Some sad Pittsburgh Steelers news to pass along tonight. Former defensive back Lupe Sanchez, who spent three years with the Steelers in the 1980s, has died. He was 64.
The news was first spotted by Steelers’ historian account Steel City Star, who shared this clip of Sanchez intercepting a pass and returning it for a touchdown in 1986 against the New York Jets.
Sanchez’s death was announced by the Crawdaddys Visalia restaurant in California, a frequent stop of Sanchez’s in recent years.
Born in 1961, Sanchez was a star high school running back and played college at UCLA. Drafted by the Kansas City Chiefs in the second round of the 1984 Supplemental Draft, he never played a regular season game for the Chiefs. Instead, he spent time in the USFL before catching on with the Steelers and making his NFL debut in 1986.
Appearing in 11 games with four starts, his first interception came in a Week 13 overtime loss to the Chicago Bears, picking off future Steelers QB Mike Tomczak. Sanchez’s next two interceptions came against the Jets, including the 67-yard pick-shown above. His score put Pittsburgh ahead 38-17 in an eventual 45-24 victory.
Sanchez also handled kick returns with the team, averaging 23.6-yards in 1986. He his longest return went for 64-yards. He stuck on the roster for the next two seasons and started the first three games of 1987, a strike-shortened year. According to game logs, he stopped handling kick returns after Week Two after fumbling against the Cleveland Browns.
In 1988, he snagged the fourth and final interception of his career, picking off Doug Williams in a 30-29 loss to the Washington Redskins.
Before joining the Steelers, Sanchez was drafted in and played for the USFL for the 1984 and 1985 seasons. He intercepted three passes, including two in 1985 with the Orlando Renegades.
Last March, Sanchez held an interview at the Crawdaddys restaurant discussing his life including his childhood, sharing that his father was born in 1892 and died when Sanchez was a teenager. There’s also this YouTube video compiling highlights throughout his professional football career well worth the watch.
