Steve McMichael wasn’t the best or even close to the most famous member of the 1985 Chicago Bears. It’s possible nobody embodied that team better, though.
McMichael was a fantastic defensive tackle for 15 NFL seasons, and that’s why he was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. But McMichael’s huge personality might be as big of a part of his story as his playing career. Even on that famous ’85 Bears team full of characters, McMichael stood out.
McMichael’s adventures include some time as a professional wrestler after his playing days. The man nicknamed “Mongo” teamed with Ric Flair on the famous “Four Horsemen” for a bit.
“He’s one of the nicest people I’ve ever met in my life, and wilder than me — and that’s saying a lot,” Flair told the Bears’ official site. “Steve used to say to me, ‘I’ve got more money than I’ve got time. What do you want to do tonight?’ I never slept, but he slept less.”
McMichael’s battle with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as ALS or Lou Gehrig’s Disease, was discussed often before and after he got his call to the Hall of Fame. Before that disease took over, McMichael had a well-earned reputation as the life of the party.
Steve McMichael’s outsized persona
McMichael’s most memorable moment in Chicago might not have been in a Bears uniform. It happened from the TV booth at a Cubs game.
McMichael got a chance to sing “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” during the seventh inning stretch, a tradition that honors longtime broadcaster Harry Caray. McMichael wasn’t happy with a call against the Cubs from home plate umpire Ángel Hernández, so he called out Hernández before singing and booed him from the booth. Hernández glared back and even though the urban legend that Hernández ejected McMichael from the stadium might not have been true, it was an indelible moment.
𝐀𝐮𝐠𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝟕, 𝟐𝟎𝟎𝟏
Steve ‘Mongo’ McMichael criticized umpire Angel Hernandez before the 7th inning stretch regarding a call he made earlier, ultimately leading to Mongo’s ejection! 🤣 pic.twitter.com/b30noY2b3a
— This Day in Chicago Sports (@ChiSportsDay) August 7, 2023
That moment epitomizes why Chicago fans still love McMichael. It’s hard to become famous playing defensive tackle, but McMichael made sure he was more than just a football player.
McMichael was a good football player, too. He played one season with the New England Patriots after being their third-round draft pick in 1980, but his partying ways were too much for the Patriots, who released him. The Bears took a shot on McMichael and he played 13 seasons for them, picking up 92.5 of his 95 career sacks with Chicago. McMichael finished his career with the Green Bay Packers for one season.
The highlight of McMichael’s career was being a key part of the Bears’ only Super Bowl winning team in the 1985 season. That team remains perhaps the most famous in NFL history, for the fun it had on and off the field. The defense is still mentioned any time someone tries to rank the greatest defenses in NFL history. McMichael was a first-team All-Pro that season, one of two times he got that honor.
McMichael battles ALS
In 2021, McMichael was diagnosed with ALS, a degenerative neurological disorder. McMichael, a menacing 270-pound figure as a player, started to wither as he was confined to bed. He had several health scares over the past couple years as he battled the disease. An ESPN story from early 2024 detailed how McMichael fought to be around if and when he got the call from the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
The call came Feb. 9 with friends and former teammates celebrating with McMichael at his house. All of Chicago celebrated as well. McMichael was the sixth player from the 1985 Bears to be elected to the Hall of Fame.
McMichael chased quarterbacks on perhaps the most famous team in NFL history, hunted rattlesnakes in the offseason, mixed it up with some of the most well-known professional wrestlers ever and even had Cubs fans howling when he got the microphone at Wrigley Field and called out an umpire for a call. And then he got the Hall of Fame call he had waited many years to receive.