Advertisement

Longtime Bears reporter John ‘Moon’ Mullin dies at 74 after battle with cancer

Longtime Chicago Bears reporter John “Moon” Mullin died on Sunday after a lengthy battle with cancer, the team announced.

He was 74.

Mullin spent more than 25 years covering the Bears in Chicago, both for the Daily Herald and Chicago Tribune and eventually for NBC Sports Chicago.

"In a competitive business, for somebody to have the respect of his colleagues and the people he covered was very unusual, and Moon had that," Bears chairman George H. McCaskey said in a statement. "Moon had a way of carrying himself that was just dignified. He was a class act."

Mullin was first diagnosed with Stage IV pancreatic cancer in 2019, and he was initially told he would be lucky to survive a year, per the Chicago Tribune. He had been in and out of the hospital in recent weeks.

“He remained unfailingly positive,” former Chicago Tribune writer Dan Pompei told the organization. “From the very start, his head was in the right place in terms of his priorities and his approach to a life-threatening illness. He recognized this as a period of growth for him ... And he somehow found his way to a better place.”

Mullin first started covering the Bears in 1992 for the Daily Hearld, the last season led by coach Mike Ditka. He then joined the Tribune in 1997 before finishing with a nine-year run at NBC Sports Chicago.

"He was one of my favorites because he was there every day," former Bears quarterback and NFL analyst Jim Miller said, via the team. "He really had a good heartbeat and feel of the team and where it was and how to cover it. Players felt comfortable around John. When he said something was on the record or off the record, he stuck to his word. Players trusted him."

Longtime Bears reporter John Mullin died on Sunday.
Longtime Bears reporter John Mullin died on Sunday. He was 74. (Robin Alam/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)