Mike Ditka, the Hall of Fame tight end and fiery coach who brought Chicago its only Super Bowl title, has died at 86.
Story Highlights
- Ditka died surrounded by family and friends, a family spokesperson said. The family did not give a cause of death.
- He coached the 1985 Bears to a 46-10 win over the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XX, the only Super Bowl title in team history.
- Known as “Iron Mike,” he became the first tight end ever elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, in 1988.
- President Trump mourned him as “a winner” and “a tough cookie,” calling his death “a sad one.”
A Family’s Goodbye
Ditka’s family announced on Friday, October 9, that he had died, saying, “It is with profound sadness that we announce the passing of our beloved husband, father, grandfather, and friend, Mike Ditka.” He died about 9 a.m. with family and friends at his side, a family spokesperson said. In past years he had survived a heart attack and two strokes and had mostly stayed out of the spotlight, according to reports. He and his wife, Diana, had moved back to Chicago after years in Florida.
Who He Was: “Iron Mike”
Before he was a coach, Ditka was a tight end who played like a battering ram. The Pennsylvania native joined the Bears in 1961, and as a rookie he became the first tight end in NFL history to gain more than 1,000 receiving yards. He helped Chicago win the 1963 NFL championship, then played for the Philadelphia Eagles and the Dallas Cowboys, winning Super Bowl VI with Dallas before he retired in 1972.
In 1988 he became the first tight end elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, the museum in Canton, Ohio, that honors the game’s greatest players and coaches. The Bears later retired his No. 89 jersey, so no Bears player will wear it again.
The Coach Behind the ’85 Bears
After his playing days, Ditka learned coaching under Tom Landry, the longtime head coach of the Dallas Cowboys, and was an assistant on the Cowboys team that won Super Bowl XII. The Bears hired him as head coach in 1982, when the team had fallen on hard times. Three seasons later, his 1985 Bears beat the Patriots 46-10 in Super Bowl XX, the NFL’s championship game for that season. It is still the only Super Bowl title in Bears history.
That hard-hitting team became one of the most famous in NFL history, and Ditka, with his sideline fire, became the face of the city. The Bears let him go after the 1992 season. He later coached the New Orleans Saints from 1997 to 1999, then spent years as a TV analyst on NBC, CBS and ESPN, where a new generation of fans got to know his blunt, plain-spoken style.
Trump: “He Was a Winner”
President Trump learned of Ditka’s death from reporters on the White House South Lawn on Friday, before a trip to Syracuse, New York. “Oh, he did? He was a great guy. He was with me all the way. He was tough,” Trump said. “Mike Ditka — that’s a sad one.” He added, “He was great. He was a big supporter of mine, and he was a winner. He was a tough cookie.”
Ditka was an outspoken Trump backer who never shied away from saying what he thought, on the sideline or off it.
Tributes From the Bears and Their Rivals
The Bears said they were “deeply saddened by the passing of legendary and treasured Chicago Bear and Pro Football Hall of Famer Mike Ditka,” and sent “love, prayers, and heartfelt condolences to the Ditka family.” Bears head coach Ben Johnson called Ditka “the gold standard.” NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell also issued a statement honoring him.
Even the rival Green Bay Packers paid tribute, calling him “one of the fiercest competitors in NFL history” who “helped define the intensity and tradition of the Packers-Bears rivalry.” In Chicago, Willis Tower lit its antennas in Bears blue and orange on Friday night, and the Pro Football Hall of Fame flew its flag at half-staff. The Bears are scheduled to play the Packers at Lambeau Field in Green Bay on Sunday, October 11. No funeral plans had been announced as of Saturday, October 10.
His family summed him up in their statement: “We knew him as the heart of our family.” They added, “Mike will be missed beyond measure and remembered forever.”
Sources:
sports.yahoo.com, abcnews.com, apnews.com, espn.com, nbcnews.com, nfl.com