Keith McCants, Former Alabama All-American LB, Dies at Age 53

Former Alabama and NFL linebacker Keith McCants was found dead in his St. Petersburg, Florida home early Thursday morning, according to Mark Heim of AL.com. He was 53. 

The Pinellas County Sheriff's Office received a call at around 5:10 a.m. ET by one of the residents of the home where McCants was living. 

"Deputies responded there, went inside and it was an obvious death,” the spokesperson for the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office told Heim. "There was no sign of life. He was pronounced deceased. As of this time, it appears to be a drug overdose."

The circumstances of McCants' death are being investigated.

Per Heim, McCants struggled with "addiction, depression, homelessness, financial ruin and early-onset dementia" following his football career. 

"He was just such a good guy," McCants' friend, St. Petersburg city councilman Robert Blackmon, told Heim. "He suffered a lot in his life, but he never stopped caring about others."

Blackmon starred for Alabama in college at linebacker and was named a first-team All-American in 1989. He was drafted No. 4 overall by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 1990 and played six years in the NFL, which included stints with the Houston Oilers and Arizona Cardinals as well. 

That career was marked by injuries, however, which Blackmon wrote in a Facebook post also forced him to retire from his post-NFL career of being a marine police officer in Alabama. 

As he struggled with addiction, he traveled the country telling his story, hoping to inspire and help others. He was also featured in the 2012 ESPN 30 for 30 documentary Broke, talking about his financial issues after his career ended. 

"Keith always wanted his story out there," Blackmon told Heim. "He wanted other to benefit from the adversity he faced. I just loved him so much. I just don't know what to say."