HBO’s Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel will take a look at the iconic 1985 Chicago Bears in an episode of the show that airs Tuesday night.
The episode will include some of the tragedies that have followed the team in the 30 years since its Super Bowl victory.
Jim McMahon “is a shell of his former self,” Gumbel reports in the preview clip below. McMahon does jigsaw puzzles to keep his brain stimulated and he says he lays in his room for hours, unable to move or get out of bed.
Hall of Famer Richard Dent discusses his broken body after playing “on a regular diet of team-supplied drugs.” He described himself as “damaged goods.”
Coach Mike Ditka advocates on behalf of his former players.
“Implement something for the players who played this game and made this game what it is today,” he says to Gumbel. “That’s what I would say to the commissioner, to the owners. You’ve got an obligation, a responsibility to those guys.”
Ditka says if he had an 8-year-old kid he would no longer let him play football.
“The risk is worse than the reward,” Ditka says. “I really do.”
The episode airs at 9 p.m. CT Tuesday on HBO.
Watch the preview below.:
