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10/09/2026 12:13:00
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10/09 12:11 CDT Mike Ditka, the quintessential Chicago Bear and a Pro Football
Hall of Famer, dies at 86
Mike Ditka, the quintessential Chicago Bear and a Pro Football Hall of Famer,
dies at 86
By JIM LITKE
AP Sports Writer
CHICAGO (AP) --- Mike Ditka, who personified the toughness and grit of Chicago
in a Hall of Fame career as a player and coach of the Bears and the leader of
arguably the most dominant team in NFL history, has died. He was 86.
Ditka's family announced the death on Friday in a statement.
"It is with profound sadness that we announce the passing of our beloved
husband, father, grandfather, and friend, Mike Ditka," the family said. "While
the world knew Mike as a Hall of Fame football player, legendary coach, and
leader of the Chicago Bears' Super Bowl XX championship team, we knew him as
the heart of our family. Mike will be missed beyond measure and remembered
forever."
Nicknamed "Iron Mike" as a player, Ditka helped revolutionize the tight end
position, then moved to the sidelines and took over as Chicago's coach. His
1985 team featured one of the game's most dominant defenses ever. It also had
enough outsized personalities to record a rap video, "The Super Bowl Shuffle,"
and back up their boasting in the championship game three months later.
He was arguably the NFL's most recognizable --- and imitated --- personality
during his time as Chicago's coach with his thick but neatly groomed mustache
and sweater vest with "BEARS" emblazoned across the chest. The iconic look is
still mimicked by fans at Bears games decades later. That along with his fiery,
red-faced sideline tantrums inspired the popular "Da Bears" skit on "Saturday
Night Live" during the 1980s.
After retiring as a coach, Ditka became a restaurateur, pitchman and TV
personality, as well as a forceful advocate for improved medical and retirement
benefits for former players.
Ditka was tough and gruff, the quintessential Chicago Bear. He did everything
from order off the menu to knock defensive backs on their butts with a growl.
His adopted hometown reveled in every minute.
Still revered as "Da Coach" and ringmaster of the 1985 Bears, one of the most
dominant and perhaps the zaniest Super Bowl-winning team in league history.
Ditka was enshrined in the College and Pro Football Halls of Fame and the Bears
said during a ceremony in 2013 that his "No. 89" jersey will be the last one
retired by the team.
"Player. Coach. Legend," the Bears wrote in a tribute on social media. "Mike
Ditka embodied the spirit of Chicago and will be deeply missed."
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said Ditka "epitomized football over so many
years" during his career.
"He brought intensity, authenticity and an unmistakable personality to
everything he did," Goodell said in a statement. "As a Hall of Fame player,
Super Bowl-winning coach with his beloved and iconic Bears, and as a
broadcaster, Mike served as an ambassador for the game and inspired generations
of fans. Through his work with the Gridiron Greats Assistance Fund, Mike was a
champion for taking care of those who helped build our game. We extend our
deepest condolences to Diana and the Ditka family."
He was born in Carnegie, Pennsylvania, the son of a welder who changed the
family name from Dyczko. He grew up in nearby Aliquippa, close to the
coal-mining and steel-manufacturing plants that dotted the western part of the
state, a big, talented, three-sport athlete and All-American at Pitt whose
bruising style made his first nickname, "Iron Mike," a good fit.
Selected fifth overall by flinty Chicago owner George Halas in the 1961 draft,
Ditka went on to Rookie of the Year honors, multiple Pro Bowl trips and the
1963 NFL Championship. In the bargain, he and Baltimore's John Mackey changed
the tight end position and offensive schemes forever. He was a battering ram of
a blocker, but Ditka was just as likely to catch a short pass and pinball
through an entire secondary or outrace a lone safety on a deep touchdown throw.
He left Chicago in 1966, playing briefly for Philadelphia and Dallas. He moved
to the sideline in 1973 as an assistant to the revered Tom Landry and stayed
with the Cowboys for eight seasons, before returning to a hero's welcome in
Chicago as head coach in 1982.
