Defense has long been a staple of Chicago Bears football. Hall of Fame linebackers Dick Butkus, Mike Singletary and Brian Urlacher each represent different, yet dominant, eras of Bears football, but there's no debate that the best defense ever fielded in Chicago was the 1985 Super Bowl team. In fact, that squad is considered one of the best -- if not THE best -- of all-time. But with so many dominant defensive seasons in the Bears record books, which team ranks next?
We ran a poll on Twitter asking fans which defense they think is second-best. Here are the results:
Stay in the game with the latest updates on your beloved Chicago sports teams! Sign up here for our All Access Daily newsletter.
After nearly 1,000 votes, 46-percent of Bears fans favor the 2005 squad, which shouldn't come as a surprise.
The Bears had the No. 1 defense in the NFL that season, allowing just 202 points (12.6 points per game). The next closest was the Colts, who allowed 15.4. Chicago registered an incredible 24 interceptions while allowing just 10 touchdown passes and ranked in the top-five against the pass. They were just outside the top-10 in run defense, too.
Urlacher was the engine that made the defense go in 2005. He won the NFL's Defensive Player of the Year Award after totaling 122 tackles and six sacks. A remarkable five Bears defenders were named either first- or second-team All-Pros in 2005, including Uracher, Lance Briggs, Tommie Harris, Mike Brown and Nathan Vasher.