Six-Time Pro Bowl NFL Player Fired From Media Job for Allegedly Attacking Coworker

A former NFL player was fired from his media job for allegedly attacking a coworker. Olin Kreutz, a former Chicago Bears offensive lineman who was selected to the Pro Bowl six times, was fired from CHGO Sports, a Chicago sports media site, on Monday for “physically attacking” an employee. CHGO Sports didn’t go into details about the incident but revealed the employee is “okay.”

“On Monday morning, an incident occurred in which Olin Kreutz physically attacked a CHGO employee,” CHGO Sports said in a statement. “Effective immediately, Olin Kreutz is no longer with CHGO. Although we were shocked by the incident, we are thankful that the employee is OK. The health and safety of our employees is of the utmost importance and we will not tolerate any action that puts that in jeopardy.”  

Kreutz responded to the statement from CHGO Sports by using a Mike Tyson meme that said, “Social media made y’all way too comfortable with disrespecting people and not getting punched in the face for it.” Kreutz, 44, was selected by the Bears in the third round of the 1998 NFL Draft. He was selected to the Pro Bowl each year from 2001 to 2006, selected to the All-Pro First Team in 2006 and the All-Pro Second Team in 2005. Kreutz played for the Bears from 1998 to 2010 and spent his final NFL season with the New Orleans Saints in 2011. He was selected to the 2000s All-Decade Team and is on the list of the 100 Greatest Bears of All-Time. 

When Kreutz left the NFL in 2011, he said he lost his passion for the game of football. “He called me on Monday and Tuesday and said, ‘I don’t know if I can keep on doing this,’” Kreutz’s agent Mark Bartelstein said on The Waddle and Silvy Show on ESPN 1000 in Chicago at the time. “Went in and talked to (coach) Sean Payton and (general manager) Mickey Loomis and expressed it to them. They tried to talk him out of it. They wanted him to stay and he actually thought he was going to give it another whirl and called yesterday and said, ‘I just know, it’s not in my heart. I’m not going to keep collecting a check if I know deep inside me I can’t bring what I need to bring to play every week.’”