Legendary coach, Hall of Fame TE Ditka dies at age 86 — SkimNews
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- Mike Ditka died at 86, his family announced Friday; no cause of death was given, though he had suffered heart attacks — including one in 1988 while still Bears coach — and a minor stroke in 2012.
- Ditka led the 1985 Bears — a team the source calls "arguably the greatest defense in NFL history" — to a 15-1 record and a 46-10 demolition of the Patriots in Super Bowl XX, the franchise's only championship.
- Ditka was the first tight end inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame (1988) after being the fifth overall pick of the 1961 draft, winning Rookie of the Year, and playing for the Bears, Eagles, and Cowboys.
- Ditka coached the Bears for 11 seasons (1982-1992), reaching the playoffs seven times and three NFC Championship Games, before a 15-33, three-year run with the New Orleans Saints (1997-1999).
- The Saints' Ricky Williams trade — in which Ditka sent eight draft picks, including two first-rounders, to Washington to move up and draft Williams fifth overall in 1999 — was immortalized on an ESPN The Magazine cover featuring Ditka in a tuxedo alongside Williams in a wedding gown.
- After coaching, Ditka became a Chicago cultural fixture, opening restaurants, endorsing wine and cigars, appearing in TV commercials and the 2005 film "Kicking and Screaming," being celebrated in SNL's "Bill Swerski's Superfans" skit, and serving as an analyst on ESPN's "Sunday Morning Countdown" from 2006 to 2015.
Why it matters: Mike Ditka's death at 86 closes the chapter on the most recognizable face of the Bears' only Super Bowl era and a coach-president-mentor whose influence spanned decades. Beyond Chicago, his eight-pick Ricky Williams trade remains one of the most lopsided deals in modern NFL history — a lasting counterpoint to his championship résumé.
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