Mike Ditka

Michael Keller Ditka, born Michael Dyczko on October 18, 1939, is an American former football player, coach, and television commentator. A member of both the College (1986) and the Pro (1988) Football Halls of Fame, he was UPI NFL Rookie of Year in 1961, a five-time Pro Bowl selection, and a five-time All-Pro tight end with the National Football League's Chicago Bears, Philadelphia Eagles and Dallas Cowboys.

He was an NFL champion with the 1963 Bears, and is a three-time Super Bowl champion, playing on the Cowboys Super Bowl VI team as well as winning as an assistant coach for the Cowboys in Super Bowl XII, and coaching the Bears to victory in Super Bowl XX. He was named to the NFL's 50th, 75th and 100th Anniversary All-Time Teams.

As a coach for the Bears for 11 years he was twice both the AP and UPI NFL Coach of Year (1985 and 1988). He also coached the New Orleans Saints for three years.

Ditka and Tom Flores are the only people to win an NFL title as a player, an assistant coach, and a head coach. Ditka, Flores, Gary Kubiak, and Doug Pederson are also the only people in modern NFL history to win a championship as head coach of a team he played for previously. Ditka is the only person to participate in both of the last two Chicago Bears' league championships, as a player in 1963 and as head coach in 1985.

He is known by the nickname "Iron Mike", which he has said comes from his being born and raised in a steel town in Pennsylvania.

Ditka was born as Michael Dyczko in the Pittsburgh-area town of Carnegie, Pennsylvania on October 18, 1939. The oldest child of Charlotte (Keller) and Mike DitkaSr. he grew up in nearby Aliquippa with siblings Ashton, David, and Mary Ann. His father, a welder, was one of three brothers of a Polish and Ukrainian family in the coal mining and steel manufacturing area in Western Pennsylvania. His ancestry on his mother's side is Irish and German. The Ukrainian surname "Dyczko" was difficult to pronounce in his hometown, so the family name was changed to "Ditka". Ditka attended St. Titus School.

Under head coach Press Maravich, Ditka was a three-sport star at Aliquippa High School. The team doctor, Dr John L Miller took Mike and other players to Pitt games and encouraged them to play for Pitt. Ditka is quoted as saying "Doc Miller patched me up many times". Ditka hoped to escape his hometown's manufacturing jobs by attending college with a football scholarship. Planning to become a dentist, he was recruited by Notre Dame, Penn State, and University of Pittsburgh.

Ditka played for the University of Pittsburgh from 1958 until 1960, where he also became a member of the Sigma Chi fraternity. He was a three-sport athlete at Pitt, also playing baseball and basketball. He started all three seasons, leading the team in receiving in each, and also served as the team's punter.Ditka caught 45 passes for 730 yards and seven touchdowns in his three seasons. He was a unanimous first-team selection on the College Football All-America Team his senior year. Ditka was enshrined in the College Football Hall of Fame in 1986.

Playing career

Chicago Bears

The Chicago Bears drafted Ditka fifth overall in the 1961 NFL Draft, while the Houston Oilers drafted him eighth overall in the first round in the 1961 AFL Draft. He signed with the Bears and his presence was immediately felt. In his first season, Ditka had 58 receptions, introducing a new dimension to a tight end position that had previously been dedicated to blocking. He also scored 12 receiving touchdowns, which was the most by a Bears rookie. His success earned him Rookie of the Year honors. He continued to play for the Bears for the next five years, earning a Pro Bowl trip each season. He played on the 1963 NFL championship team. Many of the players from that team, including Ditka, were drafted by assistant coach George Allen, a future Hall of Famer, who was then in charge of the Bears drafts. During the season, against the Los Angeles Rams, Ditka tied Harlon Hill's franchise record for the most receiving touchdowns in a game with four. Ditka ranks first among tight ends and fourth in Bears history with 4,503 yards, fifth in both receptions (316) and touchdown catches (34).

Ditka was also noted for decking Felix Carbajal who had run onto the playing field late in a Week 2 31–17 loss to the Rams at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on September 16, 1966. He had played out his option that season after not being able to reach a contract agreement with Bears owner/head coach George Halas. Just before the AFL–NFL merger, he had also signed a $300,000 contract with a $50,000 signing bonus with the Oilers, the team that owned his AFL draft rights.

