Don Pierson called 1985 the “most memorable season” not just for the Chicago Bears, but for any NFL team. The personalities, the injuries, the swagger, the statistics — all of the season’s highs and lows are recorded in his dozens of notebooks.

“There were so many (potential) stories, you had to pick one to work on,” he said. “Even the ‘Super Bowl Shuffle’ — it was just another story for that week.”

Pierson, who covered the Bears for the Tribune from training camp in Rensselaer, Indiana, in 1969, through the team’s loss to the Indianapolis Colts in Super Bowl XLI, said the Bears’ road to New Orleans wasn’t easy. He pointed out that the Bears came from behind several times early that season and remained undefeated until Week 13. The determination to make it to Super Bowl XX stemmed from c

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