By Tony Moss, NFL Editor -- (Sports Network) - Those that remember the 1985 Chicago Bears typically exercise caution when comparing others to them.

Mike Ditka's 1985 team rolled through the campaign at 15-1, outscored three playoff opponents by a composite score of 91-10, and boasted indisputable legends like Walter Payton, Mike Singletary, Jim McMahon, and Richard Dent.

The '85 Bears were so dominant, such an unstoppable force with such an incomparable confluence of talent, that ranking another team in their class seems like a sacrilege to many.

Right or wrong, if the 2006 edition of the Chicago Bears can knock out the San Francisco 49ers at Soldier Field on Sunday afternoon, the comparisons will begin in earnest. Lovie Smith's latest group of Monsters of the Midway would become the first Bears team since '85 to begin 7-0 if they can only top a Niners club that is something far less than elite.

Chicago's Week 7 bye was preceded by an amazing 24-23 road victory over the Cardinals, a game in which the Bears recovered from a 20-0 deficit despite never scoring an offensive touchdown on a night that saw quarterback Rex Grossman commit six turnovers. Two fumble returns for scores and a game- winning 83-yard Devin Hester punt return with less than three minutes to play kept Smith and company perfect as they hit their week off.

Also coming off a bye week is San Francisco, which couldn't keep pace with San Diego in a 48-19 home defeat. The 49ers have now allowed 34 or more points in four of their six games this season, and are surrendering a league-high 32.3 per contest.

SERIES HISTORY

Chicago leads the all-time regular season series with the 49ers, 28-27-1, breaking a deadlock in the series with a 17-9 home victory in Week 10 of last season. The Niners also dropped a 23-13 decision at Soldier Field in 2003, and are 0-5 in regular season games played in the Windy City since last winning there in 1974. San Francisco's last win of any kind in the series was a 49-7 home triumph in 2003.

The 49ers have won all three postseason matchups between the clubs, defeating the Bears for the NFC Championship in both 1984 and 1988, and prevailing in a 1994 NFC Divisional Playoff. Of those contests, the 1988 matchup was the only one played in Chicago.

The teams met at Monster Park in Week 1 of the 2006 preseason, with San Francisco scoring a 28-14 victory.

Smith is 2-0 all-time against San Francisco, while the 49ers' Mike Nolan is 0-1 against both Smith and the Bears as a head coach.

49ERS OFFENSE VS. BEARS DEFENSE

Looking to continue his steady play will be 49ers quarterback Alex Smith (1285 passing yards, 8 TD, 4 INT), who has thrown five touchdown passes in his past two games and has looked nothing like the player that struggled mightily during the second half of 2005. Smith completed 20-of-31 passes for 214 yards with two touchdowns and an interception in the Week 6 loss to the Chargers, with his biggest problem coming in the form of pressure. San Diego dropped Smith for five sacks, but the probable return of left tackle Jonas Jennings (ankle, hand) and guard Larry Allen (knee) to the lineup this week should help a bit in that regard. Smith's top targets this season have been wideouts Antonio Bryant (21 receptions, 1 TD) and Arnaz Battle (20 receptions, 2 TD) along with tight end Eric Johnson (17 receptions, 1 TD). Bryant had four- catches for a team-high 78 yards in Week 6. The team will be without top draft pick and tight end Vernon Davis (broken fibula) for at least one more week.

Chicago suffered a major loss to its secondary in the Arizona game, as strong safety and defensive leader Mike Brown was lost for the year with a Lisfranc ligament tear in his right foot. Brown, who previously suffered a season- ending torn Achilles two games into 2004, will be replaced in the lineup by Todd Johnson (14 tackles), who has started 13 games with the Bears since 2004. Among those seeking to pick up the slack in Brown's absence will be cornerback Charles Tillman (28 tackles, 1 INT), who had a 40-yard fumble return for a touchdown against the Cardinals, and fellow CB Nathan Vasher (21 tackles), who ranked among team leaders with nine tackles in the win. The team should get a boost in the pass rush this week as Adewale Ogunleye (1.5 sacks), who has missed the past two games with a hamstring injury, is expected to start against San Francisco. Rookie Mark Anderson leads Chicago with 6.5 sacks, and tackle Tommie Harris is second on the team with five.

Niners running back Frank Gore (520 rushing yards, 3 TD, 20 receptions) comes off his quietest game of the season, as the 15 touches he garnered against the Chargers were a season-low. Gore rushed 10 times for 55 yards in the loss, also catching five passes for 35 yards out of the backfield. After enduring some fumbling problems earlier in the season, the Miami (FL) product has not put the ball on the ground in his last two games. Rookie Michael Robinson (64 rushing yards, 2 TD) and kickoff returner Maurice Hicks (8 receptions, 1 TD) have alternated in spelling Gore, and fullback Moran Norris scored his first touchdown as a Niner on a two-yard catch in Week 6.

