Former Chicago Bears running back Darren Lewis passed away after a battle with cancer at the age of 55, the Texas A&M Aggies announced on Friday.<\/p>\n
In 2014, he was sentenced to 27 years in prison for a string of armed robberies at hotels and convenience stores, including shooting a 7-Eleven cashier in the leg, which Lewis claimed was an accident.<\/p>\n
Lewis was imprisoned in Pollock, Louisiana, where he developed a mass on his shoulder that later ruptured and was determined to be metastatic squamous cell carcinoma.<\/p>\n
According to ESPN's report, he was moved to a prison in North Carolina for medical care before being released last year as part of a compassionate release program.<\/p>\n
At 5-foot-10 and 219 pounds, Darren Lewis was selected 161st overall by the Bears in the sixth round of the 1991 NFL draft.<\/p>\n
In 33 NFL<\/a> career games (six starts) across three seasons (1991-93) with the Bears, he rushed for 431 yards and four touchdowns on 112 attempts while averaging 13.1 rushing yards per game. Lewis, a native of Dallas, Texas, also caught 22 passes for 201 yards.<\/p>\n Furthermore, Lewis came out of Carter High School in Dallas in 1986 and was considered one of the top running backs in the country along with Randy Simmons and Emmitt Smith. Aggie head coach Jackie Sherrill signed Lewis and Simmons.<\/p>\n At Texas A&M, Lewis was a two-time All-American (1988, 1990) running back for the Aggies and the all-time leading rusher in both A&M and Southwest Conference history.<\/p>\n Remembering our all-time leading rusher, All-American Darren Lewis.<\/p>\n \ud83d\udd17 https:\/\/t.co\/XEJDEHjuw9<\/a><\/p>\n Here. pic.twitter.com\/EbNl7VgXh2<\/a><\/p>\n — Texas A&M Football (@AggieFootball) June 21, 2024<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n