Philadelphia Eagles and Dallas Cowboys

Ditka was traded from the Bears to the Philadelphia Eagles for Jack Concannon on April 26, 1967. The transaction was intended to fill roster vacancies created by the retirements of Eagles tight end Pete Retzlaff and Bears quarterback Rudy Bukich. With the Oilers reluctant to get into any legal battles with the Bears, Ditka's Houston contract was transferred to the Eagles. His time as a Bears player bitterly came to an end with a parting shot in which he stated that Halas "threw nickels around like manhole covers."

After spending two seasons with the Eagles, he was acquired by the Dallas Cowboys for Dave McDaniels on Jan. 28, 1969. He wore number 98 in his first year with the Eagles. He then changed it back to his usual 89. He spent four seasons with the Cowboys, highlighted by a touchdown reception in the Cowboys' 24–3 victory over the Miami Dolphins in Super Bowl VI.

Coaching career

Retiring after the 1972 season, Ditka was immediately hired as an assistant coach by Cowboys' head coach Tom Landry. Ditka spent nine seasons as an assistant coach with the Cowboys. During his tenure, the Cowboys made the playoffs eight times, won six division titles, three NFC Championships and a Super Bowl victory in 1977.

While working with the Cowboys, Ditka sent a letter to George Halas, his former head coach who was still owner of the Chicago Bears. In the letter Ditka said that he would like to come back to Chicago and be the head coach of the Bears "when he was ready". Meanwhile, the Cowboys continued to win games although they did not win another Super Bowl while Ditka was there. His last game with the Cowboys was the 1981 NFC Championship Game, where the team fell to the San Francisco 49ers.

Chicago Bears

After firing previous coach Neill Armstrong following the 1981 season, Halas decided to take Ditka up on his offer from several years earlier and hired him to become the team's head coach for 1982 season. Although the Bears had made the playoffs under Armstrong and his predecessor Jack Pardee, those were the only two winning seasons since Halas' retirement as coach and he was looking for a coach who would bring the Bears back to prominence. Shortly after his hiring, as recounted by Mike Singletary in 2006, Ditka called a team meeting. In the meeting he warned that the team would experience some turnover, but if they were all willing to work hard for him and stand with him, Ditka promised a trip to the Super Bowl within three seasons. Specifically Ditka said "Give me three years, and if you walk with me, we'll get to the dance."

By his third season, Ditka led the Bears to the NFC Championship Game, where the Bears were shut out by the eventual Super Bowl-winning 49ers in San Francisco. The following year, Ditka's coaching career hit its pinnacle on January 26, 1986, with a 46–10 win over the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XX at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana. Ditka has stated that one of his biggest regrets in life was not letting Walter Payton score a touchdown in the Super Bowl, instead opting for Jim McMahon to run it in twice and rookie defensive tackle William "The Refrigerator" Perry to run it in once.

In 1985, Ditka led the Bears to a 15–1 record, and he was named NFL Coach of the Year by the Associated Press following the regular season. Football commentators widely regard the 1985 Bears defense as one of the best. It was masterminded by defensive coordinator Buddy Ryan, with little oversight from Ditka; in fact, Ditka and Ryan had a largely adversarial relationship dating back to Ditka's hire as Ryan, who was already on the coaching staff when Ditka joined the Bears, felt that he should have been promoted into the head coaching position. Although the two men continued to work together, the relationship continued to deteriorate and with the Bears trailing by three touchdowns in a late season Monday night game against the Miami Dolphins that resulted in the team's only loss, Ryan finally snapped after Ditka, as he recounted in 2006 for NFL Network, told him that the defensive scheme was not working. The two began throwing punches at each other and had to be separated, and Ditka said that the relationship at that point became unsalvageable. In an unusual gesture, following the Bears Super Bowl victory, the players carried both Ryan and Ditka off the field. In addition, the 1985 Chicago Bears are one of the few teams to consistently challenge the undefeated 1972 Dolphins for the unofficial title of the "Greatest NFL Team of All-Time". The NFL Network series America's Game rated the 1985 Bears as the second-best Super Bowl champion.

