21 Facts About Derrick Thomas

Derrick Thomas was posthumously inducted to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2009 and the College Football Hall of Fame in 2014.

Derrick Thomas played his high school football at South Miami Senior High School.

Alongside Cornelius Bennett and later Keith McCants at Alabama, Derrick Thomas spearheaded one of the best defensive lines in college football and smashed many Crimson Tide defensive records, including sacks in a single season.

Derrick Thomas was awarded the Sington Soaring Spirit Award by the Lakeshore Foundation.

Derrick Thomas was posthumously inducted to the College Football Hall of Fame in 2014.

Derrick Thomas was selected fourth overall in the first round of the 1989 NFL draft by the Kansas City Chiefs.

Derrick Thomas was the first selection made by new head coach Marty Schottenheimer.

Derrick Thomas was named AP Defensive Rookie of the Year.

However, on the game's final play, Derrick Thomas had a clear shot for an eighth sack, but missed it and the Seahawks would throw a game winning touchdown after the missed sack.

Derrick Thomas finished 2nd in defensive player of the year voting and was named 1st team All-Pro.

Derrick Thomas didn't manage to record a sack on his former teammate Rich Gannon, but he did record 6 total tackles.

Derrick Thomas was named first-team All-Pro two times and was named to the Pro Bowl nine times.

Derrick Thomas is 18th all-time in sacks and at the time of his death in 2000, he was 9th all-time with 126.5.

Derrick Thomas remains the Chiefs' all-time leader in sacks, safeties, forced fumbles, and fumble recoveries.

Derrick Thomas said in interviews his favorite quarterback to sack was Denver Broncos quarterback John Elway, whom he sacked 26 times.

Derrick Thomas was posthumously inducted into the Chiefs Hall of Fame in 2000, with the Chiefs breaking the tradition of waiting four years after the end of the player's career.

Derrick Thomas is the only NFL player to die during their career that was later inducted to the Hall of Fame.

On January 23,2000, Derrick Thomas's SUV went off Interstate 435 in Clay County as he and two passengers were driving to Kansas City International Airport during a snowstorm for a flight to St Louis to see the NFC Championship Game between the St Louis Rams and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

The morning of February 8,2000, while being transferred from his hospital bed to a wheelchair on his way to therapy, Derrick Thomas told his mother he was not feeling well.

Eismont said Derrick Thomas went into cardiorespiratory arrest and died as a result of a pulmonary embolism, a massive blood clot that developed in his legs and traveled to his lungs.

Months later, Derrick Thomas's family sued General Motors for $73 million in damages stemming from the accident.