Hall of Famer Mike Ditka went on the record to say there are other players considered the greatest quarterback of all-time over Tom Brady.
There are many who would probably consider seven-time Super Bowl champion Tom Brady as the greatest quarterback of all-time. Mike Ditka is not one those people.
Da Coach joined FanSided‘s Mark Carman and was asked whether or not he considers Brady “the GOAT” at the quarterback position.
“There is no such thing as the greatest of all-time,” Ditka said. ” We weren’t even around to see how great the quarterbacks were in the old days. I played with a guy named Bill Wade, I thought he was pretty damn good. He did what he had to do, and we won a championship in 1963.”
Wade and Ditka were part of an 11-1 championship team during that 1963 season. In his 13-year career, Wade finished with 18,530 passing yards, 124 touchdowns and two pro bowl selections.
Mike Ditka isn’t convinced Tom Brady is the GOAT quarterback
By comparison, Brady sits first on the NFL’s All-Time passing touchdowns list (581), second in passing yards (79,204) and has 13 Pro Bowl selections across his 21 professional seasons.
The next quarterback Ditka mentioned was Wade’s replacement, who some Bears fans will remember, Rudy Bukich.
“I thought he was pretty damn good too. I don’t think Rudy Bukich had as good a team around him as Tom Brady, and as good a coach,” Ditka said.
As Carman chuckled and asked the coach if he really meant to compare Bukich to Brady, Ditka paused and continued his thoughts on the former Bears quarterback.
“Well I didn’t mean to say it that way, but I like Rudy Bukich. He’s okay in my book,” Ditka said.
Assuming you weren’t around to watch Bukich razzle and dazzle from 1953-68, you missed his 8,433 passing yards and 61 touchdowns. During his nine-year tenure with the Bears, Bukich finished with a 17-11-2 record and was also a member of that 1963 championship team.
If you know Coach Ditka, you know how much he embodies the spirit of the Chicago Bears. He played with Chicago, and of course was the head coach of their dominant 1985-86 Super Bowl team which is arguably one of the greatest NFL squads of all time.
Even decades after his days and a player and coach, Ditka always roots for and supports the Bears no matter the circumstance.
During his days as an NFL analyst on ESPN, there wasn’t a single time I can recall Ditka picking another team to win over the Bears in any matchup regardless of their record or other factors that made them the underdogs.
The same passion lives on through this interview. Most probably don’t agree former Bears quarterbacks Billy Wade and Rudy Bukich are better than Tom Brady, but Mike Ditka is not one of those people.
Mike Ditka is teaming up with The Kraken Rum to kick off summer.