Buddy Ryan left in 1986 to become the head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles. When asked if he was happy Ryan was gone, Ditka replied he was not happy, but "elated". In 1986, 1987, and 1988, the Bears won the Central Division title and earned three home playoff games. The first of those years saw the Bears finish the regular season with a 14–2 record to tie the New York Giants for the best in the entire league. However, the Bears were upset by the Washington Redskins in their first playoff game. The next year, the Bears finished second in the NFC with an 11–4 record, but were again upended by the Redskins en route to that team's second Super Bowl victory of the decade. The Bears finished 12–4 in 1988 and got homefield advantage. They defeated Ryan's Eagles in the Fog Bowl in their first game, however, the team was defeated by the 49ers in the NFC Championship Game. This would be the third time in five years that Ditka led the Bears to the NFC Championship game, and this would be the last time they would advance this far until 2006.

Ditka suffered a heart attack during the 1988 season and was expected to miss much of the season, but was on the sidelines as an "advisor" the next week and back in full charge the week after. He led the Bears to a 12–4 record and received his second Coach of the Year award from the AP.

The Bears started 4–0 in 1989, but a series of last-second losses eventually led to a complete meltdown at the end of the season as the Bears finished 6–10.The Bears rallied to win a weak Central Division in 1990 and make the playoffs as a wild card in 1991, but were eliminated convincingly in the early rounds.After dropping to 5–11 in the 1992 season, the Bears fired Ditka.His 106 wins are the second-most in Bears history, behind only Halas.

Play media

'1985 Chicago Bears Visit the White House' - video from White House

On December 9, 2013, Ditka's Bears jersey number, 89, was retired in a halftime ceremony during a Monday Night Football game in Chicago as the Bears hosted the Dallas Cowboys, for whom Ditka also played and worked as an assistant coach under the late Tom Landry. "Thank you, thank you, thank you, and go Bears!" Ditka told the crowd.

New Orleans Saints

In 1997, Ditka was hired as head coach by the New Orleans Saints. After finishing his first two seasons with identical 6–10 marks, Ditka was roundly criticized for the trading of all of the team's 1999 draft picks (plus their first round draft pick in 2000) to the Washington Redskins to move up in the draft and select Texas RB Ricky Williams (Washington would later use the picks to select future All-Pros Champ Bailey, who also ended up as a Hall-of-Famer, Jon Jansen, and LaVar Arrington). The trade was further mocked because of a magazine cover in which Ditka posed with Williams, who was wearing a wedding dress.

The 1999 season proved to be the worst of Ditka's coaching career. After winning the season opener the Saints dropped their next seven games, including a loss to the expansion Cleveland Browns. As the season wore on Ditka's frustrations began showing in the local media. After a late season practice with the team sitting at 2–7, Ditka was very abrupt and dismissive of reporters whom he felt were asking him stupid questions and was asked by one of them why he was in such a bad mood. Ditka responded by asking the reporter, "What do you care?" When the reporter tried to follow up, he said "If you were 2–7 you'd be in a bad mood too." Shortly thereafter Ditka walked away from the reporters and left.

The low point of the season came three weeks later in a loss to the Falcons which was the Saints' tenth in eleven weeks. Ditka came into the postgame press conference appearing emotionally exhausted and said he felt the Saints would be better off hiring someone else to coach the team. Ditka claimed he "didn't have it anymore", and said to the reporters that "God puts people in places for reasons, and he probably put me here to be humbled. I deserve it." He said that he did not feel there was much talent on the offensive side of the field. A reporter asked him if he was considering leaving the team and Ditka replied affirmatively. When followed up with a question about whether he would resign before the season was over, Ditka said the only way he would do that was if he was certain he would be fired at the end of the campaign regardless. When asked if he believed the team quit on him, Ditka said that he did not believe that, that it was his responsibility to have the team ready to play and that he had "failed" in that role. After a few more questions, Ditka walked away from the reporters and called the whole exercise "silly".

Ditka led the Saints to one more victory in 1999, an upset over the Dallas Cowboys in their home finale. The game, which was nationally televised on Christmas Eve, saw the first NFL start for eventual Pro Bowler Jake Delhomme, who led the 2–12 Saints to a 31–24 victory over the playoff contending Cowboys.

