# Steve McMichael
**Steve McMichael** (October 17, 1957 – April 23, 2025) was an American professional football player, a defensive tackle who played 15 seasons in the NFL, spent 13 of them with the [Chicago Bears](https://www.edgepedia.org/chicago-bears), and won [Super Bowl XX](https://www.edgepedia.org/super-bowl-xx) with the 1985 Bears team before a second career in professional wrestling with [World Championship Wrestling](https://www.edgepedia.org/world-championship-wrestling) (WCW). Nicknamed "Mongo," he was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2024 and died at 67 after four years with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born / died | 1957, Houston, Texas; April 23, 2025, hospice in Joliet, Illinois, age 67[1](https://www.washingtonpost.com/obituaries/2025/04/23/steve-mcmichael-mongo-dead/) • [2](https://footballfoundation.org/honors/hall-of-fame/steve-mcmichael/2243) |
| NFL career | 15 seasons: New England Patriots (1980), Chicago Bears (1981–93), Green Bay Packers (1994)[3](https://tshof.org/inductee/mcmichael-steve/) |
| Durability | Franchise-record 191 consecutive games played for the Bears[4](https://www.profootballhof.com/players/steve-mcmichael) |
| Sacks | 95 career sacks; 92.5 with the Bears, second in team history behind Richard Dent[4](https://www.profootballhof.com/players/steve-mcmichael) |
| Honors | Two Pro Bowls (1986, 1987); three consecutive first-team All-Pro selections (1985–87)[4](https://www.profootballhof.com/players/steve-mcmichael) |
| Championships | Super Bowl XX with the 1985 Bears, a 46–10 win over the Patriots[5](https://www.axios.com/local/chicago/2025/09/08/1985-bears-40-super-bowl-ditka-payton-fridge-mcmahon) |
| Hall of Fame | Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2024, elected by the seniors committee; enshrined August 3, 2024[6](https://www.axios.com/local/chicago/2024/02/09/devin-hester-steve-mcmichael-hall-of-fame-bears-falcons) • [7](https://www.chicagobears.com/news/bears-mourn-passing-of-steve-mcmichael) |
| Later illness | ALS diagnosed April 2021; posthumous diagnosis of CTE reported in 2026[7](https://www.chicagobears.com/news/bears-mourn-passing-of-steve-mcmichael) • [8](https://www.latimes.com/sports/story/2026-04-07/steve-mcmichael-cte-als-nfl-bears-wcw) |
## Early life and college
McMichael was born in Houston in 1957, and his family later moved to Freer, Texas, where he made all-state as a senior in 1975 at Freer High School, lettering in six sports: football, basketball, baseball, track, tennis, and golf.[2](https://footballfoundation.org/honors/hall-of-fame/steve-mcmichael/2243) • [3](https://tshof.org/inductee/mcmichael-steve/)
At the University of Texas from 1976 to 1979, he played defensive tackle for the Longhorns, was twice selected All-[Southwest Conference](https://www.edgepedia.org/southwest-conference) (1978 and 1979), and was a member of the 1977 Southwest Conference championship team. In 1979 he earned unanimous First Team All-American honors, led a defense that allowed less than nine points per game, and was a finalist for the Lombardi and Outland Awards. He graduated as the school's all-time leader in career tackles (369) and sacks (30).[2](https://footballfoundation.org/honors/hall-of-fame/steve-mcmichael/2243) • [3](https://tshof.org/inductee/mcmichael-steve/)
## NFL career
The [New England Patriots](https://www.edgepedia.org/new-england-patriots) selected McMichael in the third round (73rd overall) of the 1980 NFL Draft. After playing in only six regular-season games, he was released before the start of the 1981 season. The Bears then signed him as a free agent, initially to back up Hall of Famer Alan Page during Page's final season.[4](https://www.profootballhof.com/players/steve-mcmichael)
