Former Broncos Running Back & Super Bowl Champion Ronnie Hillman Has Passed Away At 31 After His Battle With Cancer💔🕊️ Rest in Paradise.
Former Denver Broncos running back Ronnie Hillman died Wednesday. He was 31.
Hillman’s family announced his death in a message posted to his Instagram account. “Ronnie quietly and peacefully transitioned today in the company of family and close friends,” the message said. “We as the family appreciate the prayers and kind words that have already been expressed. We ask that you would give us time to process our feelings as we prepare to lay our precious RJ to rest.”
Hillman entered hospice care on Tuesday after he was diagnosed with renal medullary carcinoma, a rare form of kidney cancer, in August. He had undergone treatment, his family said, but it was not successful.
After two standout seasons at San Diego State, Hillman hired an agent and entered the 2012 NFL draft. The Broncos selected him in the third round. Hillman played in 24 games during his first two seasons in the NFL, rushing for 548 yards and two touchdowns.
His playing time increased in 2014. Hillman played in eight games that season, starting four of them. He rushed for 434 yards and three touchdowns, but injuries limited his numbers.
Hillman stayed on the field in 2015 and turned in his most productive year as a pro. He rushed for a career-high 863 yards and scored a career-high seven rushing touchdowns. Hillman got the start in two of the Broncos’ three playoff games that season, rushing 32 times for 54 yards. He received five carries in Super Bowl 50, which the Broncos won 24-10 over the Carolina Panthers.
Hillman left Denver that offseason and eventually signed a deal with the Minnesota Vikings. Hillman played in five games with Minnesota before he was released in November. He was picked up by the San Diego Chargers on waivers and played three games with the team in 2016.
Hillman was signed by the Dallas Cowboys in the offseason. He was released by the team before the start of the 2017 season.
Hillman finished his career with 1,976 rushing yards and 12 touchdowns. He reached two Super Bowls as a player, winning a ring in 2015.
Hillman was a third-round pick by the Broncos in the 2012 NFL draft, one of the youngest players selected in recent drafts. He was just 20 years old when the Broncos chose him and didn’t turn 21 until September of his rookie year.
He was one of two 20-year-olds the Broncos selected in that draft class; quarterback Brock Osweiler was the other.
Hillman finished his two seasons at San Diego State with back-to-back 1,500-yard rushing seasons — 1,532 yards as a freshman, 1,711 yards as a sophomore — with 17 and 19 rushing touchdowns, respectively. He is fifth on the school’s all-time rushing list.
Hillman joined the Broncos in the team’s first draft class after it had signed Peyton Manning. He rushed for 218 yards in limited duty in 2013 when the Broncos set the league’s single-season scoring record with 606 points and two years later led the Broncos’ Super Bowl 50 team in rushing (863 yards) and touchdowns, with seven, during the regular season.
Hillman also had a career-best 24 receptions that season. Hillman also had a career-best 24 receptions that season.
He played five games for the Minnesota Vikings and three games for the Chargers in 2016, his final season in which he appeared in any regular-season games.
The 2012 third-round pick had been diagnosed in August with Renal Medullary Carcinoma — a rare form of cancer that affects young African Americans with sickle cell trait. He had fought it valiantly — but was recently placed in hospice care.
His former Denver teammates — Derek Wolfe and Orlando Franklin — had asked Broncos fans to pray for him as his condition had worsened this week.
Really sad news from @OFranklin74 that Ronnie Hillman is in hospice w/ liver complications.
SDSU’s head coach Brady Hoke also penned a tribute, saying, “Our deepest condolences go out to Ronnie’s family.
“Although I only got to coach him one season, I’ll remember him as a great teammate and hard worker. Ronnie always came to practice with a smile on this face and his passion for the game was contagious. He’ll always be an Aztec for Life.”
After two stellar seasons at SDSU where he scored 36 touchdowns, Hillman was drafted by the Broncos in 2012, helping the team to the Super Bowl in 2014 and 2015, according to NFL.com.
The team were victorious in the latter over the Carolina Panthers after a season where Hillman was their leading rusher — posting 863 yards and seven touchdowns.
Hillman spent time at the Minnesota Vikings and Los Angeles Chargers in the 2016 NFL season, before signing with the Dallas Cowboys ahead of the 2017 season.
He never played for the Cowboys, having been released by the team shortly after signing.
CNN has reached out to the NFL and the Broncos for comment.
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