Death of Thomas Herrion has raised worries over the heart health of big players . Herrion , who was 6 ' 3 '' and 330 pounds , had just finished an exhibition game with the San Francisco 49ers when he collapsed and died in 2005 . Researchers looked at 504 active NFL players from 16 teams in 2007 . Players were less likely to smoke or have blood - sugar problems than other men . NFL athletes are more likely to have prehypertension than other men .
Death of Thomas Herrion has raised worries over the heart health of big players . Researchers looked at 504 active NFL players from 16 teams in 2007 . Players were less likely to smoke or have blood - sugar problems than other men . NFL athletes are more likely to have prehypertension than other men .