Former Philadelphia Eagles and Houston Texans linebacker Bryan Braman died Thursday after battling a rare, aggressive form of cancer, his agent announced. He was 38.
“I got the horrible news early in the morning after one of his best friends reached out and said that he took his last breath while surrounded by friends and family,” Braman’s agent, Sean Stellato, told KPRC 2 in Houston.
“Bryan, people saw this enormous human being, but his heart was big as his body. His spirit was so motivating. He was so real and genuine with everybody. That made him special,” he added.
Braman’s death Thursday comes less than two weeks after Stellato first announced the seven-year NFL veteran was battling a life-threatening cancer and “in the fight of his life.”
Braman underwent several surgeries and chemotherapy at a hospital in Seattle, according to a GoFundMe organized on his behalf. He also underwent a CAR T-Cell therapy, which treats some types of blood cancers by adding a lab-made gene to your cancer-fighting T-cells, according to the Cleveland Clinic. CAR-T therapy can be used to treat some types of leukemia, lymphoma, myeloma and other cancers, according to health experts.
Braman played seven seasons for the Eagles and Texans from 2011-17, including winning Super Bowl LII with the Eagles in February 2018, his final NFL game.
The Spokane, Washington, native played college football at West Texas A&M before signing with the Texans as an undrafted free agent in 2011. He played his first three seasons with Houston and spent his final four seasons with the Eagles. Braman played in 97 games during his seven-year NFL career, mostly as a special teams player, and recorded 56 tackles, two fumble recoveries and 1.5 sacks.
“You look at his journey and beating the odds to make it to the NFL after going undrafted,” Stellato said. “Not only making it, but producing and becoming a world champion. He had a real hard journey. In life, we all run this race. To die at age 38, the game of football and his family are hurting today. He was a staple for what football and underdogs are about. He was a dream-chaser and a dream-catcher. He’s a Hall of Fame human being.”
Braman’s former Texans teammate J.J. Watt also issued a statement remembering the late linebacker.
“Rest in Peace brother,“ Watt wrote in a post to X. ”Gone far too soon."
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