Former NFL player O.J. Brigance dies at 56 following 19-year fight with ALS
TheGrio...
The one-time Super Bowl champion with the Baltimore Ravens had become an inspiration for the team and others as he outlived the doctor’s initial prognosis.
O.J. Brigance, who won a Super Bowl title with the Baltimore Ravens in 2000 before becoming an inspiration for the city of Baltimore and others as he fought ALS, has died. He was 56.
Brigance’s death was announced Monday by the Ravens, who called him a “beloved legend,” and that Monday served as a “tremendously sad day for Baltimore.”
“We are devastated by the awful news that we have lost O.J. Brigance,” Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti said in a statement. “O.J. was a beloved legend, mentor and man to everyone fortunate enough to know him. His infectious smile and the inspirational way he lived and played endeared him to everyone he touched, both inside our building and across this city. This is a tremendously sad day for Baltimore.”
Brigance was diagnosed with ALS in 2007 at the age of 37. He’d retired from the NFL in 2002,, but not beforemakingg an impact in both the Canadian Football League and the National Football League. When he was diagnosed, doctors told him he had five years to live. But Brigance was always smiling when team officials and fans saw him in the hallways of the Ravens’ facility, undeterred by his diagnosis and more concerned with living and inspiring others.
Brigance first began his professional career in the CFL where he played for four seasons between 1991 and 1995. He made his NFL debut in 1996 with the Miami Dolphins, where he spent three seasons before joining the Ravens in 2000. He remains the only player to date to win a NFL title and a CFL title for the same city.
“O.J. inspired us with humility, faithfulness, determination, competitiveness and love for humankind,” Ravens general manager Eric DeCosta said. “We never once saw O.J. angry or frustrated by his disease. Instead, we all witnessed a hero who influenced so many people through his unwavering optimism and grit. O.J. Brigance is the definition of what it means to live like a Raven.”
There is no cure for ALS, which is commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease. Recently former NFL player Chris Johnson revealed he’d been diagnosed with ALS and has lost the ability to speak. Instead, like many others battling the diease, he uses eye-tracking technology.
Brigance and his wife, Chanda, founded the Brigance Brigade Foundation to assist those living with ALS, increasing caregiving services, equipment and in-home accessibility.