RICHMOND, Va. β Former NFL star Rudi Johnson shared a message of hope and gratitude days before his untimely death.
Johnson, 45, recorded a video message that was played as part of his induction into the Chesterfield Hall of Fame earlier this month.
"I just want to say dream big, shoot for the stars, stay focused, never give up," Johnson said in the recorded message. "And one more thing to all the kids from Chesterfield County, I'll be watching for the next star to be born."
In the two-minute video, Johnson reminisced about his time growing up in Chesterfield County and playing under inspirational coaches for both the Ettrick Trojans youth football team and Thomas Dale High School Knights.
"I cherished every moment of it," he said about his time playing football in Chesterfield County. "It was all worth it. All of the relationships that were built along the way."
Johnson, who went on to play for the Cincinnati Bengals, died Tuesday, as first reported by TMZ.
Thomas Dale's football program shared a post on Facebook in Johnson's memory, saying in part:
"Rudi was a strong family man who loved all that he met, especially his family. He was a great son, a great husband, a great father and brother. At this time, letβs just all come together in prayer and show our support to the Johnson family."
Johnson's cause of death was not immediately known.
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