Former Bears star thrown for loss by fumble in business
June 24, 2007|By Becky Yerak, Tribune staff reporter
When Dave Duerson, the former Chicago Bears safety who won Super Bowl rings with the Bears and the New York Giants, showed up in downtown Waukegan on June 14, it wasn't to sign autographs or meet with fans.
Instead, a judge at the Lake County courthouse ruled against Duerson in a foreclosure proceeding, finding that he owed nearly $550,000 on his 17-room Highland Park home, and that it would be sold by the court or sheriff if the money wasn't repaid by Oct. 1.
"It sucks," Duerson said later in the living room of his custom-built home, which features a vanity driveway pillar carved with "NFL22" and a for-sale sign out front. The house, where he has lived since 1987, is listed at nearly $1.6 million.
The foreclosure is the latest in a string of bad news for Duerson, a four-time Pro Bowler who made headlines this month butting heads with former Bears coach Mike Ditka about disability benefits for broken-down former players.
Duerson, who earned a bachelor's degree in economics from the University of Notre Dame and completed Harvard Business School's Owner/President Management Program, finds his personal life and business career in upheaval these days.
The foreclosure comes nearly 10 months after his Duerson Foods, which processed meats for such chains as Burger King, was forced into receivership. Most of its assets were auctioned off in December in a process that drew only one bidder.
"That was a death," Duerson said last week. He said he believes that legal action was premature and shouldn't have resulted in the shutdown of his namesake company, which operated in Pleasant Prairie, Wis. "I've got four kids, and that was like losing a fifth."
Last month he also filed for divorce from his wife of 24 years.
"Eighty percent of the marriages in the NFL fail, and 90 percent if you're an All Pro," he said. "When you're in the public eye, there are so many elements added to it."
However, he hasn't given up on a plan to keep his house before it is slated to be sold out from under him.
In the meantime, he's involved in another business start-up, while also looking for work.
"I put my resume on the street about three weeks ago," he said. "My qualifications are such to run a midsize company" with sales of about $50 million to $100 million.
"I'm not destitute; I still have some assets," Duerson said.
So far, he's still got his game face on.
Wow....looks like he lost it all
