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1978 Chicago Bears
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Record: 7-9-0, Finished 3rd in NFC Central Division
NFL Season Summary
Scored 253 points (15.8/g), 20th of 28 in the NFL.
Allowed 274 points (17.1/g), 9th.
Differential of -21 points (-1.3/g), 19th.
Expected W-L: 7.2-8.8.
Takeaway/Giveaway Differential -3 (-0.2/g), 17th.
Coached by Neill Armstrong (7-9-0)
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1978 Statistics / Starters & Roster / Games & Schedule / Team Draftees
Starters
Glossary · ProBowl(*), 1st-team All-Pro(+), · CSV · PRE · Hide Non-primary Starters| Pos | Age | Yrs | GS | Summary of Player Stats | Drafted (tm/rnd/yr) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Offensive Starters | Complete Team Stats | |||||
| QB | Bob Avellini | 25 | 3 | 12 | 141 for 264, 1,718 yards, 5 td, 16 int, & 34 rushes for 54 yards and 2 td | Chicago Bears / 6th / 135th pick / 1975 |
| RB | Walter Payton* | 24 | 3 | 16 | 333 rushes for 1,395 yards, 11 td, & 50 catches for 480 yards and 0 td | Chicago Bears / 1st / 4th pick / 1975 |
| FB | Roland Harper | 25 | 3 | 16 | 240 rushes for 992 yards, 6 td, & 43 catches for 340 yards and 2 td | Chicago Bears / 17th / 420th pick / 1975 |
| WR | Golden Richards | 28 | 5 | 14 | 27 catches for 379 yards, 0 td | Dallas Cowboys / 2nd / 46th pick / 1973 |
| WR | James Scott | 26 | 2 | 14 | 42 catches for 759 yards, 5 td | New York Jets / 8th / 193rd pick / 1975 |
| TE | Greg Latta | 26 | 3 | 16 | 15 catches for 159 yards, 0 td | Baltimore Colts / 8th / 188th pick / 1974 |
| LT | Ted Albrecht | 24 | 1 | 15 | 1 fumble recovered | Chicago Bears / 1st / 15th pick / 1977 |
| LG | Noah Jackson | 27 | 3 | 16 | 1 fumble recovered | Baltimore Colts / 7th / 161st pick / 1974 |
| C | Dan Neal | 29 | 5 | 16 | Baltimore Colts / 11th / 270th pick / 1973 |
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| RG | Revie Sorey | 25 | 3 | 16 | 1 fumble recovered | Chicago Bears / 5th / 110th pick / 1975 |
| RT | Dennis Lick | 24 | 2 | 16 | Chicago Bears / 1st / 8th pick / 1976 |
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| Defensive Starters | ||||||
| LDE | Tommy Hart | 34 | 10 | 16 | San Francisco 49ers / 10th / 261st pick / 1968 |
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| LDT | Jim Osborne | 29 | 6 | 15 | Chicago Bears / 7th / 182nd pick / 1972 |
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| RDT | Alan Page | 33 | 11 | 10 | Minnesota Vikings / 1st / 15th pick / 1967 |
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| RDT | Ron Rydalch | 26 | 3 | 5 | New York Jets / 8th / 197th pick / 1974 |
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| RDE | Mike Hartenstine | 25 | 3 | 0 | 0 interceptions, 3 fumbles recovered | Chicago Bears / 2nd / 31st pick / 1975 |
| LLB | Doug Buffone | 34 | 12 | 15 | 3 interceptions, 0 fumbles recovered | Chicago Bears / 4th / 60th pick / 1966 |
| MLB | Tom Hicks | 26 | 2 | 9 | 0 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | Chicago Bears / 6th / 151st pick / 1975 |
| MLB | Don Rives | 27 | 5 | 7 | 2 interceptions, 2 fumbles recovered | Chicago Bears / 15th / 370th pick / 1973 |
| RLB | Gary Campbell | 26 | 1 | 16 | 0 interceptions, 2 fumbles recovered | Pittsburgh Steelers / 10th / 291st pick / 1976 |
| LCB | Terry Schmidt | 26 | 4 | 16 | 2 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | New Orleans Saints / 5th / 121st pick / 1974 |