At 6 feet 2 inches and 270 pounds, McMichael became a starter at defensive tackle during the 1983 campaign and played in a franchise-record 191 consecutive games for Chicago. As a full-time starter he earned two [Pro Bowl](https://www.edgepedia.org/pro-bowl) selections (1986 and 1987) and three consecutive first-team All-Pro selections (1985–87).[4](https://www.profootballhof.com/players/steve-mcmichael) His 92.5 sacks rank second in Bears history behind [Richard Dent](https://www.edgepedia.org/richard-dent), and he led the team in the category twice, with 11.5 in 1988 and 10.5 in 1992, totaling seven seasons with eight or more sacks.[4](https://www.profootballhof.com/players/steve-mcmichael) He retired after a final season with the [Green Bay Packers](https://www.edgepedia.org/green-bay-packers) in 1994.[3](https://tshof.org/inductee/mcmichael-steve/)
## The 1985 Bears and the 46 defense
McMichael controlled the interior of the line for the Bears' famed "46 defense," the scheme coordinated by [Buddy Ryan](https://www.edgepedia.org/buddy-ryan) on teams that won six division titles in the 1980s.[9](https://apnews.com/article/cf248eae6f794f45294a7ebbccdcd54e) In 1984 the Bears set defensive team records including fewest yards allowed (3,863) and most sacks (72), an NFL record that still stands; McMichael contributed 10 of those sacks.[4](https://www.profootballhof.com/players/steve-mcmichael)
The 1985 Bears went 15–1 and won Super Bowl XX over the New England Patriots, 46–10.[5](https://www.axios.com/local/chicago/2025/09/08/1985-bears-40-super-bowl-ditka-payton-fridge-mcmahon) In his lone [Super Bowl](https://www.edgepedia.org/super-bowl), McMichael started at left defensive tackle and recorded a sack, playing on a defense that also included Hall of Famers Richard Dent, Dan Hampton, and [Mike Singletary](https://www.edgepedia.org/mike-singletary).[4](https://www.profootballhof.com/players/steve-mcmichael) • [10](https://www.axios.com/local/chicago/2025/04/23/chicago-bears-legend-steve-mongo-mcmichael-dies-als-battle)
## Professional wrestling
After football, McMichael spent about five years in professional wrestling in the late 1990s with WCW.[9](https://apnews.com/article/cf248eae6f794f45294a7ebbccdcd54e) He joined the Four Horsemen, wrestled alongside [Ric Flair](https://www.edgepedia.org/ric-flair), and in 1999 became WCW United States Heavyweight Champion before leaving wrestling that year.[11](https://www.legacy.com/legacy/notable-deaths/steve-mcmichael) The National Football Foundation's biography also records a stint in 1997 as WCW World Heavyweight Champion.[2](https://footballfoundation.org/honors/hall-of-fame/steve-mcmichael/2243) Flair, in a tribute after McMichael's death, called him his best friend through that period.[11](https://www.legacy.com/legacy/notable-deaths/steve-mcmichael)
## Illness and death
McMichael announced in April 2021 that he had been diagnosed with ALS, the neurodegenerative disease also known as [Lou Gehrig](https://www.edgepedia.org/lou-gehrig)'s disease, which attacks the nerve cells that control muscles.[7](https://www.chicagobears.com/news/bears-mourn-passing-of-steve-mcmichael) • [9](https://apnews.com/article/cf248eae6f794f45294a7ebbccdcd54e) The disease confined him to a bed, and his wife, Misty Davenport, became his caretaker as his health deteriorated.[1](https://www.washingtonpost.com/obituaries/2025/04/23/steve-mcmichael-mongo-dead/) • [10](https://www.axios.com/local/chicago/2025/04/23/chicago-bears-legend-steve-mongo-mcmichael-dies-als-battle) In February 2024, one week after his Hall of Fame election, he was hospitalized in intensive care with a urinary tract infection and later contracted MRSA, for which he underwent a blood transfusion.[9](https://apnews.com/article/cf248eae6f794f45294a7ebbccdcd54e)
