Richard Dent blames Mike Ditka for the Chicago Bears' failure to win another Vince Lombardi trophy, after such a crushing victory in Super Bowl XX. They were poised to win at least two more, and it was very disappointing and frustrating to watch them fall short. Repeatedly.
Ditka needed to adapt his style
My first reaction, honestly, was to agree with him.
The fiery, in-your-face style of Da Coach worked perfectly with his team. Just one loss in a dominant 1985-1986 season, and just 10 points surrendered through an unrelenting playoff march. But to sustain that championship run required a more flexible, soft-pedaled tact, I thought, at least in some situations and with some players. A CEO who succeeds at starting up or turning around a company through a hard-nosed approach has to shift gears over time, and focus more on balancing and reconciling multiple, perhaps competing stakeholder interests. Ditka didn't adapt.
Ditka is an unrivaled winner
My second reaction was more measured and thoughtful, as I decided to research the matter.
Ditka's winning percentage of .631 over 11 seasons (1982 - 1992) makes him the unrivaled winningest Bears Head Coach in the post-George Halas era. That's to the present season with Lovie Smith, sports fans! Even Papa Bear's record in his fourth stint at the helm (1958 - 1967) fell short of Iron Mike's at .588.
So anyone can call Ditka any name, but 'loser' cannot be one of them.
Jim McMahon was the starting QB, and played in more games than any other backup, in the three seasons after their Super Bowl. The Punky QB was often injured, unfortunately, and never seemed to regain the magic touch he had in the run-up to the Super Bowl.
So the Doug Flutie bit that Dent focused on was, at worst, a blip on the radar. Hardly anything that could be pinned on Da Coach.
Ditka led the Bears to seven playoff appearances during his stint, and the team had the following regular season records:
Choke job in the playoffs
Ah, there's the rub.
There are teams, maybe just certain players, who are beasts during the regular season, but are more like lame ducks in the playoffs. They struggle to show up, or they simply choke! Think: Greg Maddox, Chicago Cubs. Think: Peyton Manning, Indianapolis Colts (cf. his brother Eli). Think more recently, way premature playoff exits for top teams (2011 - 2012): Greenbay Packers (football), Vancouver Canucks (hockey), and Chicago Bulls (basketball).
Only athletes and coaches can speak directly to this, while the rest of us can only imagine it. Playoffs aren't just more intense, more physical, more daunting than the regular season. But they say it's a different atmosphere altogether. Almost like an altered sport that requires athletes to perform with an even more ungodly fortitude, discipline and skill.
A friend on Facebook reminded me that defensive genius, Buddy Ryan, and Mike Ditka were feuding through their Super Bowl run. Apparently Ditka was none too happy, when the players hoisted Ryan on their shoulders as well, after their defensive clamp-down of the Patriots. Maybe that was a reason for the Bears' one-and-done, as Ryan fled for Philadelphia in 1986 and with him the vaunted 46 defense.
Many reasons for the Bears' one-and-done
We may never know the exact reason for it, actually. But here are some points I am certain about:
Thank you for reading, and let me know what you think!
Ron Villejo, PhD
Sources for my facts and figures are below. I invite my readers to correct anything I got wrong.
List of Chicago Bears Seasons
List of Chicago Bears Head Coaches
List of Chicago Bears Starting QBs
Ditka needed to adapt his style
My first reaction, honestly, was to agree with him.
The fiery, in-your-face style of Da Coach worked perfectly with his team. Just one loss in a dominant 1985-1986 season, and just 10 points surrendered through an unrelenting playoff march. But to sustain that championship run required a more flexible, soft-pedaled tact, I thought, at least in some situations and with some players. A CEO who succeeds at starting up or turning around a company through a hard-nosed approach has to shift gears over time, and focus more on balancing and reconciling multiple, perhaps competing stakeholder interests. Ditka didn't adapt.
Ditka is an unrivaled winner
My second reaction was more measured and thoughtful, as I decided to research the matter.
Ditka's winning percentage of .631 over 11 seasons (1982 - 1992) makes him the unrivaled winningest Bears Head Coach in the post-George Halas era. That's to the present season with Lovie Smith, sports fans! Even Papa Bear's record in his fourth stint at the helm (1958 - 1967) fell short of Iron Mike's at .588.
So anyone can call Ditka any name, but 'loser' cannot be one of them.
Jim McMahon was the starting QB, and played in more games than any other backup, in the three seasons after their Super Bowl. The Punky QB was often injured, unfortunately, and never seemed to regain the magic touch he had in the run-up to the Super Bowl.
So the Doug Flutie bit that Dent focused on was, at worst, a blip on the radar. Hardly anything that could be pinned on Da Coach.
Ditka led the Bears to seven playoff appearances during his stint, and the team had the following regular season records:
- 1984 - 1985 (10 - 6)
- 1985 - 1986 (15 - 1)
- 1986 - 1987 (14 - 2)
- 1987 - 1988 (11 - 4)
- 1988 - 1989 (12 - 4)
- 1990 - 1991 (11 - 5)
- 1991 - 1992 (11 - 5)
Choke job in the playoffs
Ah, there's the rub.
There are teams, maybe just certain players, who are beasts during the regular season, but are more like lame ducks in the playoffs. They struggle to show up, or they simply choke! Think: Greg Maddox, Chicago Cubs. Think: Peyton Manning, Indianapolis Colts (cf. his brother Eli). Think more recently, way premature playoff exits for top teams (2011 - 2012): Greenbay Packers (football), Vancouver Canucks (hockey), and Chicago Bulls (basketball).
Only athletes and coaches can speak directly to this, while the rest of us can only imagine it. Playoffs aren't just more intense, more physical, more daunting than the regular season. But they say it's a different atmosphere altogether. Almost like an altered sport that requires athletes to perform with an even more ungodly fortitude, discipline and skill.
A friend on Facebook reminded me that defensive genius, Buddy Ryan, and Mike Ditka were feuding through their Super Bowl run. Apparently Ditka was none too happy, when the players hoisted Ryan on their shoulders as well, after their defensive clamp-down of the Patriots. Maybe that was a reason for the Bears' one-and-done, as Ryan fled for Philadelphia in 1986 and with him the vaunted 46 defense.
Many reasons for the Bears' one-and-done
We may never know the exact reason for it, actually. But here are some points I am certain about:
- No one reason accounted for it, but multiple reasons.
- It was team failure to show up, when it mattered most.
- It is patently unfair to pin this on Ditka, as Dent just did.
Thank you for reading, and let me know what you think!
Ron Villejo, PhD
Sources for my facts and figures are below. I invite my readers to correct anything I got wrong.
List of Chicago Bears Seasons
List of Chicago Bears Head Coaches
List of Chicago Bears Starting QBs
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