The Bears completely shut down Edgerrin James and the Arizona running game last time out, holding the former Pro Bowler to 55 yards on 36 carries in the contest. The outing by James set a dubious record for fewest yards on the most rush attempts. Linebackers Brian Urlacher (54 tackles) and Lance Briggs (51 tackles) were constantly in James' face, combining for 23 solo tackles on the night. Up front, tackles Tommie Harris (13 tackles) and Alfonso Boone (11 tackles, 1 sack) combined for seven stops in the game. Chicago ranks No. 3 in the league in rushing defense (74.5 yards per game) as Week 8 begins.

BEARS OFFENSE VS. 49ERS DEFENSE

It is hard to imagine a performance worse than the one Grossman (1387 passing yards, 10 TD, 7 INT) posted against the Cardinals in Week 6, and the fact that it came on the heels of so many fine outings was what was so hard to figure. Grossman completed 14-of-37 passes for 144 yards and four interceptions, ending the night with a 10.2 passer rating, and also lost a pair of fumbles just for good measure. Prior to the Arizona game, Grossman had put up a passer rating of 98.6 or better in four of five contests. Looking to assist in their quarterback's recovery this week will be wideouts Muhsin Muhammad (27 receptions, 1 TD) and Bernard Berrian (21 receptions, 4 TD) along with tight end Desmond Clark (20 receptions, 1 TD). Clark led the Bears with four catches for 61 yards in Arizona. Grossman has been sacked just six times on the year, including twice against the Cardinals.

Grossman will be looking to pick on a San Francisco defense that ranks a distant 30th in the NFL against the pass (242.3 yards per game) as Week 8 begins. The Niners were torched for 334 yards on 29-of-39 passing by the Chargers' Philip Rivers in Week 7, as four different San Diego players caught at least five passes in the game. Cornerbacks Shawntae Spencer (32 tackles) and Sammy Davis (15 tackles) will have to do a better job against Muhammad and Berrian this week, with safeties Mike Adams (34 tackles) and Mark Roman (19 tackles) lending better support. Three of San Francisco's four interceptions on the year belong to cornerback Walt Harris, who had all three of the picks against Oakland in Week 5 and subsequently missed the San Diego game with a hamstring problem. Harris, who played for Chicago from 1996 through 2001, is probable for this week. The 49ers' pass rush has generated 13 sacks on the year, including a team-leading three from end Bryant Young. San Francisco did not have a sack of Rivers in Week 6.

After sprinkling him into the game plan over the first six games, the Bears have hinted that former first-round draft pick and running back Cedric Benson (148 rushing yards, 2 TD) could see more extensive carries beginning this week. Benson carried just once for four yards against Arizona, and has seen most of his time in the midst of Chicago blowouts. Thomas Jones (432 rushing yards, 2 TD, 14 receptions) will continue to be the Bears' No. 1 rushing option, but will have to be more productive in order to keep his job. Jones is averaging just 3.7 yards per carry, and has just one 100-yard game to his credit this season. Jones carried 11 times for 43 yards against Arizona, his former team.

San Francisco has been decent against the run in 2006, as evidenced by the fact that it allowed Chargers All-Pro LaDainian Tomlinson to muster just 71 yards on 21 carries without a run of longer than nine yards in Week 6. Unfortunately for the Niners, who gave up four rushing touchdowns to Tomlinson, they had no answer for him near the goal line. Inside linebackers Derek Smith (40 tackles) and Jeff Ulbrich (27 tackles) bear much of the run- stopping responsibility, with the three-man line of Young (19 tackles, 3 sacks) and Marques Douglas (23 tackles, 1 sack) at the ends and Anthony Adams (6 tackles, 1 sack) in the middle helping out as well. Smith had a team-high eight tackles against the Chargers.

OVERALL ANALYSIS

There is some concern in Bears camp, as the loss of Brown for the season creates a void in the secondary, and Grossman's six-turnover game in Arizona is leading some to believe that he may have turned back into a pumpkin. But if the Cardinals game showed anything, it is that Chicago has playmakers in all phases, and has the will to keep playing even when the circumstances are dire. They have enough talent and emotion to dispense with young and inconsistent opponents like San Francisco in short order. After three hours on Sunday, the Bears will again be who we thought they were - a very good team.

Sports Network Predicted Outcome: Bears 27, 49ers 7