History of the football helmet gridiron until 1939 and were not made mandatory in the National Football League until 1943 As a side note, "the last NFL player to play in a game without a helmet was Dick Plasman an end for the Chicago Bears in 1940." There is a photograph of him without one taken during the 1940 NFL Championship Game in which Chicago defeated the Washington Redskins 73–0. Before the invention of the football helmet, players would often grow their hair long, because they believed it would protect their heads. The man largely credited with inventing the first helmet was George Barclay. In
History of the Chicago Bears first ever NFL Championship Game. The Bears again captured the championship in a nail biter against the New York Giants, 23–21 as Red Grange made the game-winning tackle. In 1934, the Bears dominated the league and finished 13–0, but were denied perfection, losing 30–13 to the Giants in the NFL Championship, what became known as the "Sneakers Game." The Bears would play in the Championship game two more times in the decade, losing both of them. In 1935 and 1936, the Bears remained somewhat competitive, but failed to qualify for the Championship Game. In 1937, the Bears made a return