INDIANAPOLIS — Each time Steve Muhammad pulls a blue-and-white Indianapolis Colts jersey over his pads and takes the field, he's realizing a dream he didn't achieve alone.
His wife, Nichole Muhammad, acted as a catalyst for his career, marketing him to NFL teams, always telling him he could make it big.
"Had it not been for her unwavering devotion to her husband, it's very likely that Steve Muhammad would not be playing football," said her father, Michael Craig. "To the death, she loved that man."
Her death in November was blamed on complications from childbirth. A coroner said she went into premature labor because of injuries she had suffered in a single-car accident three days earlier, as she drove the streets of Indianapolis alone looking for her husband.
Not blamed were injuries from her alleged roughing-up by Muhammad a few days earlier, for which he faces misdemeanor battery charges.
The family's tragedy has cast a shadow over the Colts' winning season and their hopes of reaching the Super Bowl.
Muhammad, who continues to play as a rookie on special teams and as a backup defensive player, has not commented publicly.
"I think it's obviously a very difficult situation to handle your wife's death and continue to perform a job at a very high level," says his attorney, Jim Voyles Jr. Muhammad is devastated, he adds.
Gone is the woman who cheered him on for years.
Steve and Nichole met and were married in California. Just out of Fresno State, Muhammad was working odd jobs to support his family while dreaming of putting his athletic skills to use. Nichole Muhammad made videos and cover letters to send to pro teams, her father says.
In 1998, the couple's work paid off and the British Columbia Lions of the Canadian Football League signed the 5-foot-10-inch, 180-pound Muhammad. He went on to become the CFL's rookie of the year and led the league with 10 interceptions. Their dreams were finally coming true.
But there was trouble at home.
Nichole's father said one night he received a frantic call from his daughter, who was at a hotel in Vancouver. She said Muhammad had become violent during an argument. "I was well aware of his abusive nature and propensity for violence," Craig says.
Ty Burrell of Los Angeles grew up with Nichole and spoke with her regularly, sometimes discussing problems the couple had.
