CNN – Steve McMichael, a star defensive tackle on the Chicago Bears’ famed 1985 Super Bowl championship team whose larger-than-life personality made him a fixture in the Windy City for decades and a natural for professional wrestling, has died following a battle with ALS. He was 67.
McMichael died Wednesday afternoon, his publicist, Betsy Shepherd, told The Associated Press.
An All-Pro in 1985 and 1987, McMichael was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2024.
He played in a franchise-record 191 consecutive games from 1981 to 1993 and ranks second to Richard Dent on the Bears’ career sacks list with 92 1/2. His final NFL season was with Green Bay in 1994.
McMichael’s brash personality and willingness to say whatever was on his mind made him a natural for the squared circle.
…article continued below
– Advertisement –
He began working for World Championship Wrestling at the height of the “Monday Night Wars” with the World Wrestling Federation, starting as a color commentator and later joining Ric Flair in the “Four Horsemen” group.
McMichael had been experiencing tingling in his arms for some time that he figured was a neck or spine issue stemming from his playing days or his work as a wrestler.
A neurosurgeon at the Mayo Clinic suggested in September 2020 that he had ALS. McMichael sought other opinions, and in January 2021, doctors in Chicago confirmed the diagnosis.
Though he mostly retreated from public life following his announcement, photos posted on social media by friends and former teammates showed his decline.
McMichael went from a 270-pound giant who used to blast through linebackers and drive wrestlers headfirst into the mat with the “Mongo spike” to someone who was rail-thin, bedridden and hooked up to machines as his body failed him …
…article continued below
– Advertisement –