“Danimal!” That is the memorable nickname belonging to Chicago Bears Hall of Famer Dan Hampton. “We were down in Tampa Bay and Pat Summerall and John Madden were doing the game,” Hampton told George Ofman in this week’s “Tell Me A Story I Don’t Know” podcast. “Madden exclaimed if Randy White (Dallas Cowboys) is the ‘Manster’ then this guy is the ‘Danimal.'”
For 12 years, all with the Bears, Hampton was part of some of the most ferocious defenses in NFL history — most notably the one that catapulted them to a Super Bowl title in 1985. In the podcast, he discusses the plight facing ’85 Bears teammate Steve McMichael, who is suffering from ALS, better known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. “To see what’s happened over the last 2-3 years is just beyond belief, heart breaking. His will to live is amazing. I don’t know if I could go on like that.”
Hampton was a teammate of the legendary Walter Payton and spoke during a public ceremony following Payton’s death in November of 1999 and during the unveiling of a statue in his name 20 years later. “He was like a movie star … the sun-gasses and Lamborgini.”
Hampton has also endured adversity of his own. He had been cited for three DUI arrests and he discusses that as well: “Obviously everybody has certain choices. I made a lot of good choices but guess what, I made some bad ones and that was obviously a very bad one.”
Other topics of discussion include Hampton’s musical ambitions. He formed a band “The Chicago 6” which included members of the Bears and Chicago Blackhawks. Hampton plays several instruments and is a pretty good vocalist but his career in music is somewhat overhanded by his great career in the NFL.
