Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Derrick Thomas passed away on February 8 from complications brought on by a car accident suffered weeks earlier. His doctor said Thomas, 33, had a cardio-respiratory arrest. Thomas' death was especially shocking as he had appeared to be on the road to recovery.

Gary Miller, host of ESPN's Up Close, interviewed former teammates Elvis Grbac and Cornelius Bennett to discuss the life and career of one of Kansas City's most loved citizens. The following is an edited transcript of the Feb. 8 broadcast.

Miller: When you got the news about Derrick Thomas' death this morning, what was the initial impact?

Grbac: I was very shocked, obviously, with the incident that happened a couple of weeks ago. The last couple of days I heard that his rehab was going extremely well, and this morning I got the news from my wife, and it's just very devastating to hear those things, and the Kansas City community is obviously very devastated. Derrick was one of those great, great players and I was very proud to be a part of his career and a part of what he did on the field and off the field. It was something that really shook me up when I heard the news.

Miller: Do you remember when you first met Derrick Thomas and how you got to know him?

	Derrick Thomas' exuberance was constantly on display -- especially to opposing quarterbacks.

Grbac: Well, it's interesting, when I did come to Kansas City, I always heard about the great things about Derrick Thomas and the plays he made. I kind of related it to Jerry Rice, in the same sense that he was one of those players that made a difference in the game. The first time I met him, obviously, I had a lot of respect for him and when I got to know him, the great player that he was and the great person that he was, my respect was that much greater for him. This was something very sad that happened, but we will continue to go on as the Chiefs will. Derrick was a person that was one of those guys that made a difference in the game, not just on the football field, but also in the community. He did some really great things for Kansas City. The one thing I think I remember the most is the thing that he did around Thanksgiving time. He would go out in the community and distribute baskets to the needy people at that time of year. Being with some great players in the past, I had never ever seen that done before. It was just something that Derrick, the person that he was, really went to show what kind of person that he was in the community of Kansas City.

Miller: He was the NFL Man of the Year. What do you think it was in him that made him want to go out in the community and get involved in the reading programs?

Grbac: I think if you look back to his roots, the people that he grew up around. His mother is an extremely, extremely strong woman, great family background, strong people; very caring, loving people. It showed in Derrick. Everything that he did on the field and off the field, he wanted to give back to the community because the community gave so much to him. It was something that he felt he should always be a part of and helping kids, helping whatever cause he could get his hands on. He was one of those people that made a difference in everybody's life. He will continue in the memories of everybody in the way he lived his life to the fullest. We will take that to heart and we should always remember to do that, live your life to the fullest because you never know when it's going to end. Derrick did it to the best of his ability and it showed on and off the field.

Miller: Your team president Carl Peterson saw Derrick in the hospital in a wheelchair. He was committed to walking some day and Carl said he was upbeat and positive, he was Derrick. When he saw him he said, "You're mobile!" And Derrick said, "Father, I am, I've got wheels!" Does that sound like the Derrick you know?

Grbac: Yeah, that's the Derrick I know. The guy that, when the chips are down, he's the guy that's going to step up and make the plays when he has to. That was a different situation for him going into rehab, and he knew that this was something different in his life, another challenge that he had to conquer, and he just felt that he knew he could do it. It was just unfortunate that something like this would happen, but that was the life of Derrick Thomas. The guy that never quit in every aspect of his life he continued to be a better person in everything that he did.

Miller: Derrick Thomas had six sacks against Jeff George in one game. What was it like to stand on the sideline and know you didn't have to go against him and how did you feel for the opposing quarterback?

Grbac: Thank goodness I never had to play against him, because I know the talent that he has in any given moment, in any given game, he can turn it up and be one of the greatest players to play the game, especially at the linebacker position. He is one of those guys that make a difference in the ball game, and each week I knew the opposing team had to go in and deal with the problem of how to block Derrick Thomas. In that game he was absolutely a tremendous player. I don't know what it is against Jeff George. You can't put a finger on it, but he just comes to play against that quarterback every time. Each week, I know the opposing quarterback had the fear in his backside that Derrick Thomas was coming to make plays against him.

Miller: We had Ray Perkins come in earlier, and he talked about that smile of Derrick's, and even after the tough loss to the Raiders this year, he had a smile on his face after the game. How different was Derrick before and after the game as opposed to on the field?

Grbac: Well, before and after the game he was a totally different person. He was a total professional when he got on the field, and he understood what it took to be a professional, but when you get off the field, I think that there is a different life that you have to lead, and Derrick was one of those guys that led his life the way he wanted to, and led it to the fullest of his abilities. The things that he did off the field made him happy, made people around him happy, and he enjoyed life to the fullest; there was nothing that he did in his life that he regretted, he was one of those guys that loved to be a part of the Kansas City Chiefs, be around the guys, do those kinds of things, and when the game was over he was just excited to be around the guys and do the things off the field. Because he understood that what you do off the field is just as important as what you do on the field, and Derrick was one of those guys that you just loved to have around in the locker room.

Cornelius Bennett:

Miller: Cornelius, you were there in Tuscaloosa when Derrick Thomas first came in. Do you remember the first time you met Derrick Thomas and how you guys became friends?

Bennett: Yeah, I was going into my Junior year, and Derrick was this scrawny, fast kid from Florida: a typical Florida athlete, a great athlete, and Derrick, you could just tell he set himself apart from the other younger guys on the football team. He just was hungry to get in there and be one of the best. We would call me, you know, when I played with the older guys, "Big Brother", so I was his big brother, just like other guys were my big brothers when I first got to the university. So it is a unique relationship when you play football at the University of Alabama and when we see each other, we're saying "Bama", what's up "Bama?" What's up "Bama Pi Zsi." You know, that was our pretend fraternity, because that is what we were a part of, as far as playing football there.

Miller: When you heard the news this morning and all that has happened over the past two weeks, how has this affected you emotionally?

Bennett: Today I was at the gym rehabilitating my injured knee and one of my best friends here in Atlanta, David Brandon, called me up and asked me if I had heard that Derrick had passed. I just stopped in my tracks and really and (pauses) ... you know how you pull up things on the Internet, which I had been doing, and you see that he is doing fine? One day he is doing fine and the next day he is gone, so it is tough, but I know Derrick and the good things that he did here on this Earth are going to be rewarded for him in his after-life.

Miller: If you had a chance to go visit him in the hospital before he passed, what do you think that would have been like?

Bennett: To be honest with you, Gary, I was very scared to go see him. I truly was. When I had planned to go see him, is when I knew he would be at his best, hopefully, because I see some of myself in Derrick. Coming from the same kind of background, two kids who come from a little bit of nothing, to gain a whole lot of something, and it could have easily been me. So it was tough to sit and try to speculate what Derrick was going to be like when I saw him, you know, if I got a chance to see him. It is tough and I didn't want to go see a fake picture, you know how you can go see a sick person in the hospital and they'll try to act all upbeat? That isn't what I wanted to go see when I saw Derrick. I just hadn't gotten a chance to go see him because I just had a new baby born last Friday, so it's tough. You bring one in and you lose one.