CHICAGO (VINnews) — Mike Ditka, the Hall of Fame tight end who reshaped his position and later coached the Chicago Bears to their only Super Bowl title, died Friday. He was 86.

His family announced the death in a statement. No cause was given. Ditka, who would have turned 87 on Oct. 18, had suffered heart attacks in 1988 and 2018 and a minor stroke in 2012.

“It is with profound sadness that we announce the passing of our beloved husband, father, grandfather, and friend, Mike Ditka,” the family said. “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.”

Ditka was carried off the field after the Bears beat the New England Patriots 46-10 in Super Bowl XX on Jan. 26, 1986. That 1985 team finished 15-1 in the regular season and 18-1 overall, with a defense widely ranked among the best in league history and an offense built around Hall of Fame running back Walter Payton.

Known as “Iron Mike” and, in Chicago, simply as “Da Coach,” Ditka was born Michael Dyczko on Oct. 18, 1939, in Carnegie, Pennsylvania, and raised in nearby Aliquippa. The family name was changed when he was young. He starred at the University of Pittsburgh, where he was a unanimous All-American in 1960, and was taken fifth overall by the Bears in the 1961 draft.

As a rookie he caught 56 passes for 1,076 yards and 12 touchdowns, becoming the first tight end to top 1,000 receiving yards in a season and winning NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year. He made the Pro Bowl in each of his first five seasons and helped Chicago win the 1963 NFL championship. He later played for the Philadelphia Eagles and the Dallas Cowboys, finishing with 427 receptions for 5,812 yards and 43 touchdowns. He scored a touchdown in the Cowboys’ Super Bowl VI win over Miami.

After his playing career, Ditka joined Tom Landry’s staff in Dallas and was part of the Cowboys’ Super Bowl XII championship as an assistant. Chicago hired him as head coach in 1982. He was named Associated Press NFL Coach of the Year in 1985 and again in 1988, and coached the Bears through the 1992 season. He later coached the New Orleans Saints from 1997 to 1999. He is one of only two men to win a Super Bowl as a player, an assistant coach and a head coach.

Ditka entered the College Football Hall of Fame in 1986 and, in 1988, became the first tight end inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. The Bears retired his No. 89.

He is survived by his wife, Diana, and four children, Michael III, Mark, Megan and Matthew.