FEATURE ..,. Mike Singletary's relentlessness may be gone from the Bears' line, but it is still alive in his heart as he pursues a successful marriage and a life of integrity.
EFORE HE TOOK THE FIELD
for his fin al NFL season last fall , Mike Singletary set some goals for himself. They we re no differe nt from the ones he had established every season since he joined the Bears in 198 1: Be the best player he could possibly be and help his team be the best they could be. "It's important to set our sights on something," says Singletary, a consensus shoo-in for the Hall of Fame. "I worked my tail off before the start of the season. I didn't want to go out sitting on the back of a convertible, wav ing my hand, and saying, 'Wasn't I good! ' I wanted to leave this game at my best." True to fom1, Singletary retired at the top of hi s game- despite the Bears' dismal season. Neither his playing time nor the quality of his play diminished as the frustrating year wore on. In fact, Singletary stmted every game in 1992 and led the Bears in tacklesthe I Ith straight season he's finished either first or second on the team in that category. And in the team 's las t game at Soldier Field , Singletary led the Bears to an emotional upset of the tough Pittsburgh Steelers. Mike Singletary has been livi ng up to his own great expectations for a long time. During
his illustrious 12-year career, Singletary has been named to the NFC Pro Bowl team nine times; selected NFL Defensive Player of the Year twice (1988 and 1985); named twice as UPI's NFC Defensive Player of the Year (1988 and 1985); and received NFL Man of the Year honors in 1990 for his on-field play and offthe-field humanitarian contributions. Singletary' s days of accumu latin g football awards may be over, but his commitment to excellence is not. His desire to be the best is still as much a part of him as his trademark bulging eyes. Th at burnin g desire carri es over to th e Sing letary hou se hold , where Mike takes great pride in being the best husband he can be for his wife, Kim. But that ambition- like hi s on- fi eld fire- is not new. Just as Singletar y wo rked hard in training camp to ensure his success on the gridiron during the season, so Mike and Kim have put in the effort to make Team Sin gletary wo rk every day. Communication, they say, is number one on a short list of keys to a successful marriage (see page 13). But both believe that factors besides lack of communication have contributed to rampant divorce rates in the United States. "One of the biggest reasons that marriages JONATHAN OA.N!EliALl S~T
I
Mike Singletary let his playing career end, but he and his wife, Kim, fought hard to make sure their marriage didn't By Mike Sandrolini
FOCUS ON SPORTS
SPORTS SPEC T .RUM • S U PER BOW L 1 993
11