At the start of what [the Bears](https://chicago.suntimes.com/bears) believe will be a new era led by coach Ben Johnson and quarterback Caleb Williams, they honored the best of their past Monday with 42 players from the 1985 championship team on hand for their opener against the Vikings.
All of them lined up on the field at halftime as the team showed highlights of their Super Bowl XX win and had a large XX lit up in blue and orange with fog machines out there with them.
Of the seven Hall of Famers from the ’85 team, only coach Mike Ditka and late running back Walter Payton and defensive lineman Steve McMichael weren’t there. Ditka, 85, [has dealt with significant health issues the last several years](https://chicago.suntimes.com/columnists/2024/11/25/mike-ditka-hospice-care-health).
The team played a clip of his speech in 2013 when his No. 89 jersey was retired, ending with, “Go Bears.”
Legendary defensive tackle William “The Refrigerator” Perry, who scored a rushing touchdown in that Super Bowl, also didn’t attend.
Several of their biggest stars from that team, however, were at the game, including quarterback Jim McMahon and linebacker Ron Rivera. Rivera also was the defensive coordinator for the Bears’ 2006 team that went to the Super Bowl under Lovie Smith.
Kicker Kevin Butler and linebacker Otis Wilson made appearances during timeouts in the game, and Butler called it “a dream come true” to reunite with his former teammates.
“When I played I had the greatest seat in the house to watch the greatest team in NFL history,” he told the crowd.
The Bears honored former owner Virginia McCaskey and McMichael, both of whom died this year, with a moment of silence before the game. They also had running back Walter Payton’s widow Connie and his children Jarrett and Brittney on the field before the game.
The Bears had safety Dave Duerson and McMichael’s widows stand in for them during the halftime ceremony.
The Bears are wearing a patch on their uniforms this season in tribute to McCaskey and a helmet decal featuring McMichael’s No. 76.