Following the team's 45–13 defeat to the Carolina Panthers, whom they beat in the season opener, the Saints did indeed fire Ditka along with his entire coaching staff and general manager Bill Kuharich.

Over a total of 14 seasons as a head coach, Ditka amassed a regular-season record of 121–95 and a postseason record of 6–6.

Hall of Fame

In 1988, his fearsome blocking and 427 career receptions for 5,812 yards and 43 touchdowns earned him the honor of being the first tight end inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Ditka also scored two touchdowns on offensive fumble recoveries, tying seven other players for the most in NFL history. In 1999, he was ranked number 90 on The Sporting News's list of the 100 Greatest Football Players.

Head coaching record

Broadcasting career

Almost immediately after his dismissal from the Bears in 1992, Ditka took a broadcasting job with NBC, working as an analyst on NFL Live and as a color commentator for many other NBC broadcasts. After he was fired by the Saints, Ditka joined CBS Sports, spending the 2000 and 2001 seasons as a studio analyst on The NFL Today. He is currently a commentator on ESPN's NFL Live, ESPN's Sunday NFL Countdown, and CBS Radio-Westwood One's Monday Night Football pregame show. On his radio show, Coach Ditka is called "America's Coach" by well known sidekick Jim Gray. Beginning in 2006, Ditka appeared on a Seattle radio program, "Groz with Gas" on 950 KJR-AM Seattle, on Thursday afternoons with Dave Grosby and Mike Gastineau. Ditka regularly appears on Chicago radio station ESPN 1000 (WMVP-AM), often broadcasting on Thursday mornings from one of his eponymous restaurants along with ESPN 1000 mid-morning hosts Marc Silverman and Tom Waddle, a former Bears player under Ditka.

Ditka served as color commentator for ESPN's September 10, 2007, broadcast of Monday Night Football, alongside Mike Greenberg and Mike Golic. He replicated this role on the second game of the doubleheader in 2008, as well. Ditka spent several years with ESPN working on Sunday NFL Countdown. In March 2016, ESPN and Ditka announced he would move to Sportscenter for remote-broadcasting analysis, as Ditka disliked the long trek from his home to the studio. This new role allows him to stay at home, while still maintaining an analyst role with the network.

In 1991, Ditka cooperated with Accolade to produce the computer game Mike Ditka's Ultimate Football and the Sega Mega Drive game Mike Ditka Power football. In 1995, Ditka starred as a football coach in a full-motion video game called Quarterback Attack with Mike Ditka, released for the Sega Saturn, PC, and 3DO. Quarterback Attack was re-released for iTunes and Google play in December 2016.

Ditka has written or contributed to a number of books since 1986. He wrote Ditka: An Autobiography with friend and sports journalist Don Pierson; he authored The 85 Bears: We Were the Greatest with Rick Telander. He also wrote with Telander In Life First you Kick Ass: Reflections on the 1985 Bears and Wisdom from Da Coach.

Ditka has also been the subject of several books including Ditka: Monster of the Midway by Armen Keteyian and Ditka: The Player, the Coach, the Chicago Bears Legend which is a compilation of Chicago Tribune stories written about Ditka throughout the years. He is also a large topic in books written about the Bears as a team such as Then Ditka said to Payton and Monsters: The 1985 Chicago Bears and the Wild Heart of Football.

Ditka appeared as himself in the 271st and final episode of the American TV sitcom Cheers.

Ditka also appeared as himself in the show "According to Jim," in the episode "Cars & Chicks".

Ditka appeared in several ads for Montgomery Ward in the early 1990s, promoting their electronics and appliances department, known as Electric Avenue.

Ditka performed "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" during a Chicago Cubs game at Wrigley Field in 1998, the first season after the death of Harry Caray, who had previously led the song. Chicago Now blogger Marcus Leshock derided the performance, dubbing Ditka "the worst 7th-inning singer in history."

Ditka was inducted to the National Polish-American Sports Hall of Fame in 2001.

Ditka has also done guest spots and cameos on shows from L.A. Law to Saturday Night Live, as well as Cheers, and 3rd Rock from the Sun. In 2005, Ditka had a major role in the comedy Kicking & Screaming, playing himself; he was recruited by Will Ferrell's character to be an assistant little league soccer coach.