| RCB | Virgil Livers | 26 | 3 | 13 | 3 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | Chicago Bears / 4th / 83rd pick / 1975 |
| SS | Gary Fencik | 24 | 2 | 16 | 4 interceptions, 2 fumbles recovered | Miami Dolphins / 10th / 281st pick / 1976 |
| FS | Doug Plank | 25 | 3 | 0 | 1 interception, 2 fumbles recovered | Chicago Bears / 12th / 291st pick / 1975 |
| Special Teams Starters | ||||||
| K | Bob Thomas | 26 | 3 | 0 | 17 of 22 field goals & 26 of 28 extra points | Los Angeles Rams / 15th / 388th pick / 1974 |
| P | Bob Parsons | 28 | 6 | 0 | 96 punts for a 37.0 average, 0 blocked | Chicago Bears / 5th / 117th pick / 1972 |
| PR | Steve Schubert | 27 | 4 | 0 | 27 punt returns for a 8.5 average and 1 td | |
| KR | Brian Baschnagel | 24 | 2 | 1 | 20 kick returns for a 22.8 average and 0 td | Chicago Bears / 3rd / 66th pick / 1976 |
| Age | Pos | G | GS | Wt | Ht | College/Univ | BirthDate | Yrs | Drafted (tm/rnd/yr) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ted Albrecht | 24 | T-G | 15 | 15 | 253 | 6-4 | California | 10/8/1954 | 1 | Chicago Bears / 1st / 15th pick / 1977 |
| Lionel Antoine | 28 | T | 9 | 1 | 262 | 6-6 | Southern Illinois | 8/31/1950 | 6 | Chicago Bears / 1st / 3rd pick / 1972 |
| Bob Avellini | 25 | QB | 13 | 12 | 208 | 6-2 | Maryland | 8/28/1953 | 3 | Chicago Bears / 6th / 135th pick / 1975 |
| Brian Baschnagel | 24 | WR | 16 | 1 | 187 | 5-11 | Ohio State | 1/8/1954 | 2 | Chicago Bears / 3rd / 66th pick / 1976 |
| Doug Becker | 22 | LB | 1 | 0 | 220 | 6-0 | Notre Dame | 6/27/1956 | Rook | Pittsburgh Steelers / 10th / 268th pick / 1978 |
| Art Best | 25 | RB | 16 | 0 | 205 | 6-1 | Kent State,Notre Dame | 3/18/1953 | 1 | Los Angeles Rams / 6th / 156th pick / 1977 |
| Doug Buffone | 34 | LB | 15 | 15 | 230 | 6-3 | Louisville | 6/27/1944 | 12 | Chicago Bears / 4th / 60th pick / 1966 |
| Gary Campbell | 26 | LB | 16 | 16 | 218 | 6-1 | Colorado | 3/4/1952 | 1 | Pittsburgh Steelers / 10th / 291st pick / 1976 |
| Mike Cobb | 23 | TE | 13 | 0 | 244 | 6-5 | Michigan State | 12/10/1955 | 1 | Cincinnati Bengals / 1st / 22nd pick / 1977 |
| Chris Devlin | 25 | LB | 6 | 1 | 226 | 6-2 | Penn State | 11/22/1953 | 3 | Cincinnati Bengals / 7th / 170th pick / 1975 |
| Robin Earl | 23 | TE-RB | 16 | 0 | 242 | 6-5 | Washington | 3/18/1955 | 1 | Chicago Bears / 3rd / 61st pick / 1977 |
| Vince Evans | 23 | QB | 3 | 0 | 215 | 6-2 | USC | 6/14/1955 | 1 | Chicago Bears / 6th / 140th pick / 1977 |
| Gary Fencik | 24 | DB | 16 | 16 | 194 | 6-1 | Yale | 6/11/1954 | 2 | Miami Dolphins / 10th / 281st pick / 1976 |
| Wentford Gaines | 25 | DB | 11 | 0 | 185 | 6-0 | Cincinnati,Ferrum,Tennessee Tech | 2/4/1953 | Rook | Pittsburgh Steelers / 9th / 265th pick / 1976 |
| Roland Harper | 25 | RB | 16 | 16 | 208 | 5-11 | Louisiana Tech | 2/28/1953 | 3 | Chicago Bears / 17th / 420th pick / 1975 |
| Tommy Hart | 34 | DE-LB | 16 | 16 | 245 | 6-4 | Morris Brown | 11/7/1944 | 10 | San Francisco 49ers / 10th / 261st pick / 1968 |
| Mike Hartenstine | 25 | DE | 16 | 0 | 251 | 6-3 | Penn State | 7/27/1953 | 3 | Chicago Bears / 2nd / 31st pick / 1975 |
| Bruce Herron | 24 | LB | 15 | 1 | 220 | 6-2 | New Mexico | 4/14/1954 | Rook | Miami Dolphins / 7th / 180th pick / 1977 |
| Tom Hicks | 26 | LB | 9 | 9 | 235 | 6-4 | Illinois | 12/18/1952 | 2 | Chicago Bears / 6th / 151st pick / 1975 |
| Noah Jackson | 27 | G | 16 | 16 | 267 | 6-2 | Tampa | 4/14/1951 | 3 | Baltimore Colts / 7th / 161st pick / 1974 |
