Coaching made Mike Ditka an NFL icon. He wasn't just the architect of one of the most dominant teams in league history, the 1985 Chicago Bears. He was also a brand unto himself. The sunglasses, the perfectly set, slicked back hair, the mustache? They all became part of his legend en route to a Super Bowl ring and 14 seasons as a head coach.
That legend didn't begin there. It began in a cradle of football talent in western Pennsylvania. Ditka grew up and emerged as a high school star in Aliquippa before heading to the nearby University of Pittsburgh. He did a little bit of everything for the Panthers. He was a varsity member of the basketball and baseball teams.
But he was a shooting star on the gridiron, holding down multiple positions but emerging
as one of the most talented wide receivers in the country. An All-American 1960 season -- Pitt went 4-3-3 in a schedule that featured 211 total points scored, because football was still figuring out the passing game -- put him on both the AFL and NFL's radar. He was a top 10 draft pick of both the Houston Oilers and Chicago Bears the following year.
The NFL was still developing into what it would eventually become. Ditka, after choosing the Bears, helped it realize that potential. Only 21 players had ever had a season with 1,000 receiving yards before the 1961 season. Ditka did it.
As a rookie.
Playing a new position after Chicago converted him to tight end.
The 1960s saw a flurry of downfield passing that helped revolutionize the game and, importantly, brought the Super Bowl to life and made the sport appointment viewing. By the end of the decade, 76 players had recorded 1,000-yard seasons. Though Ditka wasn't able to get back there -- 1961 was his high water mark in terms of yardage -- he remained an absolute force on the field.
From 1961 to 1964, he averaged 62 catches, 918 yards and 7.5 touchdowns per year -- numbers from a 14-game regular season that project to 75, 1,115 and nine touchdowns in a modern 17-game slate. He was a five-time All-Pro as a Bear, serving as the team's co-leader in receptions (three) in a 14-10 NFL Championship game victory over the New York Giants in 1963. He played in a Super Bowl with the Dallas Cowboys in 1970, then won one with the team a year later, sealing the win with a fourth quarter touchdown pass from Roger Staubach. His 28 receiving yards that day tied for the team lead.
Ditka was so impactful, the NFL named himthe fourth-greatest tight end of all time in 2017 -- even as he slipped down the all-time receiving yards list (he's currently 23rd at the position). When he retired in 1972, only Jackie Smith had more receiving yards as a tight end than his 5,812.
Ditka passed away October 9 and will be remembered fondly across the NFL. But many of those memories will be rooted in mustaches and sweater vests. Mike Ditka deserves to be remembered for his impact on the sideline -- but he may not have gotten there without a Hall of Fame career on the field.
This article originally appeared on For The Win: Mike Ditka was a Hall of Fame tight end before he was an iconic coach
