Today brings us 89 days until the start of the 2023 NFL season, meaning that today's Chicago Bears Countdown to Kickoff will revolve around the most prolific player to wear the number 89 in franchise history, tight end Mike Ditka.
Mike Ditka's path to the Chicago Bears
A Pittsburgh-area native, Mike Ditka attended Aliquippa High School, where he was a three-sport athlete in football, basketball, and baseball. Ditka, whose Pittsburgh upbringing would help usher in the nickname "Iron Mike", eventually attended the University of Pittsburgh, where he participated in these same three sports at the varsity level, even starting on the football team as a tight end, defensive lineman, and punter.
At Pitt, Ditka led the football team in receiving yards for three consecutive seasons and was even recognized as an All-American at the tight end position in 1960, his final collegiate season. Months later, Ditka would be selected by the Chicago Bears with the fifth overall pick of the 1961 NFL Draft.
As a professional, Ditka impacted the Chicago Bears immediately, as the rookie started in all 14 of the team's games while accumulating over 1,000 receiving yards and 12 touchdowns. Following the season, Ditka was named NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year as well as being named to his first Pro Bowl.
In the ensuing 1962 season, Ditka had another great season, logging 904 yards and five touchdowns while being named to another Pro Bowl and an All-Pro team. In 1963, Ditka went for nearly 800 yards and eight touchdowns, again starting in all 14 of the team's games, while being named to another Pro Bowl and All-Pro team. Following the season, the team took on the New York Giants in the NFL Championship game, where the Bears would prevail, with Ditka accounting for 38 of the team's 221 total yards.
Coming off an NFL Championship, Ditka logged another great season, adding Pro Bowl and All-Pro selections yet again. In 1965, Ditka's numbers dropped a bit, with under 500 receiving yards and just two touchdowns, but earned Pro Bowl and All-Pro nods once more. In 1966, Ditka's last season with the team, the tight end had his worst season as a Bear, with just under 400 yards and two touchdowns, but still made second-team All-Pro despite missing the Pro Bowl for the first time in his career.
Following the 1966 season, Ditka was traded to the Philadelphia Eagles in exchange for quarterback Jack Concannon. In his home state of Pennsylvania, Ditka played for two seasons, logging under 400 yards and two touchdowns in 20 total appearances from 1967 to 1968.
Mike Ditka's path back to the Chicago Bears as head coach
After his two-year stint with the Eagles, Ditka joined the division rival Dallas Cowboys, where he played the final four seasons of his career, eventually retiring after the 1972 season. Following playing for the Cowboys, Ditka was hired by coach Tom Landry as an assistant coach, where he would spend time coaching the tight ends group as well as coordinating the special teams unit.
As a Cowboys assistant, Ditka wrote a letter to Bears owner George Halas, detailing his regrets about how his Bears career ended, and the fact that Ditka would be interested in coming back to the franchise as a head coach. Many years later in 1982, Halas, who had just fired his head coach, took Ditka up on his previous offer and hired the former tight end as the team's new head coach.
Just a few years later Ditka had completely rehauled the Chicago Bears team, taking them from a bottom-of-the-league roster into a perennial powerhouse. In 1985, Ditka led the team to a 15-1 roster, eventually winning the Super Bowl and was named NFL Coach of the Year.
Ditka's life after being Chicago Bears head coach
The Bears under Ditka were never quite able to match the results from the 1985 season, although they had a real shot in both '84 and '86, but helped bring the franchise that drafted him back to supreme relevance within the league. In 1992, after a decade as the team's head coach, Ditka was fired following a 5-11 season.
After a five-year gap, Ditka was hired as the head coach of the New Orleans Saints in 1997, where he stayed for three seasons, amassing 15 total wins. Ditka was fired in 2000 and has since stepped away from the coaching role. However, Ditka has remained close to the game of football, serving recently as an ESPN football personality, appearing on Sunday Countdown and Monday Night Football. Ditka's Bears jersey was retired on December 9, 2012, at Soldier Field during the halftime of a Monday Night bought versus the Dallas Cowboys, where Ditka was also serving as an analyst for the game.
Ditka's number 89 jersey was also retired by the University of Pittsburgh in 1997, following his 1986 enshrinement into the College Football Hall of Fame. Ditka was also nominated to the Professional Football Hall of Fame in 1988.
As a Chicago Bears player, Ditka enjoyed a legendary career, logging over 4,500 total yards across six seasons with 34 touchdowns. During this span, Ditka started in all 84 of the team's possible regular season games and won one NFL Championship. The tight end is currently fifth all-time in Bears' career receiving yards and is fourth in receiving touchdowns. As a coach, Ditka's 112 wins are second best, only behind legendary coach George Halas, and won the only Super Bowl in franchise history.