| Dan Jiggetts | 24 | T-G | 16 | 0 | 274 | 6-4 | Harvard | 3/10/1954 | 2 | Chicago Bears / 6th / 161st pick / 1976 |
| Greg Latta | 26 | TE | 16 | 16 | 227 | 6-3 | Morgan State | 10/13/1952 | 3 | Baltimore Colts / 8th / 188th pick / 1974 |
| Dennis Lick | 24 | T | 16 | 16 | 266 | 6-3 | Wisconsin | 4/26/1954 | 2 | Chicago Bears / 1st / 8th pick / 1976 |
| Virgil Livers | 26 | DB | 13 | 13 | 176 | 5-8 | Western Kentucky | 3/26/1952 | 3 | Chicago Bears / 4th / 83rd pick / 1975 |
| Jerry Meyers | 24 | DE-DT | 16 | 0 | 249 | 6-4 | Northern Illinois | 2/21/1954 | 2 | Chicago Bears / 15th / 411th pick / 1976 |
| Mike Morgan | 22 | RB | 5 | 0 | 207 | 5-11 | Wisconsin | 1/19/1956 | Rook | |
| Jon Morris | 36 | C | 10 | 0 | 254 | 6-4 | Holy Cross | 4/5/1942 | 14 | Green Bay Packers / 2nd / 27th pick / 1964 |
| Jerry Muckensturm | 25 | LB | 16 | 0 | 223 | 6-4 | Arkansas State | 10/13/1953 | 2 | Chicago Bears / 7th / 190th pick / 1976 |
| Dan Neal | 29 | C-G | 16 | 16 | 250 | 6-4 | Kentucky | 8/30/1949 | 5 | Baltimore Colts / 11th / 270th pick / 1973 |
| Jim Osborne | 29 | DT | 15 | 15 | 250 | 6-3 | Southern | 9/7/1949 | 6 | Chicago Bears / 7th / 182nd pick / 1972 |
| Alan Page | 33 | DT | 10 | 10 | 245 | 6-4 | Notre Dame | 8/7/1945 | 11 | Minnesota Vikings / 1st / 15th pick / 1967 |
| Bob Parsons | 28 | TE-P | 16 | 0 | 234 | 6-4 | Penn State | 6/29/1950 | 6 | Chicago Bears / 5th / 117th pick / 1972 |
| Walter Payton* | 24 | RB | 16 | 16 | 200 | 5-10 | Jackson State | 7/25/1954 | 3 | Chicago Bears / 1st / 4th pick / 1975 |
| Mike Phipps | 31 | QB | 6 | 4 | 208 | 6-3 | Purdue | 11/19/1947 | 8 | Cleveland Browns / 1st / 3rd pick / 1970 |
| Doug Plank | 25 | DB | 14 | 0 | 200 | 6-0 | Ohio State | 3/4/1953 | 3 | Chicago Bears / 12th / 291st pick / 1975 |
| Bo Rather | 28 | WR | 6 | 2 | 184 | 6-1 | Michigan | 10/7/1950 | 5 | Miami Dolphins / 4th / 104th pick / 1973 |
| Golden Richards | 28 | WR | 15 | 14 | 181 | 6-1 | BYU,Hawaii | 12/31/1950 | 5 | Dallas Cowboys / 2nd / 46th pick / 1973 |
| Don Rives | 27 | LB | 16 | 7 | 225 | 6-2 | Texas Tech | 8/30/1951 | 5 | Chicago Bears / 15th / 370th pick / 1973 |
| Ron Rydalch | 26 | DT | 12 | 5 | 260 | 6-4 | Utah | 1/1/1952 | 3 | New York Jets / 8th / 197th pick / 1974 |
| Terry Schmidt | 26 | DB | 16 | 16 | 177 | 6-0 | Ball State | 5/28/1952 | 4 | New Orleans Saints / 5th / 121st pick / 1974 |
| Steve Schubert | 27 | WR | 13 | 0 | 185 | 5-10 | Massachusetts | 3/15/1951 | 4 | |
| James Scott | 26 | WR | 15 | 14 | 190 | 6-1 | Trinity Valley Community College (TX) | 3/28/1952 | 2 | New York Jets / 8th / 193rd pick / 1975 |
| Jeff Sevy | 27 | T-G-DT-DE | 14 | 0 | 260 | 6-5 | California | 10/24/1951 | 3 | Chicago Bears / 12th / 290th pick / 1974 |
| Brad Shearer | 23 | DT | 15 | 2 | 250 | 6-3 | Texas | 8/10/1955 | Rook | Chicago Bears / 3rd / 74th pick / 1978 |
| John Skibinski | 23 | RB | 16 | 0 | 222 | 6-0 | Purdue | 4/27/1955 | Rook | Chicago Bears / 6th / 139th pick / 1978 |
| Revie Sorey | 25 | G | 16 | 16 | 260 | 6-2 | Illinois | 9/10/1953 | 3 | Chicago Bears / 5th / 110th pick / 1975 |
| Mike Spivey | 24 | DB | 16 | 3 | 197 | 6-0 | Colorado | 3/10/1954 | 1 | Chicago Bears / 2nd / 43rd pick / 1977 |
| Bob Thomas | 26 | K | 16 | 0 | 178 | 5-10 | Notre Dame | 8/7/1952 | 3 | Los Angeles Rams / 15th / 388th pick / 1974 |
| Len Walterscheid | 24 | DB | 14 | 3 | 190 | 5-11 | Southern Utah | 9/13/1954 | 1 | |
| Team Total | 26.1 | 16 | 223.2 | 6-1.9 | 3.3 |