Bears quarterbacks since Ditka era, McMahon-Fields (2024)

There are a lot of question marks surrounding Justin Fields' potential of becoming the Bears' franchise quarterback.

He's struggled mightily through 18 starts, not entirely to fault his own.

This season, the Bears' front office set up the second-year quarterback for failure. The team has one of the worst offensive line and wide receiver units in the lead.

Through six weeks, Fields ranks 29th in yards (869), 27th in passing touchdowns (4) and first in sacks (23).

Will it be another restart in the draft? Or, will Fields and the new regime figure it out and sustain a long career with the Bears?

Jay Culter has the franchise record for most games started as a Bears quarterback– 104. Jim McMahon played 12 seasons in Chicago, the longest of any Bears starting quarterback.

Here is a run-through behind the history of Bears quarterbacks since the Mike Ditka coaching era:

Mike Tomczak

Calumet City (T.F. North HS) native played a few snaps in Super Bowl XX and started 18 Bears games spread over three seasons (1986-88). He took the reins officially in 1989 once McMahon left; threw for just over 2,000 yards in an ill-fated 6-10 season. He played in Green Bay and Cleveland before having a renaissance season with the 1996 Pittsburgh Steelers.

Jim Harbaugh

The Bears' first-round pick in 1987 made his starting debut in Week 14 of the 1988 season following injuries to Jim McMahon and Mike Tomczak. It wasn't pretty - the Bears lost, 23-3 to the Rams - and Harbaugh didn't become the Bears' regular starting QB until 1990. He is currently the head coach of the Michigan Wolverines.

Peter Tom Willis

Willis was dominant at Florida State during his senior year-- 10 straight victories including a Fiesta Bowl win over Nebraska. The Bears drafted him in the third round of the 1990 NFL Draft. He came off the bench in seven games over two seasons ('90-'91) before getting the starting nod in place of Jim Harbaugh in 1992. He started one more Bears game in 1993 and later played for the Tampa Bay Storm (AFL).

Will Furrer

He's the answer to one of the more obscure trivia questions in Chicago sports history: Who was the final starting quarterback to play for Mike Ditka during his tenure as Bears head coach? Yes, it's the fourth-round draft pick from 1992. Furrer's one-and-only start with the Bears was...not good. It came in the '92 season finale in Dallas: 9-20 passing for 89 yards and three interceptions. Ditka was fired just over a week later.

Steve Walsh

Is Walsh one of the most successful quarterbacks in Bears' history? Well...kinda...by certain statistics. He was 8-3 for the 1994 Bears and remains the last quarterback to win a road playoff game in team history (Jan. 1, 1995 in Minnesota). In fairness, there hasn't been a road playoff game since. Walsh later became the QBs coach for the Saskatchewan Roughriders (CFL) and took a similar job earlier this year with the Ottawa Redblacks.

Erik Kramer

Is 1995 the most underrated Bears season? 9-7 record; six losses by a TD or less. Kramer threw for 3,838 yards and 29 touchdowns that year, both still team records. He topped the 3,000-yard mark again in 1997 and had suitable numbers in the first half of the '98 campaign before nagging injuries in his throwing shoulder began taking a toll. He finished his career the following season in San Diego.

Dave Krieg

Krieg was one of the more successful quarterbacks to spend time in Chicago. He was a three-time Pro Bowler with the Seahawks (1980-91), helping vault Steve Largent to a Hall of Fame career. Krieg's 12 starts for the Bears in 1996 were a mixed bag for Dave Wannstedt and company, but he did help right the ship after Erik Kramer's rough start to the season.

Rick Mirer

Mirer went to the Seahawks as the No. 2 overall pick in the 1993 NFL Draft and had four modest seasons in Seattle. He was traded to the Bears in 1997 and saw three starts in that brutal 4-12 campaign. His Bears' career stat line included six interceptions, no touchdown passes and 16 sacks. The former Notre Dame star backed up Brett Favre in Green Bay in 1998 before playing for the Jets, 49ers, Raiders and Lions.

Steve Stenstrom

Stenstrom saw action in a smattering of games during the 1996 and 1997 seasons before landing his first start for an injured Erik Kramer in 1998. The results were not spectacular. The former Stanford product lost his first five starts and would finish 1-6 as a Bear under center. His lone win came against the Ravens on Dec. 20 at Soldier Field. Stenstrom would later play for the 49ers, Lions and Broncos.

Moses Moreno

The headlines practically wrote themselves: "Moses, lead us to the promised land!" The Bears were nowhere near the NFL's promised land --the playoffs-- in the dim 1998 season. Sitting at 3-8, the Bears turned to Moreno for a home game against Tampa Bay. The seventh-round draft pick finished 18-41 for 153 yards and a touchdown in his lone start with the team. He played two more seasons with the Chargers.

