The Chicago Bears and Green Bay Packers rivalry is one of the most sustained and storied in the history of professional sports. It may not have serious heat all the time. No rivalry does. However, the animosity never goes away. That’s why it’s rare to see players from either team play for the other. So one can imagine how angry Bears fans when a Steve McMichael Packers deal went down in 1994.
Here was a man who had navy blue blood in his veins. He made a career out of terrorizing Green Bay quarterbacks throughout the 1980s and early ’90s. At age 37 it was felt he would likely retire. Instead he did the unthinkable, signing a one-year deal to don the green and gold. For years people have wondered why he would do that. It just didn’t make sense.
Well at last the former Pro Bowler and Super Bowl champion offered an explanation.
Steve McMichael Packers venture was all about sabotage
“Mongo”called into the Dan McNeil show “Unsupervised” to talk Bears. Soon the subject came up of Bears and Packers and the infamous instant replay game when Don Majkowski fired a touchdown pass to win the game for Green Bay despite him appearing to be over the line of scrimmage.
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That soon led to McMichael’s brief stint with them during the final year of his career. Never one to lack a colorful side, he proceeded to explain himself.
“Look, when you said I went up to the hated enemy Green Bay I had to explain this to Bears fans all the time and after I explain it them like this, they’re alright with it.
Every now and then on a blue moon, like you said he stepped over the line and threw a touchdown and beat us the last second of the game up at Lambeau that one time. But for 13 years I played for the Bears we beat the Packers every year. Most of the time twice a year.
So I screwed them right? Well the last year of my career I went up there on my last leg. I wasn’t any good anymore so I stole their money. Screwed them again, Bear fans.”
Don’t ever change, Mongo. Truth be told he’s not lying. Despite playing every game, McMichael managed just 2.5 sacks and 19 tackles in 1994. Both were the lowest he’d done since 1982. Green Bay made the playoffs that year but were throttled in the divisional round by Dallas 35-9. Their defense gave up 450 yards in that game. So maybe he did sabotage them a little bit.
