In 2007, Giants QB Jared Lorenzen was on the sideline in Super Bowl XLII when he watched the impossible happen. David Tyree made his famous helmet catch, and kept New York's hopes alive in the fourth quarter.
As Tyree walked off the field, Lorenzen -- the backup to Eli Manning -- was the first person he high-fived. In the end, the Giants would win the game, defeating the undefeated Patriots, and Lorenzen's final season in the NFL would make him a world champion.
But he went off the grid following that year. Then, in 2014, video surfaced of Lorenzen playing for an indoor league with the Northern Kentucky River Monsters. This, though, wasn't what people remembered Lorenzen looking like.
"I played indoor. I have no idea what I weighed," Lorenzen told ESPN's Jeremy Schapp in an exclusive interview.
Lorenzen put on tons of weight, and the video of his first start with the River Monsters went viral. But that stint in the professional indoor league didn't last long at all.
Lorenzen scrambled out of the pocket in his second game, and began running toward the end zone. But, at the five-yard line, he was met by a defender and his football career ended in a snap.
"I was running to my left on like the five-yard line," Lorenzen explained. "Every other time in my life, I throw that ball away. This time I keep it, he hits his helmet right on my leg, shattered it right there. I knew why: I was too slow, didn't have my feet, couldn't defend myself."
The lefty's health was rapidly declining before his injury, but it became apparent to him when he had trouble breathing after merely walking a few yards. A doctor's visit showed him the cold, hard truth.
"I went to the doctor and he goes, 'You know why you can't breathe right now?,' " Lorenzen said. "I said, 'No, why?' You're destroying your heart."
Lorenzen was diagnosed with congestive heart failure and pre-diabetes. It was from that moment the former NFL quarterback had to fight for his life.
A plan was developed by his doctor and personal trainer to shed the weight, and attempt to get back to a healthy lifestyle. For one, Lorenzen has taken fast food and soda out of his diet. He is also working out three to five times per week.
Since that started in February 2017, Lorenzen has been seeing results. His latest checkup saw his weight at 477 pounds, which is a big step after weighing 560 pounds at his heaviest.
Lorenzen continues to work hard to keep the weight off, and he has been very open about his condition during his transformation. In fact, he says he wants to be the face of obesity and show that anyone can fight it.
"I think deep down people wanted a face for obesity," Lorenzen said, "and no one has ever been the guy that says, 'I'm fat. It's me.' I'm going to be the face of this."
Check out the full video below...
Jared Lorenzen was a legend at Kentucky and a Super Bowl champion with the New York Giants, but now he's in the fight of his life. pic.twitter.com/gGzCqTO2yI
- ESPN (@espn) July 22, 2018