Cade McNown

It all looked so promising. The Bears drafted McNown No. 12 overall in the 1999 NFL draft after he set numerous records and earned several accolades during his UCLA career. But inconsistent, and sometimes woeful play doomed his time in Chicago. A questionable attitude toward teammates didn't help. He was benched after a 1-6 start in 2000 and was traded to Miami the following preseason. He never threw another pass in an NFL game.

Shane Matthews

Matthews was a respectable QB in two separate stints with the Bears. He only saw the field once in his first Windy City stay (1993-96) but he was in the spotlight much more later on (1999-02). He helped salvage the '99 season/Cade McNown fiasco, starting seven games, throwing for 1,645 yards and 10 touchdowns. He threw for a career-high 357 yards in a memorable win against the Browns, AKA the second Mike Brown 'pick-six' victory.

Jim Miller

The 2001 Bears were the surprise of the NFL that season, thanks in large part to their defense (hello Mike Brown, two pick-six walk-offs). But did you know Jim Miller went 11-2 as the starter that year? He and Marty Booker hooked up three times in a memorable win against Tampa Bay. Miller couldn't recapture the magic in 2002 but would go on to have a fine broadcasting career, including with our postgame crew at NBC Sports Chicago.

Chris Chandler

With Jim Miller banged up, Chandler made his first start in Week 7 of the 2002 season and lost in overtime to the Detroit Lions. He was sacked for a 12-yard loss on a critical third and 6 play in the fourth quarter, which set the tone for the statue-esque 37-year-old's uninspiring two-year tenure in Chicago.

Henry Burris

His lone NFL start, a woeful four-pick effort, came in the 2002 season finale in Champaign against the Bucs. But the former Temple product found his calling north of the border. He went on to have a spectacular career there, winning three Grey cups and two Most Outstanding Player awards. He earned a CFL Hall of Fame nod this year.

Kordell Stewart

"Slash" was better known for "The Miracle at Michigan" and several fine years as a Pittsburgh Steeler, including his lone Pro Bowl appearance in 2001 which capped off a 13-3 season. The success didn't continue with the Bears. He dropped three out of his first four starts for the 2003 squad and wound up losing his starting spot to Chris Chandler and then rookie Rex Grossman.

Chad Hutchinson

Chad Hutchinson was an emergency signing after Rex Grossman suffered a season-ending knee injury early in the season. He was still buried on the depth chart but saw playing time after Jonathan Quinn and Craig Krenzel struggled in their appearances. He won his debut game, throwing three touchdown passes with a 115.0 passer rating. Unfortunately, he lost the next four games throwing a single touchdown and three interceptions. He was released the following preseason and his NFL career ended.

Craig Krenzel

The 2004 Bears season was quarterback roulette. Four QBs saw starting time in that dreadful 5-11 year, five games went to the guy who led his Ohio State Buckeyes to a national title. Krenzel was...borderline serviceable. He won his first three starts. But he dropped his next two, which included a 10-21, 86-yard, 2-INT, 4-sack performance on Thanksgiving night in Dallas. He never started another NFL game.

Jonathan Quin

Remember him? The journeyman spent four seasons in Jacksonville ('98-'01), another in Berlin (The 2002 World Bowl MVP! Are you not impressed?!), two more in Kansas City ('02-'03) before making three woeful starts for the Bears in 2004. Offensive coordinator Terry Shea worked with Quinn in K.C. and urged the Bears to sign the former Middle Tennessee State/Tulane product. Both were out of Chicago after the year ended.

Kyle Orton

Orton maybe is the best representation of why quarterback wins don't matter. He went 10-5 as a rookie in 2005, yet had the worst passer rating (59.7) among qualified quarterbacks that year -- and entered 2006 as the Bears' third-string quarterback behind Rex Grossman and Brian Griese. He didn't play at all in the Bears' run to the Super Bowl, but eventually beat out Grossman for the starting job in 2008. He was eventually traded to Denver in the Jay Cutler trade in 2009.

Rex Grossman

This won't be held against living legend Rex Grossman, but his rookie debut was pretty boring - at least on the stat sheet: 13-30 for 157 yards in a 13-10 win over Minnesota. But honestly, whatever. God bless Rex Grossman.

Brian Griese

Griese is one of five quarterbacks in Bears history to throw for 380 or more yards in a game (Billy Wade, Jim Miller, Jay Cutler and Brian Hoyer are the others - what a group!), having done so in a 34-31 loss to the Vikings in Week 6 of the 2007 season. The Bears went 3-3 in Griese's starts, but he threw more interceptions than touchdowns - this after he was expected to, at the least, just be able to take care of the ball.

