Mike Ditka would remain as Head Coach of the Chicago Bears for five more seasons past 1987, but the proverbial first nail in his coffin probably was driven in January of that year.

Ditka's best friend and biggest ally in the Bears' front office was General Manager Jerry Vainisi, a Bears employee since the early 1970's and the final executive hand-picked by founder George Halas.  Since assuming the reins of the team from Jim Finks in 1983, Vainisi served as an important buffer for Ditka with the McCaskey family.

According to Vainisi as published in Armen Keteyian's book Ditka: Monster of the Midway, in late 1986 Michael McCaskey began "trying to fabricate a scenario to show breach of contract" [on Vainisi's part].  According to the book, McCaskey accused Vainisi of lying to him regarding a fan club deal with NFL Properties, a deal on which McCaskey wanted to negotiate for more money for the Bears.  After making the accusation directed toward Vainisi at an open meeting, he told the General Manager "I can't trust you, and you're fired."

According to the book, McCaskey was tired of internal debates, most often pitting the President (McCaskey) and personnel boss Bill Tobin versus Ditka and Vainisi.

According to Vainisi, McCaskey constantly harped for "more revenue, more revenue, more revenue, and wore his high-minded Harvard ways on the sleeve of his preppy blue blazers."  (McCaskey actually attended Yale but taught business at Harvard).

Upon hearing of the firing, Ditka met with McCaskey and made a proposal.  If McCaskey would keep Vainisi for one more year, at which point Ditka's contract would run out, the two would leave together.  McCaskey declined to accept the offer.

In personnel meetings for the 1987 draft, it would soon become obvious how the balance of power had swung away from Ditka.  

 

In the 1987 draft, head coach Mike Ditka felt he had four quarterbacks capable of getting the Bears back to the Super Bowl: Jim McMahon, Mike Tomczak, Doug Flutie or Steve Fuller.  (Fuller and Flutie would be released during the season).  However, without his buddy Jerry Vainisi there to back him in the draft room, Ditka lost out in his bid to draft Cincinnati LB/DE Alex Gordon.  Chicago instead selected Michigan quarterback Jim Harbaugh.  The Bears opened the 1987 season against 1986's Super Bowl Champions, the New York Giants, at Soldier Field.  Mike Tomczak, subbing for the injured Jim McMahon, had a monster game, completing 20 of 34 passes for 292 yards.  The Bears blew out the champs 34-19 on Monday Night Football.  Perhaps most memorable about the game was Dennis McKinnon's 94-yard punt return for a touchdown.  McKinnon seemed to juke defenders at full speed, then almost fell down before taking it all the way.  It was the longest punt return in the NFL in 1987 and to that point the longest in Bears history.  Following week two, NFL players went on strike for the second time since 1982.  Unlike during the '82 season, the owners did not give up quietly.  The first week's games were cancelled, but quickly all 28 NFL teams collected "replacement" rosters, and these teams played for three weeks to largely empty stadiums.  The strike would last 24 days before union players started crossing the picket lines to play.  Bears union players protested outside Soldier Field and practiced on their own during the strike.  Head Coach Mike Ditka angrily criticized the union players his "real" team, further alienating the union players when they returned.  Ditka also allowed the regulars to vote after they returned to decide if the replacement players would be allowed to join the regulars following the end of the strike.  Players voted 44-1 to disallow the "scabs" to join the team, but Ditka overruled them and allowed some notables such as John Wojciechowski, Mark Rodenhauser, Lorenzo Lynch and Glen Kozlowski to stay with the team.  Other notable Bear replacements included quarterbacks Mike Hohensee and Sean Payton.  Hohensee is currently the head coach of the Chicago Rush arena team, while Payton has enjoyed a long NFL coaching career.  In 2006, he became head coach of the New Orleans Saints.  Following the strike, the Bears regulars, led by a rejuvenated Jim McMahon, pulled off three straight come-from-behind wins against Tampa, Kansas City and Green Bay.  The following week against Denver they rallied again but couldn't pull off the win.  The loss to Denver was the first game Jim McMahon started without a win in 25 games, dating back to 1984.  Chicago finished the strike-shortened season 11-4, but were defeated by the Washington Redskins in the playoffs at Soldier Field for the second season in a row.  The Bears led 14-0 at one point, but their backs were broken on a Darrell Green punt return for a touchdown.  Walter Payton had the ball on Chicago's final offensive play on fourth down, but was forced out of bounds several yards short of a first down.

Tampa trades quarterback Steve Young to the San Francisco 49ers for second and fifth round picks so it can select Vinny Testaverde from Miami. While Young could be had for a bargain, the Bears draft QB Jim Harbaugh from Michigan, a running team, with their 27th pick in the first round. The NFL is hit by a players strike once again, for the second time in five years. This time the NFL is prepared, and each team fields "scab" teams with replacement players. Thus the outcome of many team's seasons was dependent on how their replacement players played. Surprising teams this season were New Orleans, Minnesota and Indianapolis. Washington again beats Chicago in the NFC Divisional round, while Minnesota shocks the 13-2 49ers in San Francisco. The Vikings lost in the NFC Championship to Washington, who dealt Denver their second consecutive Super Bowl loss, 42-10.