How Did Demaryius Thomas Die?

Demaryius Thomas, also known as Demaryius Antwon Thomas, was an American football player. He was born on December 25, 1987. Thomas played as a wide receiver or a wideout in the National Football League (NFL). He played for teams like Denver Broncos, Houston Texans, New England Patriots, and New York Jets. Thomas also won the Super Bowl with the Broncos during the 2015 season. He also played four Pro Bowls along with the Denver Broncos. He played for the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets during college and entered professional football in 2010.

Thomas was one of the fan-favorite players and thus, his death at a young age came as a shock both to the sporting fraternity and also to the fans. Thomas died on December 9, 2021, at the age of 33. He died just 16 days before his 34th birthday. His death at such a young age sent shockwaves across the country and fans mourned his death. What happened to Thomas and how did he die? Let’s read on to find out.

Demaryius Thomas’ Tragic Death

Demaryius Thomas was found unconscious on December 9, 2021, at his home in Roswell, Georgia. He was taken to the hospital to provide medical help wherein he was pronounced dead. Thomas had retired from the NFL just six months prior to his death. Preliminary investigation believed the cause of death to be a seizure. Even his family believed that his death was because of a seizure because Thomas had been facing seizures since his car accident in 2019. According to police records, a ‘medical problem’ was the cause of his death.

After Demaryius Thomas’ death, his brain was donated to Boston University where it was studied. After intense examinations at the university, it was concluded posthumously that the football player suffered from Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE). CTE is a neurodegenerative condition occurring due to repeated head trauma. The diagnosis came eight weeks after Thomas died for ‘unknown reasons’. In the postmortem report, medical examiner Sullivan stated that it is uncertain if Thomas’ seizure problem was brought on by natural reasons or by the blows to the head he sustained while playing.

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The 2019 Car Accident Changed Thomas’ Life

Demaryius Thomas was involved in a single-vehicle car collision in February 2019. As he was traveling in downtown Denver, his automobile overturned, inflicting minor injuries on the NFL player and another male passenger that were attended to at a hospital. Demaryius’ car rolled multiple times and he hit his head on the windshield after driving over 70 mph in a 30-mph zone. Thomas managed to escape any jail time for the incident but was given 50 hours of community service, one year of probation, and fines to pay.

Thomas’ parents revealed that the NFL player had struggled with migraines, paranoia, memory loss, and mood swings for a year before his death. His family and relatives mentioned how he became insanely erratic during his last days and just stayed at his home for days on end.

Dr. Ann McKee, the neuropathologist who studied Demaryius Thomas’ brain said that it would have been extremely implausible for C.T.E. to have caused Thomas’ convulsions, and she believes that Thomas most likely died of asphyxia following a seizure. Dr. Ann also added, “What CTE does is it changes your behavior and your personality.”