The 1935 season was the

Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) North division. The Bears have won nine NF ...

' 16th in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

and 13th season under

head coach A head coach, senior coach or manager is a professional at training and developing athletes. They typically hold a more public profile and are paid more than other coaches. In some sports, the head coach is instead called the "manager", as in assoc ...

George Halas George Stanley Halas Sr. (; February 2, 1895October 31, 1983), nicknamed "Papa Bear" and "Mr. Everything", was an American professional football player, coach, and team owner. He was the founder and owner of the National Football League's Chic ...

. The team was unable to match on their 13–0 record from 1934 and finished with a 6–4–2 record and finishing in a tie for third (and last) place in the Western Division, and failed to return to the championship game. The Bears had little trouble with the weaker teams in the league, led the league in scoring, and occasionally showed signs of brilliance against top-flight competition, but for the most part, they were outclassed by the Lions, Packers, and Giants. The biggest problem was the veterans from the 1920s had largely retired or were past their prime but not enough young talent had emerged to offset these losses. In particular, the retirement of Link Lyman and Red Grange hurt the team, especially on defense. Additionally, Bronko Nagurski and Bill Hewitt were injured for large portions of the season and could not play to their normal level.

Season highlights

Keith Molesworth was the brightest spot on offense and was a triple threat from the halfback position. Bernie Masterson ran the T-formation adequately but was not particularly accurate as a passer. Luke Johnsos was the most reliable end and led the team in receptions. Gene Ronzani led the club in rushing, but Feathers, Molesworth, and Manders shared rushing duties. Manders had a subpar year as a kicker, making only 1 of 8 field goals. The Bears lost to Green Bay twice, to Detroit once (tying the Lions in the other game), split the series with New York, and beat the Redskins in their only meeting. After a 5–2 start, the Bears faded in the end, winning only 1 of their last 5 games, with one tie. Of note, every other team in the NFL ran either the

Single Wing In American football, American and Canadian football, a single-wing formation was a precursor to the modern Spread offense, spread or shotgun formation. The term usually connotes formations in which the snap (football), snap is tossed rather th ...

or the A Formation (a variant of the Single Wing run only by the Giants), but the Bears still used the

T formation In American football, a T formation (frequently called the full house formation in modern usage, sometimes the Robust T) is a formation used by the offensive team in which three running backs line up in a row about five yards behind the quarterba ...

. Many today falsely believe the Bears of the 1940s "invented" the modern T and then everyone adopted it. The truth is everyone ran the T when the league began in 1920. All the other teams switched to the Single Wing after it was perfected in the college game. Meanwhile, coach

and his assistants perfected the T, which they never changed from, and other teams switched back from the Single Wing only after the Bears of the 1940s demonstrated the T's superiority.

Future Hall of Fame players

* Bill Hewitt, end *

George Musso George Francis Musso (April 8, 1910 – September 5, 2000) was an American professional football player who spent his entire 12-year career as a guard and offensive tackle for the Chicago Bears of the National Football League (NFL). He was in ...

, tackle *

Bronko Nagurski Bronislau "Bronko" Nagurski (November 3, 1908 – January 7, 1990) was a Canadian-born professional American football player in the National Football League (NFL), renowned for his strength and size. Nagurski was also a successful professional w ...

, fullback

Other leading players

* Beattie Feathers, halfback *

Luke Johnsos Luke Andrew Johnsos Sr. (December 9, 1905 – December 10, 1984) was an American football player, assistant coach, and head coach for the National Football League's Chicago Bears franchise. He started with the Bears in 1929 at the age of 23 as a ...

, end *

Bill Karr William Morrison Karr Jr. (November 29, 1911 – October 29, 1979) was an American football end who played six seasons in the National Football League (NFL) for the Chicago Bears from 1933 to 1938. He twice led the NFL in receiving touchdowns an ...

, end *

Joe Kopcha Joseph Edwards Kopcha (December 23, 1905 – July 29, 1986) is a former professional American football player. Kopcha played eight years in the National Football League, mainly for the Chicago Bears. He was an guard. Kopcha attended the Universi ...

, guard *

Jack Manders John Albert "Automatic Jack" Manders (January 13, 1909 – January 29, 1977) was an American football player. He played professionally in the National Football League (NFL) for the Chicago Bears from 1933 to 1940. He's considered pro football's f ...

, fullback/kicker *

Bernie Masterson Bernard Edward Masterson (August 10, 1911 – May 16, 1963) was an American football player and coach. He served as the head football coach at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln from 1946 to 1947, compiling a record of 5–13. Masterson played ...

, quarterback *

Keith Molesworth Keith Frank Molesworth (October 20, 1905 – March 12, 1966) was an American football player and coach. He also played and managed in minor league baseball. Early life Molesworth was born in Washington, Iowa and graduated from Washington High ...

, halfback *

Gene Ronzani Eugene A. Ronzani (March 28, 1909 – September 12, 1975) was a professional football player and coach in the National Football League (NFL). He was the second head coach of the Green Bay Packers, from 1950 to 1953, and resigned with two games r ...

, back

Players departed from 1934

Carl Brumbaugh Carl Lowry Brumbaugh (September 22, 1906 – October 24, 1969) was an American college and professional football player who was a quarterback and halfback in the National Football League (NFL) for nine seasons in the 1930s. Brumbaugh played c ...

, quarterback (did not play for unknown reasons) *

Red Grange Harold Edward "Red" Grange (June 13, 1903 – January 28, 1991), nicknamed "the Galloping Ghost" and "the Wheaton Iceman", was an American football halfback for the University of Illinois, the Chicago Bears, and the short-lived New York Yankees ...

, back (retired) *

Walt Kiesling Walter Andrew Kiesling (May 27, 1903 – March 2, 1962) was an American football guard and tackle who spent 36 years as a player, coach, and aide with National Football League (NFL) teams. He was posthumously inducted into the Pro Football Hall ...

, guard (signed by Packers) *

Link Lyman William Roy "Link" Lyman (November 30, 1898 – December 28, 1972), also sometimes known as Roy Lyman, was an American football player and coach. Lyman was born in Nebraska and raised in Kansas. He played college football for the Nebraska Cornh ...

, tackle (retired)

Schedule

Standings

References

{{1935 NFL season by team

Chicago Bears seasons