Hall of Famer Steve “Mongo” McMichael, a stalwart member of the dominant Chicago Bears famed “46 defense” of the 1980s who ranks second in franchise history with 92.5 sacks, has died at the age of 67, the NFL announced Wednesday.
McMichael was diagnosed with ALS, commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, in 2021. He was scheduled to be moved into hospice care on Wednesday.
He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2024.
McMichael played one season for the New England Patriots and one with the Green Bay Packers, but it was the 13 seasons in between with the Bears where he made his mark, including playing in a team-record 191 consecutive games. In total, McMichael played in 207 games between 1981-94.
The defensive tackle won a Super Bowl (1985) and was twice selected first-team All-Pro and to the Pro Bowl. He had at least seven sacks in seven straight seasons (1983 to 1989), second only among Bears players to Richard Dent’s 10-year streak.
In August 2023, McMichael was announced as one of 12 senior semifinalists for the 2024 class and was later one of three players picked by the Hall of Fame’s senior committee. He had previously been nominated for the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2014 and 2015 and made it past the first cut of candidates twice before coming up short of a selection.
McMichael’s wife, Misty, actively campaigned for her husband’s enshrinement as his battle with ALS wore on and took away his ability to move or speak, which left him bedridden during the last years of his life.
McMichael had signed a “do not resuscitate” form in 2023 before his condition began to worsen. Upon learning he was one of the senior semifinalists last August, McMichael informed his wife that he wanted to rip up the DNR and wager on in his fight against ALS as he awaited word on his selection.
On Jan. 24, McMichael received a call from Dent, his former Bears teammate, informing him of his selection to the 2024 class along with fellow Chicago greats Devin Hester and Julius Peppers.
McMichael was at his home in Homer Glen, Illinois, when he was officially announced as a Hall inductee at NFL Honors while his wife represented him on stage in Las Vegas.
McMichael chipped in with eight sacks during the 1985 regular season — and added another in the Super Bowl XX win over the New England Patriots — and was a first-team All-Pro selection as he started every game that season. He controlled the interior of the line for a defense that ranked No. 1 in fewest points allowed, fewest yards allowed and takeaways that season — in addition to allowing just 10 points in three playoff wins — and is considered by many to be the best ever after leading Chicago to an 18-1 record.
McMichael, who finished with 95 career sacks, also had 847 career tackles, 13 forced fumbles, 17 fumble recoveries, 2 interceptions and 3 recorded safeties in 213 career games. His 92.5 sacks with the Bears ranks second in team history to Dent.
While McMichael was often overshadowed by Hall of Famers Mike Singletary and Dent, he was instrumental to the Bears’ success. Bears head coach Mike Ditka said McMichael was the toughest player that he ever coached.
McMichael finished his career with the rival Packers in 1994, but he liked to tell people in retirement that the only reason he signed with the Bears’ bitter rival was to “steal their money and whup their ass again!”
McMichael was drafted by the Patriots in the third round of the 1980 NFL draft out of Texas, where the Houston native was a unanimous first-team All-America selection for a notoriously stingy defense and left as the Longhorns’ all-time leader in career tackles (369) and sacks (30).
He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2010.
After football, “Mongo” had a career resurgence as a professional wrestler with World Championship Wrestling (WCW), where he won the United States Heavyweight Championship as a member of the famed “Four Horsemen” group led by Ric Flair.
ESPN’s Courtney Cronin contributed to this report.
