Ex-NFL linebacker Dean Wells has died at age 54, after living with cancer for two years. The Carolina Panthers, his team for three seasons, announced in a statement Friday that Wells had died Thursday morning. He was diagnosed with leukemia in 2023 and received a bone marrow transplant last May. Wells began his NFL career in 1993, when he was drafted in the fourth round by the Seattle Seahawks, where he started primarily as a middle linebacker. Wells, who started in 49 games, led his team with 107 tackles in 1996, and 92 in 1997, according to The Seattle Times. He was a free agent when he signed with the Panthers in 1999, and briefly joined the New England Patriots in 2002, retiring before playing a single game for the team. Wells still holds a University of Kentucky record for most sacks in a single game—five against Indiana in 1992, according to The Seattle Times. Last year, he went public about his cancer in order to raise awareness about acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL), a fast-moving cancer of the blood and bone marrow. He encouraged people to donate blood, join the bone marrow registry, and give to cancer research initiatives.
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