As we close out 2025, the Steelers organization and surrounding community suffered so many losses of players, coaches, reporters, owners and more. A really tough year for the #Steelers community. Remembering them all here:
RB Don McCall (September 21, 1944 – January 17, 2025)
Don McCall played four seasons with the New Orleans Saints and the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the USC Trojans. After retiring from professional football, Donald began a career with the Los Angeles Police Department. McCall later transitioned to the transportation department. He died at his home in Spring Hill, Tennessee, on January 17, 2025, at the age of 80.
DL Jerry Mazzanti (July 13, 1940 – January 18, 2025)
“Andy and I were most alike – we had similar experiences. He was from Missouri and had an ROTC commission after playing one season, like I had. He played football for the Army teams in Europe, and I played for the Fort Bragg Army team before I was shipped to Korea. I actually coached one of the four Army teams there before I came back.”
https://steelerstakeaways.com/exclusive-with-former-steelers-defensive-lineman-jerry-mazzanti-1967/
RB Mike Collier (September 21, 1953 – February 16, 2025)
“I believed in myself – that was the most important thing. I just needed opportunities. They used me a lot in short yardage – I was powerful and determined and was able to get those yards.”
https://steelerstakeaways.com/mike-collier-steelers-running-backreturn-specialist-1975/
OL Craig Wolfley (May 19, 1958 – March 10, 2025)
“Emotion is too fleeting – this goes back to Chuck Noll days. If you take pride in what you do and have passion for the game, you will win. Emotion only goes so far and is an up and down thing.”
https://steelerstakeaways.com/craif-wolfley/
QB Eugene Walter “Chick” Cichowski (May 20, 1934 – March 24, 2025)
He played quarterback at Indiana University and was drafted in the 21st round of the 1957 NFL draft. He also played semi-pro football in the American Football Association (AFA) and in the Canadian Football League (CFL). He was inducted into the AFA Hall of Fame in 2009.
DL Ray Seals (June 17, 1965 – April 4, 2025)
“I wonder now. Is there a place in history for guys like me. There are only a few of us that ever played in the NFL without ever attending college. Me, Otis Sistrunk … a couple others. How does the NFL remember guys like us?”
https://steelerstakeaways.com/ray-seals-former-steelers-defensive-lineman/
DL Frank Parker (October 16, 1939 – April 23, 2025)
“Parker played six seasons for the NFL’s Cleveland Browns (1962–1967), including the franchise’s 1964 NFL Championship season. A knee injury in the season opener, however, kept him out for most of the season and caused him to miss all of the 1965 season.[1] Before the 1968 season, the Browns traded Parker to the Pittsburgh Steelers along with Dick Shiner in exchange for Bill Nelsen and Jim Bradshaw.”
DB Lupe Sanchez (October 28, 1961 – April 27, 2025)
“I had never really been much outside the town of Visalia, where I grew up and where I now currently live. So when I got to Pittsburgh I had no idea what to expect. After getting there and getting to know the people there, I was so pleasantly surprised at how genuine and down to earth people were.”
https://steelerstakeaways.com/lupe-sanchez-steelers-safety-1986-1988/
LB Dick Lasse (November 13, 1935 – April 28, 2025)
“I played two years with the Steelers. My second year I started six of twelve games then I was traded to the Redskins and played there for two years. They weren’t a good team but I started there for two years then played for the Giants for one year.”
https://steelerstakeaways.com/exclusive-with-steelers-linebacker-dick-lasse-1958-1959/
OL Ron Curl (July 6, 1949 – April 29, 2025)
After college, Ron was drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers and played two years in the NFL before continuing his professional football career with the Toronto Argonauts in the CFL, as well as the Chicago Winds and Birmingham Fire in the WFL.
