JIM GRAY: Mike Ditka did it his way. Football will never see another like him

America knew him as a football legend.

He became the NFL’s symbol of toughness and the emblem of Chicago.

Mike Ditka was more than a Hall of Fame player and head coach who led the Bears to their unforgettable Super Bowl XX championship .

He was a man who reached well beyond the football field.

Coach Ditka was my partner on the radio for a nearly a decade.

On our show and podcast this week, " Let’s Go! ," broadcast on SiriusXM NFL Radio, I paid tribute to and honored the life of Coach Ditka, along with my fellow co-hosts past and present — Tom Brady , Bill Belichick , Matthew Stafford, Drew Brees and Peter King.

They joined me to speak about what Ditka meant to them and to the game of football.

Here was our tribute.

It's been a very difficult few days since we've learned of the passing of Mike Ditka on Oct.

9, at age 86.

Guys like Ditka are very rare.

He was a once in a lifetime man.

He seemed indestructible.

I thought he would beat everything and everyone, and that he just might live forever because a guy like Mike Ditka isn't supposed to die.