Mike Ditka, RIP

Don Wassall

Don Wassall

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Mike Ditka was one of the most important figures in the NFL over the past 60 years. He was a great tight end, setting the rookie record for the position with 1,076 yards in 1961 -- and doing it on just 56 receptions during a 14 game season at a time when tight ends weren't thrown to nearly as much as today, for an outstanding per catch average of 19.2 yards. His record lasted 63 years until 2024 when it was broken by Brock Bowers. Ditka was the first tight end enshrined in Canton.

Ditka was a top NFL coach following his playing career, his most memorable team being the 1985 Chicago Bears, one of the most dominant teams in NFL history. From a CF standpoint, his teams in Chicago and then New Orleans were among the relatively White friendliest in the league.

He had a larger than life personality, a tough as nails man's man who didn't tolerate bs and was no one to trifle with. Ditka always stood out as a strong alpha even as White men were being beaten down and "reprogrammed" over the past two generations. One of the great characters of the sport, his death is a big loss. RIP

Here's Ditka's most famous catch, from a 1963 game against the Steelers.

​
 
Ditka was certainly an icon and embodied what a football player was supposed to be. An icon of America 1.0. He seemed to be no nonsense as head coach of the Bears which instilled their team with discipline and a Super Bowl victory. I only remember those through the old NFL films that ESPN used to show in the late 90s/early 2000s. I remember his stint with the Saints as I was starting to follow football at that time and his insane trade for Ricky Williams.

RIP.
 
A great political what if is if Ditka had run for the US Senate as a Republican in 2004 and Obama would have been his Democratic opponent. This was talked about but not sure how close he was to deciding to go for it. Back in 2004 the Republicans were stronger in Illinois than today.
 
Snow Plow said:
View attachment 5257
Click to expand...
Looks like 31 Whites on the 53 man roster of the 1985 Bears. Actually the picture was probably taken in 1984 or early in training camp in '85 as Jeff Fisher is pictured on the far right of the first row (#24), and he played for the Bears from '81 through '84 but not in 1985.

So perhaps the most dominant team of the Caste System era was right around 60% White. 1985 was the year the Caste System template really solidified in place though its trends and momentum began in the late 1960s, so that may have been one of the last majority White teams, and may have been the Whitest in the NFL in '85.
 
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