In January 2007, Ditka used the Super Bowl return of the Chicago Bears as a platform to promote efforts by many early NFL players trying to raise support for former NFL players in need of money and medical assistance; he is a key member in the Gridiron Greats. Angry at the wealthy NFL for ignoring the players who helped to create the league, Ditka and other former players have since been attempting to raise funds, in the words of Hall of Famer Joe DeLamielleure, "for guys who made this league and built it on their backs, their knees, their legs and now they're all broken down and they can't even get a decent pension." Ultimately, however, in December 2007, Ditka folded his "Hall of Fame Assistance Trust Fund" charity amidst revelations that, "in 2005, the group gave out more money to pay celebrities to play golf than the group in its entire three years of operation gave out to injured players", according to Laurie Styron of the American Institute of Philanthropy. During Super Bowl XLIV, Ditka (who was not in the original group) joined other members of the 1985 Chicago Bears in resurrecting the "Super Bowl Shuffle" in a Boost Mobile commercial.

In the spring of 2007, Ditka worked alongside X Management and Geneva Hospitality to form Mike Ditka Resorts, currently consisting of two resorts in the Orlando, Florida, area. Ditka owns a chain of restaurants, "Ditka's," which has three locations in Illinois and one in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Ditka discovered singer John Vincent, who has been performing at his Chicago restaurant since 2001. Vincent performs in 20 different voices and sings the National Anthem regularly for the NFL, NBA, and MLB. Ditka and Vincent also own a record label together.

Ditka was a co-owner the Chicago Rush, an Arena Football League team. In August 2011, media reports noted that Ditka would be a financial investor for the new Elite Football League of India, a proposed American football league that will be India's first.

In 2012, Ditka partnered with Terlato Wines to produce his own collection of wines, produced in California. The partnership stemmed from a 20-year friendship between Ditka and Bill Terlato and their shared love of sports and food and wine. The first Mike Ditka Wines were released in fall 2012, including eight labels highlighting his career:"The Player" (2011 Pinot Grigio and 2010 Merlot), "The Coach" (2011 Sauvignon Blanc and 2010 Cabernet Sauvignon), " The Hall of Famer" (2011 Chardonnay and 2011 Pinot Noir), and "The Restaurateur" pair which includes "The Icon" (2010 Cabernet Sauvignon) and "The Champion" (2010 Red Blend)." The same year, Ditka and Camacho Cigars partnered and produced a line of cigars called "The Mike Ditka Kickoff Series". These cigars are named to highlight the milestones of Coach Ditka's football career:"The Player", The Coach", and "The Hall of Famer". All of these cigars are produced in Honduras.

In 2013, Ditka and Vienna Beef partnered to create Ditka Sausages, which will be eight inches long and one-third pound in weight. The two types are "Hot Beef Polish Sausage" and "Chicken Sausage with Mozzarella and Sun-Dried Tomatoes".

Also in 2013, Ditka and former Bears quarterback Jim McMahon are featured in a new series of commercials for the online discount retailer Overstock.com.

In 2014, Ditka and Resultly partnered to feature his profile and product collections. Ditka's profile is featured on Resultly and he regularlrly interacts with users about the collections he creates of his favorite items from all over the web.

In 2015, Ditka did several television ads for McDonald's. He was seen wearing a Green Bay Packers sweater vest. Some would later question if Ditka "jinxed" the Packers, as their six-game undefeated streak halted to a three-game losing streak during the airing of the commercials (including a loss to the Bears on Thanksgiving). A follow-up commercial would show Ditka throwing the Packers sweater vest out the window and donning his more familiar Bears sweater vest once the contest was over. Just hours after the spot was aired, the Packers went on to beat the Vikings, ending the "curse".

Ditka was married to his first wife, Marge from 1961 to 1973. They have 4 children together, Mark, Matt, Mike and Megan. He married his current wife Diane (née Trantham) Ditka in 1977.

During the 1985 season, he was arrested on Interstate 294 near O'Hare International Airport and later convicted of DUI after returning from a game against the San Francisco 49ers.

In the midst of a successful 1988 season, he suffered a heart attack, but bounced back quickly. In November 2012, he suffered a minor stroke at a suburban country club in Chicago. Later in the day, Ditka reported he was feeling "good right now and it's not a big deal."

