Super Bowl champion Jordan Devey remembered for legacy on and off the field

BOISE, Idaho — Friends, family and the football community are mourning the loss of former NFL offensive lineman Jordan Devey, a Utah native whose journey from American Fork to the Super Bowl inspired many.

Jordan Devey, who won Super Bowl XLIX with the New England Patriots, died this week after what his family says was a long, private mental health struggle.

His parents, Kerry and Leslie Devey, who are in Boise, spoke candidly about their son's death in hopes that sharing his story will encourage conversations about mental health and inspire others to seek help.

Jordan Devey's football journey was anything but conventional.

Growing up in American Fork, he spent his high school years in the marching band instead of playing football. After serving a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to Costa Rica, he attended Snow College before transferring to the University of Memphis and later pursuing a professional football career.

His determination carried him to the NFL, where he played for the New England Patriots. In 2015, he achieved the dream of countless young athletes when the Patriots defeated the Seattle Seahawks to win Super Bowl XLIX.

"You imagine this moment as a little kid playing in the backyard," Jordan Devey said during an interview following the championship in January 2015. "Now you're here, and it's completely unreal." During his eight-year professional career, he played for the Baltimore Ravens, San Francisco 49ers, Kansas City Chiefs, Oakland/Las Vegas Raiders and the Buffalo Bills. He retired in 2021.

Jordan Devey and his wife, Lynsey Devey, settled in Eagle, Idaho, where they raised their four children. Family members say coaching high school football and mentoring young athletes became one of his greatest passions after caring for his family.

"When he came home, that was his priority. Those kids are truly going to miss not having their daddy there," Kerry Devey said. "He was all in as a family man. He took care of every single one of them."

Despite his accomplishments and devotion to family, Jordan Devey's parents say he was quietly battling his mental health, with depression and anxiety.

"We're only beginning to understand that he was fighting a battle that he very well kept hidden from everyone," his mother, Leslie Devey, said. "We know it has been ongoing pretty serious for the last two years … Jordan was very much not willing to share his burdens with others but take on others' burdens."

"Even Lynsey was unaware … the troubles and the problems he was dealing with," Kerry Devey said.

"She knew he wasn't himself, but he was just 'I'm okay,'" Leslie Devey added.

According to the family, Jordan Devey attempted to take his own life Tuesday. His wife, Lynsey, found him and, with guidance from a 911 dispatcher, performed CPR. Although doctors later declared him brain dead on Wednesday, July 22, his parents say her actions made it possible for him to fulfill his wish of becoming an organ donor.

"Lynsey is as much a hero to us right now as Jordan is," Kerry Devey said. The family hopes Jordan Devey's story will encourage others to seek help when they are struggling and inspire more people to consider organ donation.

"Jordan's legacy is the way he treated other people," Kerry Devey said. "It wasn't about him. It was about them."

"If there is one thing that I can say … it's so important with the mental health resources that are available now with being able to reach out to 988 … to speak with someone that can give you professional help," Leslie Devey said. "If you are not wanting to share with your family, that is a resource that is very much at your fingertips to call and be able to have that help in those times of crisis."

The family also suspects years of repeated head injuries from football may have contributed to chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE, a progressive brain disease associated with repeated head trauma. However, they acknowledge a definitive diagnosis is only possible after death, and in Jordan Devey's case, that is not an option due to the trauma his brain sustained at death.

The family expects he will become an organ donor on Monday as he remains hospitalized in Boise on mechanical life support.

A GoFundMe* account has been created to help support Lynsey Devey and the couple's four children.

*KSL.com does not assure that the money deposited into the account will be applied for the benefit of the persons named as beneficiaries. If you are considering a deposit to the account, you should consult your own advisers and otherwise proceed at your own risk.

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