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One-on-one: Which Super Bowl defense is better?

The 1985 Chicago Bears
By Kevin Lindgren

The common football motto, “defense wins championships,” rang true in Super Bowl 50, as the Denver Broncos dismantled league MVP Cam Newton’s Carolina Panthers. Although Denver’s defense was strong, it was nowhere near as dominant as the 1985 Chicago Bears defense.

The ‘85 Bears feasted upon teams with a suffocating defense. Chicago was led by ferocious linebackers Mike Singletary, Otis Wilson and Wilbur Marshall, and relentless defensive linemen Steve McMichael, Dan Hampton, William “Refrigerator” Perry and Richard Dent.

The intense defense racked up impressive numbers throughout the season. Cornerback Leslie Frazier notched six interceptions and defensive end Richard Dent topped the sack title with 17.

Chicago’s defense obliterated various teams, as they finished the season 15-1, posted two regular season and two postseason shutouts. In Super Bowl XX, the Bears surrendered only 10 points in their 46-10 win against the Patriots.

While the 2015 Broncos boasted four defensive Pro Bowlers, Denver doesn’t touch the ’85 Bears.

The “Monsters of the Midway” earned three first team All-Pros, compared to Denver’s lone first team All-Pro in Linebacker, Von Miller.

The ’85 Bears absolutely shredded teams left and right, and proved to be the greatest defense in NFL history.

The 2016 Denver Broncos
By Channing Whitaker

In Super Bowl 50, the Denver Broncos defeated the Carolina Panthers 24-10 in one of the most dominating defensive performances in the history of the NFL.

Not only did they prove their defensive excellence in Super Bowl 50, but also throughout the whole season.

The reason I give the edge to the Broncos over the ‘85 Bears is because of the mixture of powerful spread and old school offenses they were able to shut down.

Most of these offenses were led by-top level quarterbacks such as Joe Flacco, Matthew Stafford, Aaron Rodgers, Andrew Luck, Alex Smith, Tom Brady, Phillip Rivers, Ben Roethlisberger and the MVP of 2015 Cam Newton.

For the ‘85 Bears, most of the teams they were up against during that season had pound-and-grind, old school offenses. That gave big advantages towards the Bears tough defense even before games started.

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