Half the price the Shermanator mentions.
From today's Tribune:
Present lets Bears fan live in the past
1985 season DVD extravaganza has 12 actual broadcasts
This has been a tough year to be a Bears fan, but relief is on the way.
Just in time for the holidays, NFL Films, in conjunction with Warner Home Video, has released "NFL Greatest Games: 1985 Chicago Bears." The retail price is $84.98.
The collection showcases 12 games from that fabled season, including the two playoff victories and the Super Bowl.
Make no mistake, these DVDs aren't re-creations of game footage from NFL Films.
These are the actual game telecasts that millions of viewers watched from their couches or local pubs. Bears fans have been clamoring to see these games for years. When I wrote about getting my hands on some copies from a source once, I was flooded with e-mails asking where I got them.
Now the DVDs are available to everyone, but with the demand, some stores are on back order already.
Tim Ryan and Johnny Morris, who was the de facto Bears analyst that year, call most of the games. The team of Frank Gifford, Joe Namath and O.J. Simpson handled their three ABC appearances. It's a bit eerie to hear Simpson work a football game considering his history since.
The ABC crew called three of the biggest Bears games of the year: the Jim McMahon game in Minnesota, the unveiling of William Perry as a true goal-line back against Green Bay and the loss in Miami.
Namath, looking much younger, provided a memorable sound bite when McMahon, on his first play off the bench against Minnesota, connected for a 70-yard touchdown to Willie Gault. As the ball lands in Gault's hands, Namath yells over Gifford, "I love it."
The biggest omission was leaving out the Bears' 16-10 victory over Green Bay. It was a brutal hitting affair in which Perry caught a touchdown pass and Walter Payton literally ran over the Packers to seal the victory.
But there's plenty of other good stuff. With some editing, the games run between two and 2 1/2 hours. If you look carefully, you can see the Gridiron Assassin at the Tampa Bears Game in Row 4 behind the Bears bench around the 45 yard line. You also can get straight to the good parts by going quarter by quarter, a nice feature. Note: McMahon came in during the third quarter against the Vikings.
The Super Bowl DVD runs a bit longer and includes Bob Costas conducting the postgame interviews.
Costas asked coach Mike Ditka if this Bears team ranked among the best of all time.
"Give us a few years and I'll be able to tell you a whole lot better," Ditka said. "Not one year."
Well, it turned out the Bears only gave us one year. But for fans who want to live in the past, the '85 game DVDs should provide them with a happy holiday.
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