Riddick Parker death: Patriots Super Bowl winner dies at 49 after collapsing during bicycle ride

Riddick Parker, a former Super Bowl champion with the New England Patriots, was pronounced dead earlier this month at age 49 after collapsing while riding a bike.

Parker was the principal at George Wythe High School in Richmond at the time of his death.

Jason Kamras, Superintendent at Richmond Schools, confirmed Parker's death.

"I'm absolutely devastated to share that Riddick Parker, Principal of George Wythe HS, has passed away. Mr. Parker gave his full heart and soul to the students of Wythe and will be dearly missed."

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Cause of death and Riddick Parker's life through the eyes of the lives he touched

Riddick Parker collapsed while riding his bicycle earlier this month. While there's been some speculation that he collided with a vehicle, the cause of death hasn't been made public yet.

CBS 6 featured the former Super Bowl champion in a 2019 Building Better Minds report in which he related his leadership style in education to his career in football.

Parker told WTVR:

"Game day is a testing day. So when we get down to the nine-week assessments, we get down to SOL assessments, to us, that's our Super Bowl."

Parker added:

"Teaching is coaching, you know? Essentially, you're looking at when you're going wrong, what you can improve upon and then putting together a game plan in place to make sure that happens."

Mack Brown, head coach of the North Carolina Tar Heels, also paid tribute to the former Patriots man.

"Crushed to learn of the passing of Riddick Parker. He was a great player for us and in the NFL, but more importantly, he touched so many lives while serving as a high school principal. Our thoughts and prayers are with all of Riddick’s family and friends."

State Senator Ghazala Hashmi also put out a statement expressing her condolences in light of Parker's untimely death.

"I am heartbroken to read about the loss of an exceptional leader in education; I know that the @RPS_Schools family is feeling this loss keenly. My thoughts are with Principal Parker’s family and friends, and with the students and staff of George Wythe."

During his seven seasons in the NFL, he suited up for the Seattle Seahawks, New England Patriots, San Diego Chargers, San Francisco 49ers, and Baltimore Ravens. He also scaled the Super Bowl mountain with the Patriots in 2001.

The former defensive tackle called time on his playing career in 2003, after which he turned to education as a career. He worked for Baltimore City Public School as an education consultant before joining Armstrong High School as an associate principal.