Former Giants quarterback Jared Lorenzen, who was recently hospitalized with heart and kidney issues along with an infection, has received good news as he continues to fight for his life.
“Jared’s overnight was uneventful and that is a good thing,” Lorenzen’s family said in a statement Tuesday to Matt Jones of Kentucky Sports Radio. “He remains on Dialysis. He continues to maintain his ground. His cardiac and renal issues remain however his treatment has been effective. Jared is still very sick… but developing some traction and remains a fighter. The entire family thanks you for your support and prayers.”
Lorenzen was hospitalized on Friday and admitted to the ICU.
“On Friday, June 28th Jared began playing a bigger, more important game than he’s ever played before,” the family’s first statement from Saturday said. “Jared had not been feeling well for a few weeks and that finally caught up with him… He is fighting with everything he has and his immediate family is by his side.”
Lorenzen, nicknamed the “Hefty Lefty” during his playing days, has long struggled with his weight. In 2017, then weighing more than 500 pounds, the former Kentucky star launched the “Jared Lorenzen Project” to document his weight loss journey and support others battling with obesity. In a little less than a year, he had lost more than 100 pounds, and his story was documented by ESPN.
The Giants signed Lorenzen as an undrafted free agent in 2004 and he spent four seasons with the team. Lorenzen earned a Super Bowl ring as Eli Manning’s backup in Super Bowl XLII.
Lorenzen still holds University of Kentucky records for career passing yards (10,354), single-game passing yards (528), and ranks second in program history in career passing touchdowns (78).