Steve McMichael never held back. Not on the football field, not in a wrestling ring, and not in life.
“I went at it full-bore and did a lot of things in my life,” he told WGN after being diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) in 2021. “I’m glad I didn’t wait to get geriatric and start filling out a bucket list. Because I knew, even if I was healthy, I wasn’t going to enjoy that.”
McMichael died on Wednesday at the age of 67 after his years-long battle against the aggressive nervous system disorder. He was moved into hospice care just hours before his passing.
McMichael began his career with the New England Patriots before joining the Chicago Bears in 1981 as a free agent. In Chicago, McMichael earned the nickname “Mongo” from his teammates due to his resemblance to and similarity in personality to the character with the same name from Mel Brooks’ 1974 film “Blazing Saddles.”
He lived up to the moniker, immediately becoming a stalwart in Buddy Ryan’s world-famous “46 Defense” that brought Chicago its lone Super Bowl championship in 1985.
In 13 seasons as a pivotal member in the trenches, McMichael accumulated 814 tackles, 92.5 sacks, and 17 fumble recoveries. It should have been enough for prompt entry into the Pro Football Hall of Fame when McMichael became eligible in 2000.
Instead, Mongo had to wait. An extra 24 years, to be exact. McMichael’s omission from football immortality felt like a sin long before his diagnosis, and his eventual ascension into Canton, while joyous, left a bitter taste among supporters as the legend was unable to physically partake in the ensuing festivities.
However, fellow Chicago Bears Hall of Famer and Super Bowl XX MVP Richard Dent’s homage to his former teammate made every grueling campaign for McMichael’s gold jacket worth the effort:
“You are on a team that you can never be cut from and never be released from. When you die, you’ll always be on this team,” Dent said during a bedside ceremony in August at McMichael’s Homer Glen home. “Welcome home, Steve. You’re in football heaven forever.”
In the eyes of Bears fans, McMichael was a Hall of Famer long before his official induction. He deserved the honor, whether or not it came with a formal ceremony or a bust in Canton.
Speaking at the Bears 100 celebration in 2019 as the league’s charter franchise celebrated a century of football, McMichael told fans: “Everybody wants their name to be spoken through eternity, right? What you do in life speaks eternal, baby. And I am so glad to be a Chicago Bear and part of your history. It’s an honor and a privilege.”
Understandably, Mongo’s comments were met with thunderous applause. His ability to entertain led to an incredibly successful life after football, as he became a prominent figure in World Championship Wrestling and a staple of the community in the southwest suburbs.
In 2001, McMichael was ejected from Wrigley Field after criticizing a call made by home plate umpire Angel Hernandez. After a controversial out call by Hernandez, McMichael, over the stadium’s loudspeakers, before signing “Take Me Out to the Ball Game,” said, “Don’t worry, I’ll have some speech with that home plate umpire after the game.” Mongo then joined in on the microphone as Cubs fans rained down boos on Hernandez.
McMichael, who finished his playing career with a one-year stint with the Green Bay Packers, told the Chicago Tribune in 2021: “For 13 years, I helped the Bears beat the Packers every year. I whupped their ass, right? So the last year, I went up there on my last leg, and I wasn’t any good anymore. So I stole their money and whipped their ass again!”
In September 2021, McMichael was honored with the ALS Courage Award from the Les Turner ALS Foundation. Reflecting on his diagnosis earlier in the year, he pondered, “Would I trade this ALS diagnosis in for a brain damage diagnosis, and I don’t even know who I am anymore? I’m better off than that.”
“It’s a cruel irony that the Bears’ Ironman succumbed to this dreaded disease,” said Bears chairman George McCaskey in a statement on Wednesday night. “Yet Steve showed us throughout his struggle that his real strength was internal, and he demonstrated on a daily basis his class, his dignity and his humanity. He is at peace now. We offer our condolences to Misty, Macy, the rest of Steve’s family, his teammates, and countless friends and fans of a great Bear.”
When asked in 2021 by Jarrett Payton, Mongo’s close friend and son of Bears and NFL great Walter Payton, what he’d learned since being diagnosed with ALS, McMichael said: “You know what’s best in the human condition? Compassion. Not warrior. Not competitor. Not alpha. The compassion in a human being.”
McMichael’s legacy on the field was only dwarfed by his larger-than-life personality. His battle against ALS lasted for years, and his physical presence is now gone, but following a life filled with fortune and tremendous successes, Steve McMichael’s name is synonymous with the Monsters of the Midway and will be spoken of throughout eternity.
Story updated: Wednesday, April 23, 9:00 p.m.
