Mechelle McNair is focused on building a happy life for her two sons, Tyler and Trent, following the 2009 murder of her husband, Steve McNair.
On July 4, 2009, the 36-year-old NFL star, who played for the Tennessee Titans, Houston Oilers, and Baltimore Ravens, was found dead in a condominium in downtown Nashville. Investigators found the six-foot-2 quarterback deceased lying alongside the body of 20-year-old Sahel “Jenni” Kazemi, a woman he was having an affair with outside of his marriage with Mechelle.
Despite their marital challenges, Mechelle remains committed to raising Tyler, and Trent as well as upholding Steve’s NFL legacy.
“I can’t tell our boys everything about being a man, but I can tell them about being respectful and humble and how to treat people the way they should be treated,” Mechelle told Titans Online in a 2016 interview.
“I always tell them, no matter what, (your father) loved you. Steve did so much for his family and he worked hard, and that’s what a man is supposed to do — take care of what’s theirs. Steve was a great football player, but he was also such a giving and humble person. He would have given away his last dollar, that’s the kind of person he was.”
The grieving widow said she was also passionate about helping her two boys live out their dreams, a principle that Steve tried to instill in them before his untimely passing. Tyler’s Instagram bio highlights his roles as a dancer, choreographer, and model. He recently worked with Gap on a fashion campaign. In contrast, Trent is a basketball player for Palm Beach Atlantic University.
“His dad would say if they ever wanted to do something other than sports, let them do it,” Mechelle shared with the Tennessean in 2017. “A lot of people will make them play basketball or football because they’re athletes. It’s not fun if they’re doing something they don’t want to do.”
Family members attend a funeral service for former NFL quarterback Steve McNair on July 11, 2009 in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. Mechelle McNair, wife of Steve McNair, is at left. McNair’s mother Lucille McNair is at right. Source: Pool / Getty
What happened to Steve McNair?
Steve and Mechelle met while both students at the HBCU Alcorn State University in Mississippi. After graduation, they moved in together and later married in 1997.
The NFL star began having an affair with Kazemi in early 2009, according to People. At that time, Kazemi, a 19-year-old waitress at a local Dave & Buster’s frequented by Titans players, and Steve quickly became involved. They traveled together, met each other’s families, and seemed to be in a committed relationship.
However, Kazemi grew increasingly distressed. Despite Steve’s assurances of an impending divorce, he continued to live with his wife and children. Kazemi also harbored fears that McNair was involved with another woman and struggled with her own financial difficulties.
On July 3, 2009, Kazemi bought a firearm from an individual identified as Adrian Gilliam Jr. and set up a meeting with Steve at his Nashville condominium. The following morning, both were discovered dead. It is alleged that Kazemi shot Steve four times before turning the gun on herself. However, a new Netflix series titled Untold, which premiered on Aug. 20, suggests that Kazemi might not have been the one who fired the shots and proposes that the person from whom she purchased the gun could have been involved, Forbes noted.
“One of our main objectives was to just lay all the information out as objectively as possible and to show his full life, which includes his death,” Untold co-producer Taylor Ward shared in a statement, according to the outlet.“There’s some mystery around it and it’s fascinating to people… There’s equal screen time given to his life as well as the investigation surrounding his death.”
Quarterback Steve McNair #9 of the of the Tennessee Titans smiles as he looks on from the sideline during a game against the Pittsburgh Steelers at Heinz Field on September 28, 2003 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The Titans defeated the Steelers 30-13. Source: George Gojkovich / Getty
Michelle previously said that while she was aware of some “things” surrounding her husband’s infidelity, she had never met Kazemi. “I didn’t know about her at all,” Mechelle told ESPN. “Did I know about some other people and some other things? Yes. But did I know about her? No, I did not.”
Although the news deeply affected Mechelle’s marriage, she has consistently emphasized the importance of focusing on the positive influence Steve had on their lives and others, rather than on the circumstances surrounding his death. “At the end of the day, that’s my husband,” she told ESPN in 2018. “I loved him. I still love him. He was human. He made a mistake. Nothing’s going to change how I feel about my husband. He took care of us. He loved us. I do know that. Regardless of how he left here, I know he loved us.”
Steve’s career.
Steve’s NFL career spanned from 1995 to 2005 with the Oilers and Titans, followed by his final two seasons with the Baltimore Ravens. Over his career, he amassed 31,304 passing yards and 174 touchdowns, in addition to rushing for 3,590 yards and 37 touchdowns. He led the Titans to their only Super Bowl appearance at the end of the 1999 season and retired in April 2008.
Since his passing, Mechelle has worked to honor Steve’s memory by celebrating the remarkable football player and devoted family man he was. In 2021, she reminisced about their life together as he was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame thanks to his legacy at Alcorn State University and his NFL feats.
“I was so unaware that very few people get inducted into the college hall of fame. And so knowing that he is a part of this class, it just melts my heart,” Mechelle said during an interview with 16 WAPT News Jackson. “I just wish that he was here because I know how much this would mean to him.”
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