Tag Archives: New England Patriots

College Football HoF, IFL, NFL, University of Texas

McMichael, Steve “Mongo” (2)

Card: UT UD 2011
Acquired: C/o Home, 2012
Sent:       Received: 7/14  (days)
See also: Steve McMichael “Mongo” 

Steve McMichael and Ray Childress were my favorite defensive linemen when I was a kid, so to meet both of them during my younger years was quite a treat to me. I had already gotten back around to Ray, and had been looking for a good excuse to write Steve again, so when the University of Texas Upper Deck 2011 set came out, I thought I had the best justification to do so, and put 3 cards in the mail. Well, I’m guessing Steve didn’t have his UT Upper Deck All American card or his All Time Alumni card as he kept those. Still the fact that he signed his base set card, was what I really wanted most, so to just get only one back from him was fine by me.

McMichael gained notoriety while playing with the Bears for having a penchant to come up with big plays when they mattered. He also started 101 straight games at defensive tackle. Mike Ditka called McMichael the toughest player he ever coached.  Now let me stress that again… Mike Ditka called him that.  He’d later go on to enjoy a strong wrestling career in the WWF and WCW as Mongo. I even saw him live at the Erwin Center in Austin where fans who remembered were happy to see him. Steve was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2010.  He currently does radio for the pregame show of the Bears outside of Chicago and is head coach of the Chicago Slaughter of the Indoor Football League.

NFL

Johnson, Ted (LB)

Card: Topps Chrome 2008
Acquired: In Person 6/10/12, Houston 610 Fan Fest
See Also: Ted Johnson (2)

Ted Johnson is a man-mountain of a linebacker. When I met him at the Fan Fest, he had his SuperBowl ring available for fans to pick up. It was heavy, loaded with gems to the point of being gaudy, and super heavy. Easily I probably could’ve slipped my two biggest fingers into his ring, which just blew my mind. He was kind enough to sign this card for me, and remarked he had never seen it before.  I really liked this Chrome card, because of its clever layout and design.  (It absorbed the autograph well after I applied baby powder to it and rubbed it thoroughly.) I may even get another and just send it to him to keep for the heck of it.  We talked for a few minutes about the concussion lawsuit former players are filing. I told him that ‘true’ fans would be behind them, and the NFL needed to do a better job of taking care of its gladiators.

A four time AFC champion, and 3 time Super Bowl winner, Ted Johnson was a second round pick out of Colorado by the Patriots in 1995  (- at a time when I began to tune out football with the impending end of the Houston Oilers on the horizon).  A warrior, Johnson stepped into the lineup for the Patriots, playing right and left inside, and middle linebacker for New England over a 10 season career.  He’d play in 125 games, and record 763 tackles.

He’s made a lot of waves since retirement, which was due to concussions. Johnson has battled depression and headaches due to post-concussion syndrome, and things have been rocky from time to time for him suffering from amphetamine addiction and recently joined the players lawsuit as a plaintiff against the NFL in regards to concussions and player safety.

 

 

G/Gs  125/106       Tac   530     Sac 11.5      Fum   7      Int  1      Yds    0      Avg -.-     Td  0        Lg 0

NFL

Cox, Bryan

Cards: Score Supplemental 1991
Acquired: TTM 2011, C/o The Miami Dolphins
Sent:  9/2/11  Received: 1/11/12  (131 days)*
*Forwarded from old address.

Powerful. Intimidating. Ahead of his time. That’s the best way I can describe the fearsome caveman, Bryan Cox who played linebacker for the Miami Dolphins. He was a guy who used the word HATE to describe how he felt about other teams and had no problem expressing his lack of respect thereof for his opponent to the media. An unrelenting force in the final years of Don Shula, Bryan Cox’s mouth and presence on the field was contrary to the no nonsense workmanlike attitude of Dolphins teams of the past, and he really foreshadowed a few years there that aggression and smack talking became more and more prominent in the league.

An All-America 1st team recipient in 1990, Cox was drafted in the 5th round of the 1990 draft by the Dolphins. With aggressive tackling, blitzing and special teams play, he blocked 5 kicks in his final season at Western Illinois for the Leathernecks.  A fearsome hitter, he quickly asserted himself, starting 13 contests at right outside linebacker for the Dolphins recording 61 tackles and  2 sacks that rookie season. In 1991 Bryan recorded a career high 14 sacks, 127 tackles and his first career interception earning AP Honors for his efforts.  In 1993, the team moved him to right linebacker, and while the name was only a subtle change, Bryan was utilized differently in coverage. He’d make 122 tackles and 5 sacks and force 4 fumbles. Bryan returned to his ProBowl form in 1994 after he moved to middle linebacker.  He’d again see a return to the ProBowl in 1995, earning 7.5 sacks that season. He’d would depart via free agency to Chicago for 1995.

Two uneventful years playing for the Bears passed and Cox returned to terrorize the AFC East- this time for the Jets, playing both RILB and LILB for them over 3 seasons, recording his first career pick for a touchdown, 3 FR and 12 sacks.  He’d again move in 2001 to play for the Patriots, winning the SuperBowl at the end of the season. Cox then played one final season for the Saints in 2002 retiring at season’s end.

After doing a bit of commentary, Bryan has gone into coaching since his playing days. He has spent his time working for the Jets, Browns, and now the Dolphins as their pass rush specialist, where I got his autograph on a card in a bit over 4 months. I was a tad disappointed in this one since he signed 1 of 3 cards, but you can not look a gift horse in the mouth, and I was more than happy to add this fearsome linebacker to my collection.

G/Gs 165/145     Tac 764     Sac  51.5       Fum  22     Int  4   Yds  65   Avg  16.3     Td 1   Lg 27