RIP - Mike Ditka

Mike Ditka, one of the premier tight ends of the 1960s, passed away on October 9, 2026 at age 86.

Ditka was the Bears' #1 pick (5th overall) in 1961, and played 6 seasons for Chicago. He was named to the Pro Bowl in his first 5 seasons. 

 

After 1966, he was traded to the Eagles for QB Jack Concannon. He played 2 seasons for the Eagles, then was traded to the Cowboys. 

 

Ditka played 4 seasons with the Cowboys, including Super Bowls V and VI. 

 

He retired after the 1972 season, and immediately joined Tom Landry's coaching staff. He coached there from 1973-81, then was the Bears' head coach from 1982-1992, including the Super Bowl XX Champions. He was also the Saints' head coach from 1997-99. 

    

San Francisco 49ers - Custom Extension Set

I recently bought the 1966 Giants and 1967 49ers sets made by RetroCards.net, and have updated the chart on my football blogs' sidebars. 

 

There are 1966 sets for every NFL team, but to date, they have only made 1967 sets for the Cowboys, Packers, Bears, Saints, 49ers, Chiefs, and Raiders. 

 

Here are the 49ers, to complement the original Philly Gum set.

(Could not fit Gary Lewis, George Donnelly, and Jim Jackson into Blogger's 200-character limit for labels.)

RIP - Matt Snell

 

Matt Snell, the Jets' fullback from 1964-72, passed away on March 10, 2026 at age 84.

Snell was the Jets' #1 pick (3rd overall) in the 1964 draft. He was their starting fullback for his first 6 years (although missing 7 games in 1967 due to injury). 

 

He was a 3-time Pro Bowler, and was named First Team All-Pro in 1969. Snell rushed for a career-high 948 yards in his rookie season. He also scored the Jets' only touchdown in their 16-7 victory in Super Bowl III. 

 

Snell was injured in each of his last 3 seasons, missing a total of 30 games in those years. 

 

He was inducted into the Jets Ring of Honor in 2015, along with his running mate Emerson Boozer. 

   

RIP - Sonny Jurgensen

Hall of Fame quarterback Sonny Jurgensen passed away on February 6, 2026 at age 91.

Jurgensen played for the Eagles from 1957 to 1963, and was their starting QB for his last 3 seasons there. 

 

He was traded to the Redskins, and was their starter from 1964 until George Allen arrived in 1971. (I always thought that Allen preferred the newly-acquired Bill Kilmer over Jurgy, but Sonny was injured early in 1971, thus losing the job to Kilmer.) Jurgensen started all but 3 games during his first 7 seasons with Washington. He stayed on as a backup for 4 more seasons, starting as many as 4 games in three of those years. 

 

He was a 5-time Pro-Bowler (4 with the Redskins) and led the NFL in passing yards 5 times and in pass completions 4 times. He also passed for more then 400 yards in a single game five times, and threw five touchdown passes in a game twice. 

 

Jurgensen retired after the 1974 season, and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1983. 

 

After his playing career he became a broadcaster, first for CBS and then 38 seasons for the Redskins. 

 

Washington Redskins obituary  

 

New York Times obituary 

  

RIP - 2025

Players from the 1965-1975 era that passed away in 2025:

Tom Brown was also a 1st baseman for the Washington Senators.

 

 

Baseball deaths in 2025