Derrick Thomas
American Footballer
Died when: 33 years 38 days (397 months)Star Sign: Capricorn
Derrick Vincent Thomas (January 1, 1967 – February 8, 2000), nicknamed D.T., was an American football outside linebacker for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL).
Considered one of the greatest pass rushers of all time, he played 11 seasons with the Chiefs until his death in 2000.
Thomas played college football at Alabama, where he won the Butkus Award, and was selected fourth overall by Kansas City in the 1989 NFL Draft.
During his career, he received nine Pro Bowl and three first-team All-Pro selections, along with setting the single-game sacks record.
After the Chiefs' 1999 season, Thomas was rendered paraplegic by a car crash and died two weeks later from a pulmonary embolism.
He was posthumously inducted to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2009 and the College Football Hall of Fame in 2014.
