The previous week, the Redskins had defeated the New York Giants at the Polo Grounds in a playoff game by a score of 28–0 to determine the champs of the east, after the teams ended the regular season with identical records.

[5] The Redskins had dropped their final three regular season games, including two to the Giants.

[8] Bears substitutions: Pool, Berry, Steinkemper, Babartsky, Mundee, Ippolito, Logan, Matuza, McLean, Luckman, Famighetti, Nagurski, McEnulty, Nolting and Vodicka.

Redskins substitutions: Piasecky, Lapka, Wilkin, Zeno, Fiorentino, Leon, Hayden, Baugh, Seymour, Moore, Gibson, Akins and Stasica.

Sunday, December 26, 1943 Kickoff: 2 p.m. CWT (CDT) Each player on the Bears took home $1,135 while each member of the Redskins got $754.