Better known as "Junior", he was #55 for the San Diego Chargers from 1990 to 2002, playing linebacker. I was completely uninterested in the Chargers until I saw him play, and afterwards would make an effort to watch them just to see some of the most spectacular defensive football I have ever witnessed. In terms of competitive fire, the ability to change the outcome of a game almost single handedly, and rally his teammates though force of will he was like a rejuvenation of Lawrence Taylor, but without the borderline personality disorder.
He shot himself in the chest apparently - this is significant because it spared trauma to his brain and mimics the recent suicide by gunshot of another former football player who was suffering from Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy - brain damage from repeated blows to the head. It may be that Junior also felt he had the condition, and wanted the people studying the disorder to be able to use him. I'm sure this will play out over the next few weeks.
While I never met him, he seemed through interviews and media stories to be a genuinely nice, friendly man. I had hoped he would have a long life post-football, but it appears that once the game was done with him, there wasn't any more to give.