Chicago Bears great Steve McMichael has done his waiting, but he’s finally joining his 1985 Bears teammates in football immortality. McMichael was one of three Bears named to the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s Class of 2024, along with Devin Hester and Julius Peppers.
McMichael becomes the seventh member of the ’85 Bears to be inducted into the Hall of Fame — joining Walter Payton, Mike Singletary, Dan Hampton, Richard Dent, Jim Covert and Mike Dikta.
McMichael is the fourth player from the legendary ’85 Bears defense, widely considered to be the greatest ever, to be enshrined.
“For Steve to be in the Hall of Fame, it means that we’re together again in a place that no one can take away from him,” Singletary told the Sun-Times. “In the football world, he’s finally home.”
McMichael has been waiting a long time to be inducted into the Hall of Fame, and unfortunately time isn’t on his side. McMichael has been battling ALS for the last couple of years. He revealed his diagnosis in April 2021, and he’s now full paralyzed and lost his voice.
“It’s a victory with an asterisk,” former Bears safety Gary Fencik said. “We’re happy and celebrating success, but we’re also looking at Steve’s condition.”
McMichael spent 13 seasons with the Bears, where he was a member of the 1985 Super Bowl team. McMichael was a two-time First Team All-Pro, three-time Second Team All-Pro and two-time Pro Bowler. His 92.5 sacks ranks second in franchise history, behind only fellow Hall of Famer Dent (124.5).
“I’m not sure Steve really saw himself as a special player, but the greatest asset that Steve McMichael brought to our team was consistency,” Singletary said. “He was not really concerned about stats. The most important thing was that you always knew, come hell or high water, Steve was gonna do his job.
“For a middle linebacker, I always knew he was gonna be where he was supposed to be, and that takes all the second-guessing out of it. It makes you play that much faster. It makes all the difference in the world.”
McMichael’s wife, Misty, has said the push for the Hall of Fame has been inspiration for him to keep fighting.
“It’s gonna mean the world to them,” said Jim McMahon. “Maybe now he can let go. How he’s survived this long, I don’t know. He’s been through so much, and he’s still here. Hopefully now he hears great news and he can go in peace.”