Mike Ditka left a permanent mark on the NFL as both a player and a coach, but one of the most unforgettable parts of his career came from a move that still gets talked about every draft season.
Ditka died Friday at 86, and fans immediately began revisiting the moments that defined him. The Hall of Fame tight end was a force for the Chicago Bears, finishing his playing career with 427 receptions, 5,812 receiving yards and 43 touchdowns. He also guided the Bears to a Super Bowl title in 1985 as head coach.
“It is with profound sadness that we announce the passing of our beloved husband, father, grandfather, and friend, Mike Ditka,” Ditka’s family said in a statement. “While the world knew Mike as a Hall of Fame football player, legendary coach, and leader of the Chicago Bears’ Super Bowl XX championship team, we knew him as the heart of our family. Mike will be missed beyond measure and remembered forever.”
Among the memories resurfacing was Ditka’s wild swing at the 1999 NFL Draft, when he was coaching the New Orleans Saints. Convinced Ricky Williams would transform the franchise, Ditka pushed the Saints into a massive deal with Washington. To get the chance to draft Williams, New Orleans gave up every pick it had in the 1999 draft, plus its first-round and third-round selections in 2000.
The trade was big enough to become a pop-culture moment on its own, with ESPN The Magazine putting Ditka and Williams on its August 1999 cover dressed as a bride and groom.
But the gamble never paid off the way Ditka imagined. Williams ran for 3,129 yards and scored 18 total touchdowns with the Saints, then was traded to the Miami Dolphins in March 2002. New Orleans went 3-13 in 1999, and Ditka was fired after that season, leaving him with just one year coaching Williams before the whole thing came apart.
Even with the trade ending badly, it remains one of the boldest moves in draft history - the kind of all-in bet that fit Ditka’s reputation perfectly.
In Other News...
Saints Veterans Know Minnesota Is Testing Something This Team Lacks
The Saints have plenty to fix after a 1-3 start, even with the offense doing enough to keep them in games. The bigger concern has been whether the team is matching its own standard from snap to snap, and that frustration has started to show in the way veterans are talking about the week ahead. With Minnesota next, New Orleans is staring at an undefeated opponent that will test discipline, urgency and the kind of defensive consistency the Saints have been searching for.
Chase Young did not hide how he feels about the teams current level of play, making it clear the Saints cannot be comfortable with simply showing up and expecting results to follow. The response in practice is supposed to be more demanding, with the early part of the week designed to get the defense into game mode faster and sharpen execution from the start. Whether that translates against a Vikings team that has yet to lose will say a lot about where this group really stands. [Read more 🡒]
Chase Young Has A Huge Chance To Wreck Minnesotas Game Plan
Chase Young has already spent the first month of the season testing himself against some quality blockers, and the Saints have reason to feel encouraged by what they have seen. He has shown he can hold up against talented right tackles, which matters as New Orleans prepares for a matchup that should put him in position to make an impact again.
Minnesotas line is already in a vulnerable spot heading into Week 4, and that gives Young a path to tilt the game in the Saints favor. If he can keep the pressure coming off the edge, New Orleans may be able to force the Vikings into protecting a backup tackle on an island more often than they would like. [Read more 🡒]
Cam Jordan Knows The Vikings Stat That Saints Fans Should Ignore
Minnesotas offense may look ordinary on paper, sitting near the bottom of the league in total yards, but Cam Jordan isnt taking much comfort in that number as the Saints prepare for the matchup. The veteran edge defender knows better than to let a ranking do the talking, especially when injury absences have helped shape how that offense has looked and the Vikings still have playmakers capable of changing the script.
For New Orleans, the bigger concern is how its own defense has held up lately, especially against tight ends. The Saints have had trouble in that area, and Minnesota brings a matchup that could test them again, with T.J. Hockenson looming as one of the most difficult assignments on the field. Jordans point is simple enough: the stat line is not the story, and Sunday is likely to demand more than a quick glance at the numbers. [Read more 🡒]