Former Bears safety Markus Paul, a longtime NFL strength and conditioning coach, passed away Wednesday at the age of 54.
A member of the Cowboys coaching staff, Paul was rushed to a Dallas area hospital Tuesday morning after suffering an undisclosed medical emergency at the team's training facility in Frisco, Texas. Later in the day, his daughter tweeted that her father was "on life support and we are praying for a miracle." He reportedly passed away Wednesday at Plano Presbyterian Hospital while surrounded by his family.
Paul was in his first year as Cowboys strength and conditioning coordinator after spending two seasons with Dallas as an assistant strength coach.
The Florida native was selected by the Bears in the fourth round of the 1989 draft out of Syracuse, where he set a school record with 19 career interceptions. Paul played all but one of his 71 career NFL games with the Bears, making 15 starts and recording seven interceptions over five seasons from 1989-93. He picked off two Wade Wilson passes in a 10-6 win over the Vikings in the 1991 season opener at Soldier Field.
Paul worked as an NFL strength and conditioning coach for the last 23 seasons with the Saints (1998-99), Patriots (2000-04), Jets (2005-06), Giants (2007-18) and Cowboys (2018-2020). He won five Super Bowl rings, three with the Patriots and two with the Giants.