Jay Cutler

Everyone remembers where they were the day that Jay Cutler, the player who inspired an entire generation of Bears fans to buy into QB hope, threw four interceptions in Green Bay in a 21-15 loss back in September of 2013. It's basically Bears lore at this point.

Todd Collins

Collins was an injury replacement for Jay Cutler in a 2010 game in Carolina. The good news? The Bears didn't lose in Collins' lone start with the team. The bad news? He threw four interceptions and racked up a 6.2 passer rating before being benched for Caleb Hanie. The journeyman QB and former Michigan standout summed it up quite well after the game: "Pretty bad. Poor. One of the worst I ever had."

Caleb Hanie

Do the Bears make the Super Bowl in 2011 if Jay Cutler doesn't get hurt? Well, we know they didn't make it with Hanie coming in as his replacement in the NFC Championship Game against the Packers. The fact that Hanie was still Cutler's backup the following season -- and went 0-4 as the starter -- ultimately cost former GM Jerry Angelo his job.

Josh McCown

McCown – who is, you'll remember, still employed as an NFL QB – got his first Bears start against the Packers back in Week 16 of 2011. He beat out Caleb Hanie in practice, who was playing for an injured Jay Cutler. Aren't you glad to be reliving this?! He threw for 241 yards with two picks in a 28-19 loss which, frankly, is something you could probably also say about everyone else on this list.

Jason Campbell

Jason Campbell's only start as a Bear came at Candlestick Park on the same night Colin Kaepernick took over as the 49ers' starting quarterback. Filling in for Jay Cutler, who was concussed against the Texans the week before, Campbell never had a chance. His offensive line struggled all night and Campbell was sacked six times. Aldon Smith accounted for 5.5 of those sacks.

Jimmy Clausen

Jimmy Clausen went 2-20 in his NFL career, with two of those losses (and none of those wins) coming with the Bears in 2014 and 2015. He started in Week 3 of the 2015 season for John Fox, who was the Panthers coach when Carolina drafted him - and later said he never once scouted Clausen while in Carolina. Clausen lost that Week 3 game, 26-0, to the Seahawks.

Matt Barkley

The Bears' connection to the famous "Philly Special" is remarkable, and not just because Nick Foles and Trey Burton were the ones who successfully ran it in Super Bowl LII. The play idea came from the Bears running it in Week 17 of the 2016 season with Matt Barkley and Cameron Meredith. So even if Barkley went 1-5 with the Bears, at least he helped the Eagles win a Super Bowl the following season.

Brian Hoyer

If you saw this and thought, 'Wait, hasn't Brian Hoyer been Tom Brady's backup in New England for the last 45 years?' you'd be right. What you're forgetting is that he *also* played for the Bears – and you'll be surprised to hear that things went poorly. Against Dallas, Hoyer went 30-49 with 317 yards in a 31-17 loss.

Mitchell Trubisky

Trubisky made his much-anticipated debut as QB1 against the Vikings in 2017, going 12-25 with 128 yards, one touchdown and one interception. They lost 20-17, and things ... never really got better.

Mike Glennon

Glennon nearly won his first start in a Bears uniform and might've had Jordan Howard not dropped a catchable pass near the Falcons' goal line late in the fourth quarter of Week 1 of the 2017 season. Glennon was benched after four starts and never took a snap for the Bears again, but did cash in $18.5 million in guaranteed money in his widely-panned contract.

Chase Daniel

The 2007 Heisman Trophy finalist and longtime NFL backup was brought to Chicago as a free agent in 2018 because of his relationship with Matt Nagy and knowledge of the kind of offense the first-year Bears coach wanted to run. The Bears won Daniel’s first start on Thanksgiving 2018, in which he led an exhausted team to an emotional win many inside Halas Hall considered a season-defining victory. He started two more games: An overtime loss to the Giants in 2018 and a narrow defeat to the Raiders in London in 2019.

Nick Foles

After saving the Bears in Atlanta the week before, Foles' first start – against the Colts in Week 4 – didn't go nearly as well. He went 26-42 with 249 yards, one touchdown and one interception in the first game of what would be a 2-5 stretch before the Bears went back to Trubisky. Any time you have the chance to pay a journeyman QB $17 million for seven bad games, you should.

Andy Dalton

Dalton spent one year in Chicago on a one-year, $10 million deal. He set up rookie Justin Fields to take over as the starting quarterback. His one year included a plethora of injuries and mentorship. Nevertheless, he came out with a 3-3 quarterback record in eight games played. He now plays for the New Orleans Saints.

Justin Fields

Fields is 18 games into his career as a Chicago Bear. So far, it hasn't been pretty. The previous regime drafted Fields with the No. 11 pick in the 2021 NFL draft, plugging him into a poor roster situation. Since then, things haven't improved. But, time will tell if the front office can build better around him.

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