He died on April 23, 2025, at a hospice in [Joliet, Illinois](https://www.edgepedia.org/joliet-illinois), hours after it was announced he was being taken off a ventilator and moved into hospice care. Jarrett Payton, son of McMichael's former teammate [Walter Payton](https://www.edgepedia.org/walter-payton), announced the death, saying McMichael passed at 5:28 PM surrounded by loved ones.[1](https://www.washingtonpost.com/obituaries/2025/04/23/steve-mcmichael-mongo-dead/) • [10](https://www.axios.com/local/chicago/2025/04/23/chicago-bears-legend-steve-mongo-mcmichael-dies-als-battle) • [12](https://www.nfl.com/_amp/hall-of-famer-and-bears-legend-steve-mongo-mcmichael-dies-at-67-following-battle-with-als) In 2026, about a year after his death, a posthumous diagnosis revealed he had chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), the degenerative brain disease associated with repeated head injuries.[8](https://www.latimes.com/sports/story/2026-04-07/steve-mcmichael-cte-als-nfl-bears-wcw)
## Hall of Fame recognition
McMichael was overlooked for years while Bears teammates Dan Hampton, Mike Singletary, and Richard Dent entered the Hall of Fame; he was finally voted in by the Hall's seniors committee in February 2024, in a class with former Bears Devin Hester and Julius Peppers.[6](https://www.axios.com/local/chicago/2024/02/09/devin-hester-steve-mcmichael-hall-of-fame-bears-falcons) Because of his illness, he appeared on the video board at the August 3, 2024 enshrinement ceremony in Canton, Ohio, from his hospital bed, surrounded by family and former teammates.[1](https://www.washingtonpost.com/obituaries/2025/04/23/steve-mcmichael-mongo-dead/)
Earlier honors include the College Football Hall of Fame (2009), the Texas Athletics Hall of Honor (1999), and the Texas High School Football Hall of Fame (1992).[2](https://footballfoundation.org/honors/hall-of-fame/steve-mcmichael/2243) • [3](https://tshof.org/inductee/mcmichael-steve/)
## References
1. [Steve McMichael, bruising defensive lineman for '85 Bears, dies at 67, The Washington Post](https://www.washingtonpost.com/obituaries/2025/04/23/steve-mcmichael-mongo-dead/)
2. [Steve McMichael (2009), National Football Foundation Hall of Fame](https://footballfoundation.org/honors/hall-of-fame/steve-mcmichael/2243)
3. [McMichael, Steve, Texas Sports Hall of Fame](https://tshof.org/inductee/mcmichael-steve/)
4. [Steve McMichael, Pro Football Hall of Fame](https://www.profootballhof.com/players/steve-mcmichael)
5. [The '85 Bears at 40, Axios Chicago](https://www.axios.com/local/chicago/2025/09/08/1985-bears-40-super-bowl-ditka-payton-fridge-mcmahon)
6. [Chicago Bears add big names to the Hall of Fame, Axios Chicago](https://www.axios.com/local/chicago/2024/02/09/devin-hester-steve-mcmichael-hall-of-fame-bears-falcons)
7. [Bears mourn passing of Steve McMichael, ChicagoBears.com](https://www.chicagobears.com/news/bears-mourn-passing-of-steve-mcmichael)
8. [Chicago Bears Pro Bowler Steve McMichael diagnosed with CTE a year after ALS death, Los Angeles Times](https://www.latimes.com/sports/story/2026-04-07/steve-mcmichael-cte-als-nfl-bears-wcw)
9. [Bears great Steve McMichael is responding to medication in the hospital, family says, AP News](https://apnews.com/article/cf248eae6f794f45294a7ebbccdcd54e)
10. [Chicago Bears legend Steve "Mongo" McMichael dies after ALS battle, Axios Chicago](https://www.axios.com/local/chicago/2025/04/23/chicago-bears-legend-steve-mongo-mcmichael-dies-als-battle)
11. [Steve McMichael Obituary, Legacy.com](https://www.legacy.com/legacy/notable-deaths/steve-mcmichael)
12. [Hall of Famer, Bears legend Steve 'Mongo' McMichael dies at 67 following battle with ALS, NFL.com](https://www.nfl.com/_amp/hall-of-famer-and-bears-legend-steve-mongo-mcmichael-dies-at-67-following-battle-with-als)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Sports, games, and recreation › Other team and ball sports › Rugby and other football codes › American football players, coaches, and executives › Defensive tackles › Retired defensive tackles*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Edited: Oct 12, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Last review: Oct 21, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license