From 1989 until 1997, Ditka lived in Bannockburn, Illinois.

From 1997 until 2001, Mike Ditka lived in an area of New Orleans known as English Turn.

He is a practicing Roman Catholic and a member of the Knights of Columbus.

On November 23, 2018, Ditka was hospitalized in Naples, Florida after suffering a heart attack while playing golf.

Political views

Ditka is known for his vocal conservative views. In July 2004, Ditka, a self-described "ultra-ultra-ultra conservative", was reportedly considering running against the Democratic candidate, state senator Barack Obama, for an open seat in the U.S. Senate for Illinois in the 2004 Senate election. The seat was being vacated by Peter Fitzgerald, a Republican, and Republican nominee Jack Ryan withdrew from the race amid controversy at the end of June, leaving the Republicans in a bind. Local and national political leaders, from Illinois Republican Party Chair Judy Baar Topinka to National Republican Senatorial Committee Chair Sen. George Allen, whose father by the same name was an assistant coach with the Bears in the 1960s when Ditka played, met with Ditka in an effort to persuade him to fill the spot on the ticket. On July 14, however, Ditka announced he would not seek the nomination, citing personal and business considerations. His wife was against the run and he operates a chain of restaurants. Barack Obama went on to defeat the eventual Republican candidate, former U.S. ambassador Alan Keyes, in a landslide in the November 2004 election. Ditka has since regretted not running.

In stark contrast to the above-stated positions, Ditka appeared in an ad during the 2010 Illinois gubernatorial election for incumbent Democratic governor Pat Quinn. In the ad, Ditka stated that, "[D]oing the right thing for the people who put you in office is more important than what you can do for yourself in office ... and I think he'll do that. I think he understands that ... and I think he's good people."Quinn, at the time, was locked into a tight race against State Senator Bill Brady, a conservative Republican from Bloomington. Quinn would go on to narrowly defeat Brady. Four years later, in 2014, Ditka appeared in a televised campaign ad for Quinn's Republican challenger, Bruce Rauner, who defeated Quinn in the general election.

In October 2011, Ditka and the 1985 team went to the White House after they did not attend in 1986 due to the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster. He presented President Obama with a Chicago Bears jersey with the number 85 on it with "Obama" on the back of it.

Ditka was a vocal supporter of Donald Trump's election campaign, saying "I support Trump all the way. I really do."

Some of Ditka's comments, most notably regarding former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick's national anthem protests, have garnered controversy due to Ditka's position with ESPN. Under the network's new social media policy (implemented in late 2017 in the wake of Curt Schilling's firing and Jemele Hill's suspension), Ditka is to refrain from making controversial statements, but made a series of remarks in late 2017 that drew widespread criticism. In a September interview with a Dallas-based radio station, Ditka was critical of Kaepernick's protests, saying "I think it's a problem. Anybody who disrespects this country and the flag. If they don't like the country they don't like our flag, get the hell out." In the same interview, Ditka was dismissive of social issues in America, saying "I don't see all the atrocities going on in this country that people say are going on, I see opportunities if people want to look for opportunity – now if they don't want to look for them – then you can find problems with anything, but this is the land of opportunity because you can be anything you want to be if you work. If you don't work, that's a different problem."

Ditka's more controversial remark came in October during a Bears/Vikings pregame show, when he said he did not believe that there was any oppression in America for the last 100 years: "There has been no oppression in the last 100 years that I know of. Now maybe I'm not watching it as carefully as other people." Ditka immediately came under criticism for his comments from many sources, including former New York Jets star Joe Namath, who said that Ditka needed to "look up the meaning of oppression. Look up the definition of oppression, and you understand that it's obviously taken place," as well as from columnists at the Chicago Sun-Times who said Ditka was "not a Chicagoan" and "...a white man who is blind to the plight of people of color in this country." The NFL distanced itself from Ditka's comments, saying, ""Everyone's entitled to an opinion. The league would not express that opinion, by any stretch of the imagination." Ditka quickly clarified his remarks in a release, apologizing to anyone who may have been offended by his comments: "The characterization of the statement that I made does not reflect the context of the question that I was answering and certainly does not reflect my views throughout my lifetime. I have absolutely seen oppression in society in the last 100 years and I am completely intolerant of any discrimination."