WrestleMania weekend will have an entirely different feel this year as the “Showcase of the Immortals” gets underway in front of an empty arena.
Three-time Super Bowl champion Rob Gronkowski is hosting the event following his brief appearance in the WrestleMania 33 kickoff show back in 2017.
NFL players have played an important part in the history of professional wrestling, which got us diving through the archives to bring you some of the famous faces that have either stepped into the squared circle to host or lace up the boots.
Lawrence Taylor, WrestleMania XI
WrestleMania 11 featured a largely underwhelming card of matches that left fans wondering why they even paid the price of admission to begin with.
Bret Hart defeated Bob Backlund in a forgettable “I Quit” match, followed by Diesel defeating Shawn Michaels for the WWF title.
For whatever reason though, Vince McMahon booked soon-to-be New York Giants Hall of Fame linebacker Lawrence Taylor in the main event against Bam Bam Bigelow.
To his credit, LT actually worked well with Bigelow and wound up winning the match with a flying forearm off the second rope. The crowd bought it, but Taylor going over basically brought an end to Bam Bam’s career.
Kevin Greene, WCW
Hall of Famer Kevin Greene is one of the most revered linebackers in NFL history, but what today’s fans mightn’t know is that he actually spent a decent chunk of time in WCW wrestling alongside some all-time greats.
Greene was originally a tag team partner with fellow NFL player Steve McMichael before the two feuded in 1996. Greene then went on to team with Roddy Piper and Ric Flair to take on nWo at Slamboree in 1997, right before the Panthers forced a “no wrestling” clause in his contract in 1998 following his partnership with Goldberg.
Walter Payton, Summerslam (1994)
The WWF was desperate for a big-name attraction in 1994 with Chicago playing host to Summerslam. They quickly sought out Bears running back Walter Payton, placing him in Razor Ramon’s corner during his Intercontinental title match against Diesel.
With Shawn Michaels occupying Diesel’s corner, Payton played a small part in the match serving as an enforcer. With the NFL season right around the corner, he never really got physical – probably because HBK was scared of the god-awful shirt Payton was wearing.
Clay Matthews, Smackdown (2011)
The Packers won their fourth Super Bowl ring in 2011 and amidst the celebration, decided to pay a visit to Friday night Smackdown.
Several members of the championship team occupied the front row sporting heavyweight title belts before Matthews made an actual appearance in the ring during Edge’s championship match against Dolph Ziggler.
Matthews replaced the “injured” Vickie Guerrero and received a huge pop with several Packer fans in attendance. It’s well worth a re-watch.
Ben Roethlisberger, Monday Night Raw (2009)
WWE was all about special guests back in 2009, so when the Steelers won Super Bowl XLIII, they quickly invited Ben Roethlisberger and a bunch of his offensive lineman on to host Monday Monday Night Raw.
The idea seemed simple enough, but it was an instant flop as Big Ben struggled on the mic and, not surprisingly, had no real personality. There was also an awful moment with the offensive line sporting a three-point stance against the Big Show, and the stock standard moment with D-Generation X to follow.
Bart Scott, TNA Impact! (2011)
Bart Scott spent 10-years in the NFL and was named to the Pro Bowl in 2006. He was well-known for his “tell it like it is” personality and smash-mouth style of football, so it was only a matter of time before he popped up on the professional wrestling scene.
Scott appeared on an episode of TNA Impact in 2011 during a cringe-worthy wedding segment involving Jeff Jarrett and Kurt Angle’s ex-wife, Karen. Kurt basically lost his cool and started smashing the set with an axe, right before Eric Bischoff introduced Scott to try and calm things down.
Some pushes and shoves followed before Scott quickly found himself tapping out to the ankle lock.
Ernie Holmes, Harvey Martin, William “The Refrigerator” Perry, WrestleMania II
WrestleMania went through some growing pains early on as the WWF tried to establish themselves in the entertainment industry. At WrestleMania II they held three separate shows in Chicago, Los Angeles and New York, with the second-last match in Chicago being a very weird battle royal.
Basically, it was a bunch of NFL stars like Ernie Holmes, Jimbo Covert, Bill Fralic, Harvey Martin, Russ Francis and The Fridge against Andre the Giant, The Hart Foundation, The Iron Sheik, Bruno Sammartino and a handful of others. The match was a bit chaotic but went over well once Andre was announced the winner.
Michael Strahan, Monday Night Raw (2013)
Even if you aren’t a big NFL fan, chances are you’ve seen Michael Strahan and his famous gap-tooth on Good Morning America or the various game shows he’s hosted.
In 2013, Strahan hosted Raw and did a damn good job of it. Unlike his fellow NFL counterparts, he had plenty of personality and was happy to partake in the usual backstage promos and weird gimmicks. Strahan’s crowning moment came on Miz TV when he delivered two impressive hip-tosses.
Reggie White, WCW Slamboree (1997)
Hall of Famer Reggie White is largely considered to be the best defensive end in NFL history, but he too dabbled in some wrestling action during the mid-’90s.
White first appeared at ringside during Lawrence Taylor’s select cast of NFL “All-Stars” during his match against Bigelow at WrestleMania XI. He called out King Kong Bundy during a backstage segment during the show, and even took part in a little brew-haha during the match.
In 1997, White then ventured over to WCW to take part in his only ever wrestling match. He took on former NFL player Steve McMichael at Slamboree and lost after being hit by a briefcase.