Elijah Alexander

Elijah Alfred Alexander III (August 2, 1970 – March 24, 2010) was an American professional football linebacker who played ten seasons in the National Football League (NFL) for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Denver Broncos, Indianapolis Colts and Oakland Raiders. In 2005, Alexander was diagnosed with multiple myeloma. In 2006, he founded the Tackle Myeloma Foundation, which raised funds to help find a cure and raise awareness about myeloma (since then shut down by his surviving wife).

Early life Alexander was born in Fort Worth, Texas on August 2, 1970, and later attended Dunbar High School. He played college football for Kansas State University. He registered 234 career tackles at Kansas State and appeared in the Senior Bowl in 1991.

Professional career The Tampa Bay Buccaneers selected Alexander in the tenth round of the 1992 NFL draft. He appeared in 12 games for the team that season. In 1993, the Denver Broncos claimed Alexander off of waivers from Tampa Bay. Alexander did not start in 1993, but he appeared in 16 games. In 1997, Alexander played in 13 games, starting eleven of them, and he collected 52 tackles. He spent two more seasons with the Colts, collecting 52 and 51 tackles, respectively. In his last two seasons, 2000 and 2001, Alexander started 29 games for the Oakland Raiders and registered a total of 90 tackles for the team. He died at Medical City Hospital in Dallas on March 24, 2010.