O’Donnell: For Bears, beatdown at SF could be the start of something even bigger
OF MIKE DITKA, WINSTON CHURCHILL AND SIMBA, “THE LION KING,” one who said, “Success isn't permanent and failure isn't fatal.”
For devotees of deductive logic — since the weekend overwhelms with Sunday night's Bears-Niners game from Levi's Stadium (7:20 p.m., NBC; AM-1000) — the correct “Jeopardy!” response is:
“Who is Mike Ditka?”
DA COACH BECAME DA PHILOSOPHER after his glory-bound Bears sustained one of their grand triggering defeats in the region where little cable cars run over developing NFL teams halfway to the stars.
That loss was in the 1984 NFC championship game. Joe Montana and his fleet elite were methodical, Bears QB Steve Fuller was sacked nine times, and SF schooled and brutalized 23-0.
Fifty-five weeks later, Ditka and his determined desperados were Super Bowl champions.
NO ONE WHO WAS AFFILIATED with Halas Hall for the stretch from 1984-85 has ever disputed that the long day's journey at Candlestick Park helped pushed The Shufflers to Mount XX.
Now comes Ben Johnson and his Miracle Theater Troupe to the land of stymied football hopes.
The '25 Bears haven't merely been winning football games.
With the astounding 22-16 win over the Packers last Saturday night as most recent evidence, they have been repeatedly dancing to the brink, peering over into the crevice and relying upon something more supernatural than even Carlos Santana ever envisioned to prevail.
The endgame theatrics of Caleb Williams and bangers have been so exhaustively engaging that it would be a crime if Sunday's thriller wasn't airing in prime time.
HOLIDAY WEEKEND INTERLUDE:
A question came up at a Christmas soiree — Has any ending involving a major Chicago-area team in the 21st century matched the reel-time drama of the Bears over GB in OT?
Only two supremely credible contenders were put forth:
· The Cubs' wet Game 7 win at Cleveland in 10 innings to clinch the 2016 World Series; and,
· The still-unbelievable close of Deron Williams, Dee Brown and Bruce Weber's Fighting Illini on that mythic Saturday night in Rosemont when they came back from a 15-point deficit in the final 4:03 of regulation to beat Arizona 90-89 in overtime and advance to the 2005 Final Four.
(One man's rankings: 1. Illinois, 2. Cubs, 3. B.J. and the Bears last Saturday night.)
NOW ABOUT THOSE 49ERS:
Kyle Shanahan knows how to crescendo teams in the regular season. Historically, he tails off deeper in the playoffs, which is why he's never won a Super Bowl.
His current gang is seven degrees beyond hot. They were 6-4 on Nov. 9. Since then, they've won five straight, conveniently sandwiched around a late-season bye in Week 14.
They haven't punted since Nov. 30. That amazing footnote encompasses 20 offensive drives and more than 133 minutes of playing time.
Brock Purdy is playing ace football again. His five touchdown passes vs. Indianapolis last weekend were the most by a San Francisco QB since Montana.
CHICAGO WILL TRY TO BEAT THAT HEAT with their daring blend of tepid starts, divine intervention and Jordanesque finishes.
That mix is grand for Hollywood conceptualists. It's not a recipe for December success 40 miles down the pike from Fisherman's Wharf, in Santa Clara.
Johnson says he watches video of Shanahan every week for new twists that he might incorporate into the ongoing Chicago wizardry.
Shanahan, as the auteur, gets to stay one step ahead of Johnson's homework. He also has a crisp band of bandoleros brimming with motivation as they stay tucked in the NFC West race with the Seahawks and the Rams.
INTO THE WEEKEND, the Niners were holding as 3-point favorites. That despite drawing close to 80% of all game-line wagering.
(That overflow should be working against them. So too should the fact that far too many of the fanboys are picking them to win.)
But the Bears' express has been winning on a very precarious thin line. The idea that they would win out all the way to or through the NFC title game still seems heavy odds against.
A BEATDOWN SUNDAY NIGHT could be just what those whirling pixies of the NFL ordered for Johnson, Williams and all.
A temporarily humbled Chicago could return home, reassess and regroup with an eye to the regular-season finale vs. Detroit and then on to what will hopefully be a doink-free playoffs opener.
THAT WHOLE DIVINE INTERVENTION THING continues to envelope the current Bears.
The 23-0 beatdown at Candlestick Park way back in '84 eventually proved most providential.
A similar result Sunday night wouldn't be fatal. In fact, it could be the sort of motivator that winds up being the start of something big.
Just study the words and magnum opus of Da Coach-Philosopher.
Jim O'Donnell's Sports and Media column appears each week on Sunday and Wednesday. Reach him at jimodonnelldh@yahoo.com. All communications may be considered for publication.