Korey Cunningham, former Giants lineman, dead at 28

Korey Cunningham, a recent Giants offensive lineman who also played for the Cardinals and Patriots, was found dead in his New Jersey home on Thursday afternoon, a spokesperson for the Clifton Police Department confirmed.

He was 28.

"Foul play is not suspected at this time," the spokesperson said.

Cunningham was with the Giants for parts of the 2021 and 2022 seasons, appearing in 13 games. He played in 31 career games with six starts in his career for the three NFL teams.

"We are saddened to hear of the passing of Korey Cunningham," the Giants said in a statement Friday morning. "He was a vital part of the spirit and camaraderie of the locker room. Our thoughts are with Korey's family, friends and teammates."

Even though he was not playing for the Giants last season, Cunningham still lived in Clifton, New Jersey, and remained close to members of the team. Veteran offensive lineman Justin Pugh said on social media Friday morning that Cunningham would attend weekly dinners for the offensive linemen last season.

“Team dinners are for players on the team only. Except for Korey,” Pugh wrote. “Everyone who knew Korey Cunningham was better for it. The world lost a great soul.”

Other Giants and former Giants shared that grief on social media as well.

"This one hurt,” safety Jason Pinnock wrote.

“Damn man,” wrote former Giants running back Saquon Barkley.

Cunningham, who grew up in Alabama and played football at the University of Cincinnati, was a seventh-round draft pick by the Cardinals in 2018. He was with the Patriots from 2019-20 before coming to the Giants in 2021 as a practice squad player and was eventually signed to the active roster.

By Tom Rock

tom.rock@newsday.com@TomRock_Newsday

Tom Rock began covering sports for Newsday in 1996 and became its NFL columnist in 2022. He previously was Newsday's Giants beat writer beginning in 2008.