Ditka says ’16 Cubs could be bigger than ’85 Bears

SHARE Ditka says ’16 Cubs could be bigger than ’85 Bears
ap_8601270351.jpg

Chicago Bear head coach Mike Ditka, talks to President Ronald Reagan after Super Bowl XX in New Orleans on Sunday, Jan. 27, 1986 in New Orleans. Ditka got the congratulations while Berry received condolences. The Bears won 46-10. (AP Photo)

FOUR DOWNS WITH DITKA

Would a Cubs World Series title be bigger than the 1985 Bears?

There’s no question that if they win it all that it would eclipse what we did in ’85. I really believe that, no question. You gotta understand, the Bears hadn’t won for a while, but this has been 100 years! Are you kidding me? Every 100 years the Cubs win it? This would be unbelievable. It’s time. No more waiting ’til next year. They’re good enough, they got the players, they got the manager, they got the ownership. Everything is in place right now. I’m a Cubs fan. I think it’s great to see the Cubs where they are. Joe had me up there at Wrigley and I got to meet the players. They’re great kids, they just go out there and play baseball and they got the perfect guy managing them. It’s fun to watch. He’s the father and they’re the kids and he’s taking care of them. I hope the people really appreciate what the Cubs have brought to this city this year. The interest. The enthusiasm. The hope. There’s been a lot of things involved and it’s been a helluva run.

How did the Bears look against the Colts?

Hoyer was outstanding. What he did was pretty professional. I don’t know if he could have played any better. In football, you don’t have to make the great play all the time. What you don’t want to do is make the play that’s going to turn the ball over. What you need is consistency and we’re getting that with Hoyer. He doesn’t have a lot of peaks and valleys. I think he’s playing at a very high level. There are a lot of good things to build on and take out of the game but people don’t look at it that way when you don’t get the W. People look at it in a negative way most of the time. They’re close but you don’t get a prize for close.

How much do the Bears miss Robbie Gould?

If you can’t make a field goal it deflates you. It deflates the coaching staff. It deflates the players. You bust your ass and drive down there and get to a place where you should get three points, and when you don’t get it done, it ‘s really bothersome. There is no such thing as perfection. But you gotta have a guy where everybody says, ‘OK, the game’s on the line, our guy’s gonna get it done.’ If you feel that way and the coaching staff feels that way, usually you’ll get it done. But when you got a kicker with a question mark hanging over him? Whew! You’re actually afraid to go for field goals.

With Tom Brady back are the Patriots the team to beat?

Brady’s special. I love him. Did you see how many passes he threw to the tight ends? It’s a big confidence boost for them to have him back. With him back, they’re my pick. The game is different now but I think his command of the game and the way he handles the offense is as good as I’ve ever seen. He has good players around him. Bart Starr had good players around him. Johnny Unitas had good players around him. But if the quarterback is special then I think he makes other players special. You gotta have a guy who’s like a commander-in-chief on offense and that’s what Brady is. Leadership is the biggest part of being a great quarterback, and Tom leads by example, and it’s a pretty good example.

EXTRA POINT: Can Tiger Woods ever reclaim his greatness?

He’s reached such a high level in the game that mentally anything less than that is not going to be acceptable. And that’s probably good and that’s probably what made him such a great golfer. I don’t know if he can ever get back to that again. I don’t see it firsthand but they say he’s got the yips chipping. That’s hard for me to believe. This guy had nerves of steel. I hope he gets his game back. There was a time when Tiger hit the drive and nobody was past him. Now? A third of these guys can be past him. It’s just amazing how far these young kids hit the ball. I’m watching these guys and they say this guy’s gonna hit an 8-iron 180 yards! Fine! Good luck! I can’t do it!

The Latest
The man was shot in the left eye area in the 5700 block of South Christiana Avenue on the city’s Southwest Side.
Most women who seek abortions are women of color, especially Black women. Restricting access to mifepristone, as a case now before the Supreme Court seeks to do, would worsen racial health disparities.
The Bears have spent months studying the draft. They’ll spend the next one plotting what could happen.
Woman is getting anxious about how often she has to host her husband’s hunting buddy and his wife, who don’t contribute at all to mealtimes.
He launched a campaign against a proposed neo-Nazis march at a time the suburb was home to many Holocaust survivors. His rabbi at Skokie Central Congregation urged Jews to ignore the Nazis. “I jumped up and said, ‘No, Rabbi. We will not stay home and close the windows.’ ”