Matt Suhey, the Chicago Bears fullback who spent a full decade clearing running lanes for Hall of Famer Walter Payton and scored the first touchdown of Super Bowl XX, died on Sunday, September 6, 2026. He was 68 years old.
NBC Chicago first confirmed Suhey's death, and the Chicago Sun-Times — whose front-page tribute carried the headline "I'm really going to miss that light" — reported that the former running back died at 68. No cause of death was immediately disclosed, leaving the question at the center of a wave of online searches ("Matt Suhey cause of death") unanswered as of this week.
A Decade in Navy and Orange: Payton's Trusted Lead Blocker
Suhey spent his entire 10-year NFL career with the Chicago Bears, who selected him in the second round (46th overall) of the 1980 NFL Draft out of Penn State. Listed at 5-foot-11 and 217 pounds, the fullback wearing No. 26 appeared in 148 games with 100 starts from 1980 through 1989, rushing for 2,946 yards and 20 touchdowns while adding 2,113 receiving yards and five more scores.
But the box score never captured Suhey's true value. As the lead blocker for Payton — the NFL's all-time leading rusher when he retired — Suhey opened the holes that helped define an era of Bears football. The two became inseparable friends off the field, and Suhey later served as the executor of the Payton estate after Walter's death in 1999, a role he held for years while safeguarding his teammate's legacy.
That friendship became one of the defining bonds in franchise history. In a 2024 profile for The Athletic, Dan Pompei described Payton and Suhey as "backfield mates turned brothers," chronicling a relationship that "transcends time."
The Super Bowl XX Moment That Defined His Career
Suhey's signature moment arrived on January 26, 1986, inside the Louisiana Superdome. On the Bears' opening drive of Super Bowl XX, Suhey barreled in for the game's first touchdown, igniting a 46-10 dismantling of the New England Patriots that delivered Chicago its first — and still only — Super Bowl championship.
That 1985 Bears squad, widely regarded as one of the greatest single-season teams in NFL history, finished 15-1 behind a ferocious defense and a punishing ground game. Suhey started all 16 games that season, rushing for 471 yards and catching 33 passes, before finding the end zone on the sport's biggest stage.
Timeline: From State College to a Chicago Legend
July 7, 1958: Matt Suhey is born in Bellefonte, Pennsylvania.
1976–1979: Suhey plays at Penn State, rushing for 2,818 yards and 26 touchdowns while earning first-team All-East honors in 1978 and 1979.
1980: The Chicago Bears select Suhey in the second round of the NFL Draft.
January 26, 1986: Suhey scores the first touchdown of Super Bowl XX as the Bears beat the Patriots 46-10.
1989: Suhey plays his final NFL season, retiring after 148 career games.
1999: Following Walter Payton's death, Suhey becomes the executor of his estate.
2021: Hall of Famer Jimbo Covert selects Suhey as his presenter at his Pro Football Hall of Fame enshrinement.
September 6, 2026: Suhey dies at age 68.
Why Suhey Mattered Beyond the Numbers
Teammates remember Suhey as the steadying presence in a locker room bursting with larger-than-life personalities. When Covert was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2021, he chose Suhey to present him — a gesture that said everything about Suhey's standing among his peers.
"He was kind of a mentor. I learned a lot from him about what it meant to be a pro… And I think it's a way to have Walter [Payton] a part of it as well because they were so close, and I just feel it's appropriate to have them both with Matt as the lead," Covert told Chicago Bears senior writer Larry Mayer in 2020.
Suhey was never a statistical leader, but he was a fan favorite at Soldier Field for his blocking, his reliability, and his personality. He earned a place on the Bears' list of the 100 greatest players in franchise history and on the Pennsylvania Football All-Century Team.
What We Know — and Don't Know — About His Death
Suhey died on Sunday, September 6, 2026. The Bears and Suhey's family have not released a cause of death, and as of publication no additional details about the circumstances have been made public.
The outpouring has been swift. Fans and former teammates have shared tributes across social media, remembering the quiet fullback who did the unglamorous work that made a legendary running back even greater.
The First Family of Penn State Football
Suhey's football pedigree was among the deepest in the sport. He was the son of Steve Suhey, a College Football Hall of Fame guard at Penn State, and the grandson of Bob Higgins, a Hall of Fame Penn State player and coach. His son, Joe Suhey, continued the family line as a fullback at Penn State from 2007 to 2011.
Across four generations, the Higgins–Suhey family became known as "the first family of Penn State football." With Suhey's passing, the sport loses a living link between two of the most storied programs in football — Penn State and the 1985 Chicago Bears.
The Bottom Line: What to Remember About Matt Suhey
- Matt Suhey died Sunday, September 6, 2026, at age 68.
- He played his entire 10-year NFL career (1980–1989) with the Chicago Bears.
- He was the lead blocker and lifelong friend of Hall of Fame running back Walter Payton.
- He scored the first touchdown of Super Bowl XX in the Bears' 46-10 win over New England.
- He finished with 2,946 rushing yards and 20 touchdowns, plus 2,113 receiving yards.
- No cause of death has been disclosed.