Ditka's return to the Bears lasted 10 tumultuous years, including five straight
NFC Central titles, the Super Bowl win, a DUI conviction, a heart attack, a
long-running feud with defensive coordinator Buddy Ryan and, finally, a new
nickname --- "Da Coach."
To Hall of Fame linebacker Mike Singletary, the seeds of what was to come were
planted in Ditka's first meeting with the team. He laid out his vision, saying
Chicago would be in the Super Bowl in three years --- and many of the players
in the room would not be around for it.
"When I first heard him when he walked in the room, to me Coach Ditka had the
opportunity to be the greatest coach of all time because he had the fire,"
Singletary said at the Bears' 100th anniversary celebration in June 2019. "I
don't know George Halas coached. But I can imagine that the fire and intensity
and passion that Coach Ditka exuded that first day set the tone for exactly
what he said: ?Three years from now, we're going to be in the Super Bowl.' And
that was 1982. In '85, we were there and it was because of that vision."
The public beefs with Ryan mirrored the behind-the-scenes battles that Ditka
waged trying to contain a team bristling with outsized personalities.
"It was more than a team," Ditka once said. "It was a team of characters that
had character that played for a crazy man, who let him be crazy and had fun
doing it and don't apologize for it ever. I wouldn't want to be one of these
suits walking around on the sideline today.
"I have no desire to be that. I was what I was and they were what they were
and, damn, it was fun."
It wasn't until two dozen players recorded "The Super Bowl Shuffle" --- an
audacious rap-styled video released three months ahead of the 1986 title game
--- that the rest of the football world wondered whether Ditka was losing his
grip.
His players never did.
"We call him 'Sybil' after that girl in the movie," quarterback Jim McMahon
once explained. "You know, the one that had all those personalities. Mike will
be calm one minute, then throw a clipboard the next. People don't understand
that, but we do."
The Bears demolished the New England Patriots 46-10 in the Super Bowl, but
Ditka often said he regretted having McMahon and defensive tackle William "The
Refrigerator" Perry run for touchdowns instead of Walter Payton, Chicago's
loyal and long-suffering running back.
Ryan departed for a head coaching job in Philadelphia soon after. While the
Bears continued to be a contender for most of the next five years, a 5-11
season prompted Ditka's departure in 1992.
After a five-year absence, he returned to coaching with the New Orleans Saints,
but failed to revive the franchise. His tenure with the team might be best
remembered for the trade before the 1999 NFL draft when he dealt a package of
eight draft picks --- including each one the Saints had that year and two of
its first three selections in 2000 --- to Washington to move up from 12th
overall to No. 5 so New Orleans could select running back Ricky Williams.
After a miserable 1999 season ended with a 3-13 record --- Ditka's worst as
either a player or coach --- he left the sidelines for good.
"We proudly honor his chapters as a head coach in New Orleans," the Saints said
in a statement. "While his time leading our franchise on the field was brief in
longevity, his presence left an indelible mark on our organization. Mike
approached his tenure with the Saints with the same bold authenticity and
relentless drive that defined his entire career."
His face and demeanor were so familiar by then that a second act became an easy
segue. Ditka began building a stable of restaurants and appeared as himself in
TV sitcoms from "Cheers" to "Third Rock from the Sun," as well as shows such as
"L.A. Law."
He also stayed close to the game as an NFL analyst and game-day show
personality at ESPN. Ditka's high-profile status also made him an effective
advocate to secure improved health and retirement benefits for former players.
His name also circulated for years in Illinois political circles. Though he
never ran for office, Ditka described himself as a staunch conservative and was
mentioned several times as a possible Republican candidate, including a
congressional race against then state Rep. Barack Obama for the U.S. Senate.
___
Litke is a retired AP Sports Columnist.
___
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