RB Tommy Reamon (March 12, 1952 – May 22, 2025)
“I knew Mike Tomlin since his high school days. I coached against him when he played us. He was a great player – a guy who would do everything for the team. He wasn’t a superstar at any one thing but he could do everything great. You can say he’s still a lot like that today. Watching him as a player then as a coach – I knew he’d have a great career.”
https://steelerstakeaways.com/exclusive-with-former-steelers-running-back-tommy-reamon-1974/
DL Oliver Gibson (March 15, 1972 – June 29, 2025)
“”I regretted that my whole career. I remember we had a team meeting after we fell to 3-4. Lloyd and some other guys got up and talked. Then we went on the run, and even though we lost the Super Bowl, I thought, well, I was young and I’ll be back. But I never did get back. I should have taken it in much more. I never really appreciated it.”
https://steelerstakeaways.com/oliver-gibson-steelers-defensive-lineman-1995-1998/
Personnel Director/Scout Tim Rooney (August 8, 1937 – July 7, 2025)
“Chuck wanted a scout who would also do game advance scouting – someone with coaching experience. Now, I was a Rooney – nothing like nepotism! But I had coaching experience. I wasn’t married – so I could travel easily. They wanted someone to go scout the next week’s teams ahead of the current week’s game as well, so I rarely saw the Steelers play unless it was on Mondays.”
https://steelerstakeaways.com/exclusive-with-tim-rooney-director-of-pro-personnel-for-the-pittsburgh-steelers-from-1972-1979/
OL Bill Krisher (September 18, 1935 – July 29, 2025)
“I actually started the chapel service in Pittsburgh for Protestants. Rooney came up to me when I did and said “You can do that, but you have to start one for the Catholics too!” So I held two chapel services for home and away games. I helped start the FCA chapter in Oklahoma – I was always very involved in my faith. I had the privilege of starting it with the Steelers. It was exciting to see the respect the players had for the chapel.”
https://steelerstakeaways.com/bill-kisher-steelers-offensive-lineman-1958-1959/
WR Coach Lionel Taylor (August 15, 1935 – August 6, 2025)
“I also would always talk to guys out loud. Some coaches, they put their arm around players shoulders and tell them what they need to do. But the other ten guys don’t hear that though. Not to embarrass them, but I would always say it out loud. I’m coaching all the guys that way. Ron Shanklin once got mad at me for that and went in to complain to Chuck Noll. He told Chuck I was the only guy yelling at the players. I told him fine – go talk to him. He came back to me later and told me he knew Chuck would take my side.”
https://steelerstakeaways.com/exclusive-with-lionel-taylor-steelers-wide-receiver-coach-1970-1976/
WR Erwin Williams (June 21, 1947 – August 30, 2025)
“In 1969, Williams earned a spot on the Pittsburgh Steelers roster, appearing in nine games during a transitional era for the franchise. He recorded three receptions for 14 yards and one touchdown—a modest stat line, but one that marked a dream fulfilled. His lone touchdown came in a high-scoring battle against the Green Bay Packers. Though his time in the NFL was short-lived, Williams carried the pride of that achievement throughout his life. He returned to Virginia, where he became a mentor, community leader, and devoted member of St. Mark Missionary Baptist Church.”
Steelers Writer/Editor Dale Lolley (1968-September 16, 2025)
“At the end of the day, it’s always about the stories. It still is. Now, after spending the past three decades telling those stories and talking about the team on other platforms, I’ll be doing so with the Steelers on a regular basis across their media platforms, which includes writing about the team on a year-round basis. I can’t tell you how excited I am to be doing so.”
Steelers Minority Owner Doug Lebda (1975 – October 12, 2025)
Doug Lebda, a minority owner of the Pittsburgh Steelers who was better known as the founder and CEO of LendingTree, has died. LendingTree said Lebda was killed Sunday in an ATV accident on his family’s farm in North Carolina.
LB Jerrol Williams (July 5, 1967 – November 9, 2025)
“It’s been a blessing – something I never thought I could do. Injuries and surgeries aside, learning from the game and meeting the people I never thought I would meet has been a blessing. I came from a family of twelve and was the first to go to college. I never graduated college, and I know education is so important now in these economic conditions. You can get sidelined with the athletics, but you are always one injury away from not playing.”
https://steelerstakeaways.com/jerrol-williams-steelers-linebacker-1989-1992/
S Bill Butler (July 10, 1937 – November 28, 2025)
“Pittsburgh – it was just not a good place to play – mainly due to coaching. They had coaches that in my opinion shouldn’t have coached in the bush leagues. Parker and Layne would go out and get smashed together. That wasn’t conducive to good football. We played some good football but the players all went their own way. Nobody wanted anything to do with anyone.”
https://steelerstakeaways.com/exclusive-with-former-steelers-safety-bill-butler-1961/