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While there have been 59 Super Bowl champions, few have been celebrated more than the 1985 Chicago Bears, a truly larger than life team that took the NFL by storm en route to capturing the franchise's lone Super Bowl title. 

In honor of the 40th anniversary of the legendary squad, members of the '85 Bears were honored during halftime of Monday night's game between the Vikings and Bears at Soldier Field. Fittingly, a key win for the Bears during the '85 season came against the Vikings on Monday night. 

Led by coach Mike Ditka and defensive coordinator Buddy Ryan, the '85 Bears steamrolled the regular season to the tune of a 15-1 record. Chicago started 12-0 before the Dolphins and Hall of Fame quarterback Dan Marino prevented them from joining the 1972 Dolphins as the NFL's only perfect teams. 

One of the unsung heroes of the '85 Bears was 32-year-old Walter Payton, who ran for 1,551 yards and nine touchdowns while also catching 49 passes for 483 yards and two more scores. Payton at one point had nine straight 100-yard rushing performances that included a season-high 192 yards during Chicago's Week 9 win over the Packers. 

In the playoffs, Ryan's "46" defense overwhelmed the opposition. The unit shut out the Giants and Rams in the first two rounds before utterly dominating the Patriots, 46-10, in Super Bowl XX. The 36-point differential was the greatest in Super Bowl history at that point, and it's still the second-best all-time. Led by future Hall of Famers Mike Singletary, Richard Dent, Dan Hampton and Steve McMichael, Chicago's defense set a Super Bowl record by allowing just nine rushing yards. They also forced six turnovers while making two scores on a safety and a pick-six by defensive back Reggie Phillips. 

Chicago made more history immediately following their win when both Ditka and Ryan were carried off the field by their players. That marks the first and last time that multiple coaches were carried off the field at the conclusion of a Super Bowl. 

While they were a great team, the '85 Bears are also remembered for being an extremely colorful team in terms of personality. For example, you can't talk about the '85 Bears without talking about their "Super Bowl Shuffle" music video that has often been imitated but has yet to be duplicated. 

The '85 Bears will always have a special spot in both Chicago and NFL lore. In 2019, they were voted as the second-best team in NFL history, behind only the undefeated 1972 Dolphins. For Bears fans, however, the '85 team takes a backset to no one.