, including the evolution of offensive and defensive theory, strategy, and the politics of the sport. From the wild-card starting Quarterback Jim McMahon, to the hot-tempered Hall of Fame Head Coach Mike Ditka, and all the “Monsters of Midway” that comprised their vaunted defense, each member had a story to tell from their own perspective.In particular, Monsters provides never-before-heard stories of the contentious, to say the least, relationship between Coach Ditka and Jim McMahon which was a highlight of the book for me. Ditka was notoriously hard on quarterbacks, perpetually berating them on the sidelines for making mistakes and breaking them down. But McMahon was different. He truly embodied the “wild heart” of football and wooed over the city of Chicago with his heroic play. He was able to take the verbal abuse and funnel it through one ear and out the other. According to Cohen, the McCaskey’s, owners of the Chicago Bears and an original founder of the NFL, shared similar ideals with Ditka when it came to their players and having a personality, but McMahon was not afraid to give his opinion. Cohen recalls that when McMahon was asked what position his team should draft for in the 1986 draft, he replied “Owner” in reference to the McCaskey’s. However, the way McMahon played brought a life to the Bears offense that resulted in their one and only Super Bowl win, with Ditka describing his play as “a linebacker playing quarterback.”Cohen’s frank interviews of former players also reveal the ugly truths of life after the NFL. Cohen asks the question “What happens when you have a dream and that dream comes true?” For all those players and coaches on the 1985 Bears, that Super Bowl win to cap a 15-1 season represented everything they had been working on to that point in their lives. Ditka described a feeling of emptiness that washed over him even before their blowout Super Bowl win was complete. “It was like falling off a mountain,” Ditka said, and unfortunately, that Super Bowl also represented the high-point of many lives for members of that ‘85 team.Many players struggled immensely after their careers. In his conversations with Cohen, McMahon recalls first hearing about the suicide of All-Pro safety and former teammate Dave Duerson who shot himself in the chest so to preserve his brain for study into CTE, a degenerative brain disorder almost every former NFL player suffers from due to repetitive contact. “At some point, every conversation I had with a retired player turned to ‘the disease’,” McMahon says. He admits his worries due to the physical style of football he played, especially for a quarterback, but what Cohen is highlighting is the fragility of life and the negatives that come with achieving your goals and reaching the pinnacle of success, even if it came at the cost of their bodies.Monsters: The 1985 Bears and the Wild Heart of Football is a fantastic read that goes beyond just documenting the dominance of the ‘85 Bears to a narrative on life, struggle, and change. The first-hand sources Cohen taps would have been sufficient for writing a fantastic book about one of the greatest NFL teams of all time, but he exceeds this by tying their story to the broader shift in both American and football culture and fandom. Overall, I would recommend Cohen’s work to football fans and non-football fans alike, along with anyone who would be interested in a team comprised of such unique characters that it reads like drama TV.

This is an extremely well researched and well written book. My wife bought it for me for my birthday - without any input from me. As the author points out in the book, there have been many books written on the '85 Bears. Even as a lifelong Bear's fan I was not all that excited when I first received the book for that very reason -- in some ways the '85 Bears are almost a cliché. However, once I opened the book I could hardly put it down -- I even stayed late at work one night to read this book at my desk because I have three small children at home so it is tough to find time to read until they are asleep (my wife is the best!).I assumed from the cover and that this would be simply a recap of the 1985 season and a closer look at some of the key players on that team. It was immensely more than that. It is walk down the entire history of the Bears and George Halas, but also a history of the NFL. It also weaves in personal stories and memories from the author which I could relate to and it made me harken back to my own memories of that magical season and my childhood in the suburbs of Chicago. As is so often the mark of a great book, I did not want this one to come to an end.Why only four stars? Well, the author name dropped Jake Tapper as a friend towards the end of the book. I loathe Jake Tapper. Petty on my part maybe, but we are entitled to our opinions, right?Regardless, this is a great book and I would recommend it to any fan of the Bears or the NFL.Did I mention my wife is the best?

The book was a terrific summary of the Chicago Bears 1985 season.

I'm not a person who reads a lot of books about the NFL, and I'm a Steelers fan. Nonetheless, I loved this book. It is really about more than the 1985 Chicago Bears; it is also a story of the game and how it affects the players both physically and mentally.Cohen provides, of course, the great tale of the '85 Bears, including the team conflicts, strategies, and successes with a brand new assault defense. He gives us fine portraits of the players and coaches themselves, with probably the most detail on Jim McMahon and Mike Ditka, both of whom he interviewed for the book. But the true prize in this Cracker Jack book is that he also includes a great deal of information on the history of the NFL. I found it to be fascinating, but I must caution that if you've already read a lot about the early NFL days (Halas, Thorpe, etc.), this may be somewhat repetitive for you.Cohen also sprinkles the book with some real concerns about the effects the football has on the players, including the relatively recent data regarding chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). He addresses something that I myself have experienced recently as a football fan: the guilt that comes with watching a game for entertainment when human beings can be seriously injured for life. The thoughtful coverage of these issues was a huge bonus to this book. Sweeping it under the rug would have been a grave disservice.I actually think this book is recommended for just about any reader, football fan or not. But if you are a football fan, then it's promoted to a must-read.

Having recently rediscovered my enjoyment of American Football I decided to indulge in a nostalgic trip back to the roots of my youthful passion, ie the Chicago Bears of 1985, that's what brought me to this book, and what a book.Being an avid reader with a library of titles this one has gone instantly into my top five, possibly even the top two, it is truly outstanding. The writing is superb, really pulls you along, the research impeccable, if you only read one account of the 85 Bears make sure it's this one.If there is any gripe, and it genuinely is a minor one, it's that not enough attention to detail has been paid to each individual game of the season.Buy it, read it, enjoy it and be sure to revisit it down the road.

Been watching the NFL since the early 80s and decided after 85 that the Bears were my team. It was and remains the Benchmark for defensive teams in the game. Tampa and Sapp were good Taylor and the Giants were good. But none to me were close to the group of Hampton Dent mcMichael singletary et al. They were masters of the game but alas masters of their own downfall too. This is a fantastic history of the team but also of the league itself and read alongside Americas game by Michael MacCambridge is a must read for any fan of the NFLGeorge Halas is the main man and a big part of the history of the game but in MacCambridges book he ties in all the other innovators of the timeIf you love the Bearslike me you'll love this book. I can name all the 85 squad from Ditka and Ryan to keys and Buford but this brought not only them but the game to life.

You'd possibly think the book is going to be a chronological description of one team's season but it's way more than that. Does a nice job as history of the Chicago Bears up until 1985. But is far more about the actual people and how they were affected by being part of an iconic team. It then moves on to give an insight into the brain damage of the players of the era which paints a pretty grim future for the game and players if things don't change soon.

Takes me back to life in America as it was in my youth, excellent in every way. Reminds me of the awesome team that year in the NFL.

As a person who has only recently started to watch NFL, this book touches on some great pieces of history about the game in general as well as the specific story of the 1985 bears. Well written and a very interesting story about a great sports team.