Dan Fortmann team captain, he led the Bears to back-to-back NFL championships in 1940 and 1941 with records of 8–3 and 10–1. After the 1940 season, Fortmann was rated as the best lineman in the NFL. The United Press called him "the heart and soul" of the Bears' ground attack that "rolled up a vast amount of yardage overland." In the 1940 NFL Championship Game, the Bears defeated the Washington Redskins by a 73-0 score. Fortman later cited the 1940 championship game as proof of Halas' skill as a "master of psychology." The Bears had lost to the Redskins three weeks earlier,
History of the Chicago Bears seemingly lost effort. With less than twenty minutes remaining, the Bears’ defense and special teams mounted a comeback that allowed the team to overcome a 20-point deficit and win the game, 24–23. After a decisive 41–10 crushing of the 49ers, where the Bears scored 41 points in the first half, tying the record by the 1940 Championship Game victory, Grossman had another turnover ridden performance against the Miami Dolphins (which reminisced the 1985 season), where the Bears lost 31–13, the most points the team allowed that season. The team bounced back with a staunch performance against the New York Giants,