Remembering ‘Iron’ Mike Ditka and His Message for Anthem-Kneelers, Flag Disrespecters Like Colin Kaepernick
On Friday, the legendary NFL figure Mike Ditka passed away at age 86. Known for his innovative playing of the tight end position and his prosperous coaching career-including leading the 1985 Chicago Bears to a Super Bowl victory-Ditka was a Hall of Famer both as a player and a coach. His team, famously known as the “Super Bowl Shuffle” Bears, went 15-1 that season and defeated the Patriots in Super Bowl XX.
Widely respected, Ditka was also noted for his patriotic views and outspoken criticism of NFL players who engaged in protests during the national anthem. He publicly stated that disrespecting the flag was unacceptable and suggested that players who disagreed with the country’s values should leave the league or even the country. Despite differing from some players and recent social movements, Ditka remained firm in his beliefs about respect for the nation.
His death prompts tributes from prominent figures like Barack Obama, who remembered Ditka for his leadership and impact both on and off the field.
On Friday, a living NFL legend became simply a legend.
Mike Ditka, who died at the age of 86, was a Hall of Fame player and arguably should have been a Hall of Fame coach.
After reinventing the tight end position during his time with the Chicago Bears, Philadelphia Eagles, and the Dallas Cowboys, he ended up coaching the Bears, as well — including the iconic 1985 squad.
He was the second player to win a Super Bowl ring as both a coach and player in 1985 — Tom Flores, a backup quarterback for the Kansas City Chiefs during Super Bowl IV, was the first to accomplish the feat as coach of the Oakland Raiders in Super Bowl XV in 1981 — and led one of the most feared and flamboyant teams of all time.
The “Super Bowl Shuffle” Bears went 15-1 and trounced the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XX by a score of 46-10.
That’s what most people, including former President Barack Obama, are remembering Ditka for:
When I got to Chicago in the summer of 1985, Mike Ditka and the Chicago Bears were king. Coach Ditka set the tone for a team that was punishing, dominant, and fun — and the city loved him for it. I’m thinking of the Ditka family and Bears fans everywhere on the passing of a legend.
— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) October 9, 2026
Unfortunately for Team Obama and Co., Ditka leaves behind another legend — that of a patriot who had no truck with the NFL’s anthem-kneeling, America-hating brigade.
In 2016, when then-San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick began the trend of loathing the country that kept them well-fed and well-remunerated before kickoff by sitting out “The Star-Spangled Banner,” Ditka called them out — and got plenty of flak from outlets like ESPN.
“I think it’s a problem… anybody who disrespects this country and the flag,” he said during a 2016 radio interview.
“If they don’t like the country, they don’t like our flag… get the hell out. That’s what I think.”
Ditka added that “I have no respect for Colin Kaepernick — he probably has no respect for me, that’s his choice.”
“My choice is, I like this country, I respect our flag, and I don’t see all the atrocities going on in this country that people say are going on.”
Coach Mike Ditka was a patriot:
“I think it’s a problem anybody who disrespects this country and the flag. If they don’t like the country, they don’t like our flag then get the hell out.” https://t.co/GnJI0oh9zM
— Steve Cortes (@SteveCortes) October 9, 2026
“I see opportunities if people want to look for opportunity — now if they don’t want to look for them — then you can find problems with anything,” Ditka added. “But this is the land of opportunity because you can be anything you want to be if you work. If you don’t work… that’s a different problem.”
Ditka stuck by his opinion through the Summer of Floyd in 2020, during which Kaepernick came as close to a secular living saint as the liberals had, perhaps second to Anthony Fauci.
“Football’s football. It’s not a complicated thing. You’re playing the game, you’re enjoying the game. You don’t like the game, get out of it,” he told Newsmax.
“It’s not for protesting one way or the other — what color you are, what you think, this or that.”
“You ought to get down on your hands and knees and thank God every day that you can make the kind of money you can make playing football. Or playing any sport,” he added.
NFL 🏈: Hall-of-Fame coach Mike Ditka tells protesting players that if ‘they can’t respect this country, get the hell out of it.’ [with Newsmax TV’s @ShaunKraisman https://t.co/VlT7z8drtO] https://t.co/E3jPCBrMdt
— NEWSMAX (@NEWSMAX) September 14, 2020
“I would tell those players, go to another country and play football there,” Ditka continued. “You don’t have to come out. You don’t have to come out for the anthem if you go to another country. You can’t, because the game’s only played in this country.”
In short, this is not the kind of person that Barack Obama would usually be paying tribute to.
Rest in peace, “Iron Mike.” We’ll miss you.
Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. Advertise Today.
" Conservative News Daily does not always share or support the views and opinions expressed here; they are just those of the writer."
*As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases
