Lorenzo Taliaferro, who played three seasons in the NFL for the Baltimore Ravens, died on Wednesday, December 16, 2020, the York-Poquoson Sheriff’s Office announced. He was 28 years old.
According to the sheriff’s office, deputies were dispatched to an apartment in Williamsburg, Virginia, where Taliaferro required medical attention. Medics later arrived and transported Taliafer to a local hospital, where he died.
Taliaferro’s cause of death was not disclosed.
A bruising, physical running back, Taliaferro landed in Baltimore when the team selected him in the fourth round of the 2014 NFL draft after a standout career at Coastal Carolina. Taliaferro soon broke onto the scene with a 91-rushing yard, one-touchdown effort in the third game of his rookie season.
Taliaferro would finish his rookie year with 292 rushing yards and four touchdowns. Injuries would plague his next two seasons, with him appearing in only six games total. After a switch to fullback, the Ravens released him before the 2017 season.
Taliaferro’s career then took him to the Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the Canadian Football League, then the American Flag Football League.
News of Taliaferro’s death triggered several reactions from those that knew him throughout his career:
