Several years before Robert Mathis wore No. 98 for the Indianapolis Colts, another defensive menace who wore the same number wreaked havoc for the Horseshoe.
It was none other than Tony Siragusa.
Teammates and coaches fondly called the gregarious Siragusa “Goose” during his playing days with the Colts.
Although Siragusa was never a Pro Bowler, he was one of the defensive stalwarts of those Colts teams in the 1990s.
Tony Siragusa Helped Put Colts Football On The Map
The Colts signed Siragusa as an undrafted free agent in 1990.
Many teams passed up on him mainly because of the left ACL injury he sustained in college with the Pitt Panthers.
Siragusa’s draft stock plummeted dramatically.
The Philadelphia Eagles initially showed interest in Siragusa, the pride of Kenilworth, NJ.
However, he balked because they already had a loaded defensive line at the time.
Siragusa eventually found a new home in Indy at the turn of the decade.
When he first came to town, the locals compared him to Chicago Bears behemoth William “The Refrigerator” Perry.
Back then, it seemed there were more Bears fans than Colts fans in Indianapolis.
Locals also paid more attention to Bob Knight’s Indiana Hoosiers when Siragusa entered the NFL.
Nevertheless, Siragusa held a vendetta against the teams who passed up on him in the draft.
He was a 6-foot-3, 340-pound man mountain who was adept at clogging the rushing lanes and stopping the run.
He could also rush the passer whenever the situation called for it.
Whenever Siragusa made a game-changing play, he flapped his arms similar to a goose flapping its wings.
Colts fans relished the times he did his famous “The Goose” dance at the old Hoosier Dome.
Indy was a mediocre squad that averaged seven wins per year in Siragusa’s seven-year tenure in the Circle City from 1990 to 1996.
However, the Colts turned the corner in the 1995 and 1996 NFL seasons.
With guys like Siragusa, Jim Harbaugh, Marshall Faulk, Floyd Turner, Ken Dilger, Tony Bennett, and Eugene Daniel leading the charge, the Colts made it to the 1995 AFC Championship Game that year.
The Colts reached the AFC Wild Card round a year later.
1996 was Siragusa’s final year with the Horseshoe.
He signed a four-year, $6 million deal with the Baltimore Ravens in the spring of 1997.
Siragusa spent four years in the Charm City and became a vocal presence on a Ravens team that included Sam Adams, Ray Lewis, Rod Woodson, and Shannon Sharpe.
Siragusa earned notoriety following his late hit on Oakland Raiders quarterback Rich Gannon in the 2000 AFC Championship Game.
Then NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue promptly docked $10,000 from Siragusa’s paycheck.
Siragusa and the Ravens eventually won their first Super Bowl with a 34-7 rout of the New York Giants in Super Bowl XXXV.
He retired following the 2001 NFL season.
Sadly, the man who was larger than life on and off the gridiron passed away on June 22, 2022.
In terms of Siragusa’s legacy with the Colts, his Indy teams of the mid-1990s set the tone for Colts squads of ensuing years.
Siragusa’s Colts started a winning tradition in Indy that has continued to the present day.
For that, Colts Nation is forever thankful to the man known as “Goose.”
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