NEW ORLEANS -- Injured Chicago Bears quarterback Jim McMahon, mooning a helicopter hovering overhead, got in his first practice session in a week and a half Wednesday.
'I was impressed with all of his movement,' Bears coach Mike Ditka said. 'He was 200 percent better today. I'm really optimistic now. Frankly, I was not very optimistic after yesterday's practice. It was a pleasant surprise.'
McMahon, who showed up at practice wearing a headband with 'acupuncture' written on it, said earlier that Bears fans shouldn't worry because he'll be ready, sore buttock and all, when Chicago plays New England Sunday in Super Bowl XX.
'There's no doubt in my mind that I'll play,' said the Bears' ailing quarterback, who had acupuncture treatment before the workout. 'But, I must admit, it has been a pain in the ass.'
McMahon's coach wasn't that sure.
'There's always a chance he won't play,' Ditka said Wednesday morning. 'But, it's only a bruise. I don't have to make a decision until right up to game time.'
'This is not a put on. We're not trying to get any sort of psychological edge. Jim is really hurting right now.
'He has recovered some from where he was last week, but not enough to play football,' Ditka added. 'It's a day-to-day thing. He is not well at this point. We're not trying to fool anybody. It's a fact.'
McMahon suffered the bruise during the NFC championship game 10 days ago when Los Angeles Rams linebacker Jim Collins rammed him with his helmet while MaMahon was sliding feet first at the end of a run.
'It's getting better, but not where I want it to be,' said McMahon, who showed up at a news conference wearing sun glasses and a gaudy sweatsuit. 'I can drop back, but I can't back-peddle now.
'When we get closer to game time and the adrenaline is flowing, most of the pain will disappear.'
Acupuncturist Hiroshi Shiraishi was flown in Wednesday from Chicago.
'I don't know how it works, but it does,' McMahon said. 'I'll have another treatment as soon as this news conference is over. I've also been using the whirlpool and electronics.'
McMahon said his backup, Steve Fuller, was 'a good quarterback. We won with him while I was out and we can win with him Sunday.
'But, personally, I feel we're a better football team with me on the field.'
Ditka said Chicago's 20-7 victory over New England during the second week of the regular season had 'no bearing on Sunday.'
'They (Patriots) were young and just finding themselves then,' he said. 'They are greatly improved now. (Patriots quarterback Tony) Eason got a lot of playoff experience under his belt the past month and they're playing with more confidence now than when we played them before.'
Ditka said defensively the Patriots were 'very similar' to the Rams, who the Bears beat 24-0 in the NFC title game.
'The Rams game was all we could handle,' Ditka said. 'They were much tougher than someone might think. The difference was we made a few big plays and they didn't.'
McMahon noted the Bears had acquired a tremendous following. 'But we're not playing just for the city of Chicago,' he said. 'We're playing for ourselves too.'
'We've worked our butts off to get where we are,' McMahon said. 'It's been a long time since a Chicago team has come this far.
'If we play well, we can win. If we don't turn the football over, I can't see them beating us. That's how they won their playoff games.'
Ditka said: 'You win with defense and right now we feel we have the best defense in the league. But as for (Bears linebacker) Otis Wilson's prediction that we'll shut out the Patriots, he was just popping off. He knows you have to back it up.'
