Derek Wolfe did not grow up having a stable relationship with his mother. He grew up moving between homes in Lisbon, Ohio, staying with friends and distant relatives, while his mother struggled with addiction and instability. He never knew his biological father, and one of the lasting fractures in their relationship came from her refusal to share any details about him. Wolfe had finally begun to mend that part, but life had other plans.

Sometime in 2016, after Wolfe became an NFL standout and a Super Bowl champion in Denver, his mother called him. It should have been a happy moment, had the call not been to inform him about her brain cancer diagnosis. During that meeting, she admitted he had never been a priority, that she hadn’t been a good mother, and that she had been wrong through it all. She expressed remorse in both words and actions and hoped for a relationship. From then on, every time he answered her call, she would say the same thing: Thank you. It was a fragile reconnection, but that too got cut short with her passing. 

“I don’t even know where to begin, almost impossible to harness my feelings and put them into words,” Wolfe wrote in his Instagram post caption announcing the demise. “The last few days have been extremely difficult, a roller coaster of emotions- a mixture of grief, guilt, anger, and peace…Part of me hoped that eventually we could have a normal mother-and-son relationship, and that she would be In my life more than a text or phone call, but now that she is gone I know that isn’t possible and that makes me sad.

“My relationship with my mother has been complicated for the majority of my life,” Wolfe further wrote in his caption. “I spent most of those years angry and resentful. It wasn’t until recently that growth and healthy relationships in my own life helped me find forgiveness, and for that I am grateful.”

As Wolfe grew older and started a family of his own, he got to view motherhood through a whole new lens. This newfound stability came through the family he built with his wife, Abigail, and their children. It gave him perspective on his own upbringing and, over time, helped him move toward forgiveness after a deeply difficult childhood.

The two got along when Wolfe was young. Even after the divorce, staying with his stepfather offered a sense of structure he did not have elsewhere. That stability, however, did not last. When the stepfather remarried, the dynamic inside the home shifted, and the relationship deteriorated.

After being kicked out, Wolfe was forced to maintain the appearance that he wasn’t homeless. He stayed briefly with a friend, then his grandmother, and later with two aunts. He wasn’t on the streets, but he didn’t have a permanent home either. What ultimately carried him through were his friends and their families, who gave him stability when his mother couldn’t.

Somewhere in the middle of that uncertainty, Wolfe found football. He was seven years old when he first connected with the game through the Hoppel family, whose kindness extended beyond the field. Football gave him structure when the rest of his life lacked it. As he grew, so did his curiosity for the sport. He admired dominant defensive players, but he also gravitated toward quarterbacks, never limiting himself to one identity. That flexibility carried into his early playing years, as he bounced between positions before his size and skill eventually pushed him toward the defensive line, where he began to stand out.

By 2015, Wolfe had become a core piece of Denver’s defense, starting 12 games and helping the Broncos win Super Bowl 50 with 49 tackles and 5.5 sacks during the season. Away from football, he was building a steady life with his wife and children. It gave him the perspective he hadn’t had before. He could look back without anger. That foundation allowed him to forgive his mother and appreciate the time they reconnected later in life. Following her passing, Wolfe shared that he believed she was proud of him, a closing to a relationship that had taken decades to find its footing, and he shared just as much in the closing of his post:

“I do find peace in that she was content in our rekindled relationship, and that she was surrounded by family and friends who loved her in the end. I know how proud of me you were mom, and that you never stopped loving me. Rest easy and I will see you again one day.”

 As Wolfe announced the tragic news, tributes poured in from members of the Broncos’ Super Bowl team and former teammates, a reminder that while his childhood lacked stability, the family he built on and off the field was with him. 

Tributes pour in after Derek Wolfe’s mom’s tragic demise

Tributes poured in from players who shared defining years of Derek Wolfe’s career. TJ Ward, Wolfe’s teammate during Denver’s Super Bowl 50 championship run and a fellow defensive leader on that 2015 roster, summed it up simply: “RIP 🕊️. Stay strong brother. Blessings to you and family.” Others who had lived parts of Wolfe’s journey in Denver echoed that same support.

Juwan Thompson, who crossed paths with Wolfe during the post-Super Bowl stretch, wrote, “I’m sorry for your loss. Praying over you and your family.” Brandon Marshall, a longtime linebacker who shared the Broncos locker room with Wolfe through several seasons and organizational transitions, added, “God bless you D! The journey you’re on is powerful, and I’m sorry for your loss.”

December 30, 2018 – Denver, Colorado, U.S – Broncos ILB VON MILLER, left, and DE DEREK WOLFE, right, meditate while the National Anthem is being played before the start of the 1st. Half at Broncos Stadium at Mile High Sunday afternoon. The Chargers beat the Broncos 23-9. NFL American Football Herren USA 2018 – The Chargers beat the Broncos 23-9 – ZUMAav4_ 20181230_zaf_av4_003 Copyright: xHectorxAcevedox | Image Courtesy: Imago

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Even teammates from later chapters of Wolfe’s career showed up. Justin Ellis, with whom Wolfe shared the Baltimore Ravens‘ locker room, shared, “Sorry for your loss Brother 🙏🏾,” while Patrick Ricard added, “May she rest in peace ❤️.”

Football gave Wolfe a family when he didn’t have one growing up, and in this moment, that family showed up again with their short, heartfelt messages.