| 2004 Chicago Bears season | |
|---|---|
| Owner | The McCaskey Family |
| General manager | Jerry Angelo |
| Head coach | Lovie Smith |
| Home field | Soldier Field |
| Results | |
| Record | 5–11 |
| Division place | 4th NFC North |
| Playoff finish | Did not qualify |
The 2004 season was the Chicago Bears' 85th season in the National Football League (NFL), and the first under head coach Lovie Smith. The team was unable to improve on their 7–9 record from 2003 as they fell to a 5–11 record. The team was once again in a quarterbacking carousel after the injury of starter Rex Grossman early on in the season. This was the team's eighth losing season in the past nine seasons.
According to statistics site Football Outsiders, the 2004 Bears had the third-worst offense, play-for-play, in their ranking history.[1] Chicago's 231 points and 3,816 offensive yards were dead-last in the league in 2004. Their team quarterback passer rating was 61.7 for the year, also last.
The Bears started four different quarterbacks in 2004 – Chad Hutchinson, Craig Krenzel, Jonathan Quinn, and Rex Grossman. Grossman (the only Bears quarterback who would average more than 200 yards passing per game in 2004) would eventually establish himself as the starter, and two seasons later, would lead the Bears to their second NFC Championship and an appearance in the Super Bowl.
- ^ "1992 DVOA Ratings and Commentary". Football Outsiders. Archived from the original on March 16, 2012., from 1992–2011, "Previously, only two teams had pass offense DVOA below −45%: the 2005 49ers (−57.9%) and the 2004 Bears (−51.2%). The 1992 Seahawks had pass offense DVOA of -71.0%."