Mike Ditka has passed away at 86
https://chicago.suntimes.com/obituaries/2026/10/09/mike-ditka-dead-bears-coachOpen linkView original on lemmy.worldSyndicated from the fediverse. Read and engage on the original instance.
View original on lemmy.worldhttps://chicago.suntimes.com/obituaries/2026/10/09/mike-ditka-dead-bears-coachOpen linkView original on lemmy.world
6 replies
RIP coach. Bears by a million on Sunday.
Daaaaaa Bears!
I was not a Bears fan and learned to dislike them/Ditka at the time (there was the SB Shuffle, The Fridge, and McMahon). I do admit I loved Walter Payton, but that was easy to do. Ditka spit his gum out and hit a woman wayyy back (Bears vs 49ers MNF I think) and it just lent to the whole thing. Deffo had respect for them, and later I pivoted into liking Ditka after he retired. He had a great football mind and his teams in the 80's were superlative. RIP to a legend.
sad Bears noises
RIP FTP
I'm a 38yo Chicago sports fan and resident. I'm too young to remember Ditka coaching, but my Dad has told me stories about him and the legendary 85 Bears.
There is no team in the history of sports more beloved in Chicago than the 85 Bears and there is no coach more beloved in Chicago than coach Ditka. You can feel the presence of his personality to this day. Chicago will forever feel this loss. Rip Coach. I know you're yelling "Fuck the Packers" with God on the couch this Sunday.
Ditka became a pariah to the NFL for outing the rampant abuse of pain killers encouraged and tolerated by the NFL from the high school level. He outlined the low life expectancies of NFL players, usually from long term steroid use. He also highlighted high school cheerleaders were the worst abusers. Dick Butkus had similar presentations, but neither changed anything.