Growing up in the Chicago area, Antwaan Randle El spent his Sunday afternoons just like other diehard Bears fans: glued to his television cheering on his favorite team.
Born in 1979, Randle El first started watching the Bears with his father and brothers in the 1980s, a golden era in franchise history. His favorite players were Hall of Fame running back Walter Payton, receiver Willie Gault and running back Dennis Gentry.
A three-sport star at Thornton Township High School in south suburban Harvey, Randle El eventually followed in their footsteps, playing nine NFL seasons as a receiver and return specialist and winning Super Bowl XL with the Steelers in 2005.
Fast forward to 2025 and Randle El's remarkable career journey has come full circle. Now 45, he's back in Chicago as Bears assistant head coach and receivers coach under first-year head coach Ben Johnson. The two worked together in Detroit—Johnson as offensive coordinator and Randle El as receivers coach—formulating an explosive offense that averaged a league-leading 28.2 points per game over the past three seasons.
This offseason, Johnson was the league's most in-demand head-coaching candidate. Randle El would have accompanied him anywhere because of their rapport and belief in each other, but he was ecstatic when Johnson was hired by the Bears.
"We're both cut from the same cloth, that nothing is going to be given to us, and we've got to work for everything," Randle El told ChicagoBears.com.
Employing that same mentality as a young athlete enabled Randle El to excel in multiple sports. As a high school senior, he was selected by the Chicago Cubs in the 14th round of the 1997 Major League Baseball draft but opted to attend college.
Playing quarterback at Indiana University, Randle El was named first-team All-American, Big Ten MVP and Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year as a senior in 2001. During his career with the Hoosiers, he became the first NCAA Division I player to pass for 40 touchdowns and rush for 40 TDs.
Randle El also played basketball and baseball at Indiana. After being tutored by no-nonsense coaches in high school, Randle El was unfazed by Hoosiers coach Bobby Knight.
"First of all, you know what you're getting into before you go there, so don't expect anything different," Randle El said. "He's not going to change who he is."
Randle El recalled that Knight was often affable off the court but flipped a switch when he stepped onto the hardwood.
"You had to have your shoes tied, get a lather going and be ready to practice," Randle El said. "And if you weren't doing that, that's when you got ripped. The pressure from that helped me become a better player and really a better person in a lot of ways because you had to be prepared."
Selected by the Steelers in the second round of the 2002 draft, Randle El thrived immediately as a receiver and return specialist. He was named to the NFL All-Rookie Team after catching 47 passes for 489 yards and two touchdowns, rushing for 134 yards on 19 carries, completing 7 of 8 passes for 45 yards, and averaging 22.9 yards with one TD on 32 kickoff returns and 6.9 yards on 29 punt returns.
After helping the Steelers win the Super Bowl in 2005, Randle El spent four seasons with Washington (2006-09) before returning to Pittsburgh for the final year of his career in 2010. He played in 143 NFL games with 71 starts, catching 370 passes for 4,467 yards and 15 TDs, rushing for 438 yards on 79 carries, and averaging 8.2 yards with five TDs on 311 punt returns and 22.3 yards with one TD on 79 kickoff returns.
Randle El also completed 22 of 27 passes for 323 yards with six TDs, no interceptions and a 156.1 passer rating that remains the highest in NFL history among players with at least 20 completions.
The most memorable play of his career came in Super Bowl XL when he heaved a 43-yard TD pass to receiver Hines Ward in the fourth quarter of a 21-10 win over the Seahawks.
After playing quarterback in high school and college, Randle El wanted to remain at the position in the NFL. While he converted to receiver in the pros, he was always happy to put his passing skills on display, especially on the sport's biggest stage.
"The highlight of my career was the pass in the Super Bowl because it was a childhood dream come true," he said.
Randle El returned to the NFL in a coaching capacity as an offensive assistant with the Buccaneers in 2019-20. He spent the next four years as Lions receivers coach, building something special with Johnson that they hope to now replicate with Randle El's hometown team in Chicago.
"It was tough to leave Detroit," Randle El said. "But with Ben leaving and the relationship that we have, if he goes to Florida, if he goes to Vegas, wherever it is, I would go because I know what we built together we can go build that wherever we go. And then when Chicago came on board, it was like, 'Oh my goodness.' My wife was like, 'Is this really happening?'"
