The four-time Pro Bowler and Super Bowl champion was found by police in his home on Thursday.
Ron Chenoy/USA TODAY Sports
Demaryius Thomas, a four-time Pro-Bowler and former Broncos star wide receiver, has died, according to multiple reports. FOX 5 Atlanta producer Miles Garrett was the first to report.
Washington Post's Nicki Jhabvala confirmed the news, sharing that Roswell, Ga., police said they found the wide receiver dead in his home on Thursday evening. The preliminary thought is that police believe his death stemmed from a medical issue, per Jhabvala.
Thomas would have been 34 this Christmas.
Thomas was born in Montrose, Ga., and played for Georgia Tech. He stayed through his junior year, tallying 46 receptions for 1,154 receiving yards and eight receiving touchdowns that season. He went on to be selected in the first round of the 2010 NFL draft, selected at No. 22 by the Broncos.
Thomas spent eight seasons in Denver, reaching the Pro Bowl for three consecutive campaigns from 2012 to '14. He won the Super Bowl alongside Peyton Manning in 2015, but arguably his most memorable moment came in his '12 campaign, when Thomas took a slant from Tim Tebow 80 yards to the house in overtime to beat the Steelers in the divisional round of the playoffs
Thomas set a record for the most catches in a Super Bowl during Denver's 43-8 loss to the Seahawks, which has since been broken. He also caught Manning's pass that set the record for most career touchdown passes in 2014.
Throughout his 10-season career between the Broncos, Texans, Patriots and Jets, Thomas caught 724 passes, tallying 9,763 yards and 63 touchdowns. He officially retired in June, ending his professional football career where it all began.
His former teammates, other football stars and reporters across the league reacted to Thursday's news on social media.