On November 23, 2011, McCown signed with the Chicago Bears, as a backup to Caleb Hanie, after an injury to starting quarterback Jay Cutler.
On December 18, 2011, McCown came in for Hanie with five minutes left in the fourth quarter of a 38–14 loss to the Seattle Seahawks at Soldier Field.
McCown threw twice, one of his throws for a 12-yard gain, and the other was intercepted.
On December 21, 2011, the Bears announced that McCown would start on the Christmas Day game against the defending champion Green Bay Packers, due to Hanie's struggles since taking over for the injured Cutler.
McCown completed 19-of-28 passes for 242 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions in the 35–21 loss.
In Week 17 against the Minnesota Vikings, McCown completed 15-of-20 passes for 160 yards with a touchdown and a pick with a 75.4 passer rating, but was sacked seven times.
The Bears won 17–13.

On March 14, 2012, McCown was re-signed to a one-year deal by the Bears, and was reassigned a new number from 15 to 12 after Brandon Marshall joined the team before McCown was re-signed.
On August 31, McCown was waived by the team.
On November 12, McCown was again re-signed by the Bears after starting quarterback Jay Cutler sustained a concussion.
McCown then was Jason Campbell's backup for the game against the San Francisco 49ers on November 19.
Cutler then returned from injury and McCown was inactive as the third-string quarterback for the final six games of the season.

Despite becoming an unrestricted free agent in 2013, on March 29, McCown signed a one-year deal with the Bears.
In Week 7 against the Washington Redskins, McCown entered the game in the second quarter after Cutler suffered a groin injury.
McCown completed 14 of 20 passes for 204 yards and a touchdown to Martellus Bennett, but the Bears lost 45–41.
On November 4, McCown, starting in place of the injured Cutler, led the Bears to a victory over the rival Green Bay Packers on Monday Night Football.
McCown threw for 272 yards and two touchdowns en route to a 27–20 victory.
Cutler started the Week 10 game against the Detroit Lions and suffered an ankle injury in the second quarter but stayed in the game.
However, with Cutler's ankle potentially limiting his mobility for the two-minute drill, he was replaced by McCown for the final drive.
McCown then guided the Bears to a 74-yard touchdown drive, completing 6 of 9 passes for 62 yards and an 11-yard touchdown to Brandon Marshall.
However, the Bears lost 21–19.
McCown started his second game against the Ravens, completing 19 of 31 passes for 216 yards with one touchdown and a 92.9 passer rating in a 23–20 victory, compiling in four games 754 yards, five touchdowns, no interceptions and a 100.0 passer rating.
McCown started Week 12 against the St. Louis Rams and completed a franchise-record 36 passes for 352 yards, two touchdowns and an interception.
The next week against the Minnesota Vikings, McCown threw for a season-high 355 yards, completing 23 of 36 passes for two touchdowns and a 114.9 rating.
In Week 14 against the Dallas Cowboys, McCown threw for a career-high four touchdowns and ran for another while completing 27 of 36 passes for 348 yards and a career-high 141.9 passer rating en route to a 45–28 victory.
McCown became the first Bears quarterback to score five touchdowns in a game since Jack Concannon in 1972.
McCown was  named NFC Offensive Player of the Week.
He was also the first Bears quarterback to throw for 300 yards in three straight games.
Cutler then returned from injury to start the final three games of the season.

McCown ended the 2013 season completing 66.5 percent of his passes for 1,829 yards with 13 touchdowns, one interception and a 109.0 passer rating, the third highest behind Peyton Manning and Nick Foles and the best in Bears history.
He had the NFL's lowest interception percentage at 0.4%.
The combination of McCown and Cutler set Bears records with 32 touchdown passes, 4,450 yards, a 64.4 completion percentage and a 96.9 passer rating.
The Bears finished the season with an 8–8 record and were 3–2 in games that McC
On November 23, 2011, McCown signed with the Chicago Bears, as a backup to Caleb Hanie, after an injury to starting quarterback Jay Cutler. On December 18, 2011, McCown came in for Hanie with five minutes left in the fourth quarter of a 38–14 loss to the Seattle Seahawks at Soldier Field. McCown threw twice, one of his throws for a 12-yard gain, and the other was intercepted. On December 21, 2011, the Bears announced that McCown would start on the Christmas Day game against the defending champion Green Bay Packers, due to Hanie's struggles since taking over for the injured Cutler. McCown completed 19-of-28 passes for 242 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions in the 35–21 loss. In Week 17 against the Minnesota Vikings, McCown completed 15-of-20 passes for 160 yards with a touchdown and a pick with a 75.4 passer rating, but was sacked seven times. The Bears won 17–13.
On March 14, 2012, McCown was re-signed to a one-year deal by the Bears, and was reassigned a new number from 15 to 12 after Brandon Marshall joined the team before McCown was re-signed. On August 31, McCown was waived by the team. On November 12, McCown was again re-signed by the Bears after starting quarterback Jay Cutler sustained a concussion. McCown then was Jason Campbell's backup for the game against the San Francisco 49ers on November 19. Cutler then returned from injury and McCown was inactive as the third-string quarterback for the final six games of the season.
Despite becoming an unrestricted free agent in 2013, on March 29, McCown signed a one-year deal with the Bears. In Week 7 against the Washington Redskins, McCown entered the game in the second quarter after Cutler suffered a groin injury. McCown completed 14 of 20 passes for 204 yards and a touchdown to Martellus Bennett, but the Bears lost 45–41. On November 4, McCown, starting in place of the injured Cutler, led the Bears to a victory over the rival Green Bay Packers on Monday Night Football. McCown threw for 272 yards and two touchdowns en route to a 27–20 victory. Cutler started the Week 10 game against the Detroit Lions and suffered an ankle injury in the second quarter but stayed in the game. However, with Cutler's ankle potentially limiting his mobility for the two-minute drill, he was replaced by McCown for the final drive. McCown then guided the Bears to a 74-yard touchdown drive, completing 6 of 9 passes for 62 yards and an 11-yard touchdown to Brandon Marshall. However, the Bears lost 21–19. McCown started his second game against the Ravens, completing 19 of 31 passes for 216 yards with one touchdown and a 92.9 passer rating in a 23–20 victory, compiling in four games 754 yards, five touchdowns, no interceptions and a 100.0 passer rating. McCown started Week 12 against the St. Louis Rams and completed a franchise-record 36 passes for 352 yards, two touchdowns and an interception. The next week against the Minnesota Vikings, McCown threw for a season-high 355 yards, completing 23 of 36 passes for two touchdowns and a 114.9 rating. In Week 14 against the Dallas Cowboys, McCown threw for a career-high four touchdowns and ran for another while completing 27 of 36 passes for 348 yards and a career-high 141.9 passer rating en route to a 45–28 victory. McCown became the first Bears quarterback to score five touchdowns in a game since Jack Concannon in 1972. McCown was  named NFC Offensive Player of the Week. He was also the first Bears quarterback to throw for 300 yards in three straight games. Cutler then returned from injury to start the final three games of the season.
McCown ended the 2013 season completing 66.5 percent of his passes for 1,829 yards with 13 touchdowns, one interception and a 109.0 passer rating, the third highest behind Peyton Manning and Nick Foles and the best in Bears history. He had the NFL's lowest interception percentage at 0.4%. The combination of McCown and Cutler set Bears records with 32 touchdown passes, 4,450 yards, a 64.4 completion percentage and a 96.9 passer rating. The Bears finished the season with an 8–8 record and were 3–2 in games that McC
Josh McCown