Hall of Fame Professional Football Player. He was a 5-time Pro Bowler who played 12 season in the NFL. His career started in the United States Football League before playing 9 years for the New Orleans Saints and three for the Carolina Panthers. Mills ended his career having started 173 out of 181 games, making 1,319 tackles. He is the only member of the Panther's Hall of Fame and has a statue of his likeness outside of Bank of America Stadium honoring him. Mills is also a member of the Louisiana and New Jersey Sports Halls of Fames (He played for the Saints in Louisiana and Montclair State University in New Jersey) and was induced into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2022. Coming out of college, Mills had a hard time catching on in the NFL and Canadian Football League because of his small linebacker size - 5-foot-9, 225 pounds. He eventually caught on in the USFL with the Philadelphia Stars. And when the USFL folded, Head Coach Jim Mora took his star linebacker with him to the NFL. Although Mills was diagnosed with cancer in 2003 and given just months to live, he never missed a game for the Panthers, scheduling treatments on the team's days off and coached from the pressbox on gameday. During their Super Bowl season, Carolina players wore Mills' number 51 under their jerseys. Mills also gave an inspirational speech in the locker room before the team took the field on Super Sunday that year. Mills was posthumously inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2022.
Hall of Fame Professional Football Player. He was a 5-time Pro Bowler who played 12 season in the NFL. His career started in the United States Football League before playing 9 years for the New Orleans Saints and three for the Carolina Panthers. Mills ended his career having started 173 out of 181 games, making 1,319 tackles. He is the only member of the Panther's Hall of Fame and has a statue of his likeness outside of Bank of America Stadium honoring him. Mills is also a member of the Louisiana and New Jersey Sports Halls of Fames (He played for the Saints in Louisiana and Montclair State University in New Jersey) and was induced into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2022. Coming out of college, Mills had a hard time catching on in the NFL and Canadian Football League because of his small linebacker size - 5-foot-9, 225 pounds. He eventually caught on in the USFL with the Philadelphia Stars. And when the USFL folded, Head Coach Jim Mora took his star linebacker with him to the NFL. Although Mills was diagnosed with cancer in 2003 and given just months to live, he never missed a game for the Panthers, scheduling treatments on the team's days off and coached from the pressbox on gameday. During their Super Bowl season, Carolina players wore Mills' number 51 under their jerseys. Mills also gave an inspirational speech in the locker room before the team took the field on Super Sunday that year. Mills was posthumously inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2022.
Bio by: Andrew Bollinger
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