Former Montevallo High School standout and NFL offensive tackle Korey Cunningham was found dead at his New Jersey home on Thursday afternoon, RLS Media reported.

Cunningham most recently played with the New York Giants in 2021 and 2022 and went to training camp with the team in 2023, but he was released when New York reduced its preseason roster to the regular-season limit on Aug. 28.

“We are saddened to hear of the passing of Korey Cunningham,” the Giants said in a statement released on 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.”

RLS Media reported emergency services responded to reports of an unconscious man at Cunningham’s residence in Clifton, New Jersey. The State Regional Medical Examiner’s Office later removed Cunningham’s body.

ESPN reported law-enforcement authorities were investigating the 28-year-old’s death, but said “foul play is not suspected at this time.”

At Montevallo, Cunningham played tight end and defensive end for the Bulldogs. He made the transition to the offensive interior in college at Cincinnati.

Cunningham had planned to play at Auburn, but the Tigers’ switch at coach from Gene Chizik to Gus Malzahn changed that. UAB was his next choice. But when Blazers assistant coach Tyson Helton left for Cincinnati, he invited Cunningham to visit.

Cunningham went to Cincinnati as a 220-pound tight end and left the Bearcats after starting his final 24 games at left offensive tackle. His roster weight with the Cardinals was 311 pounds.

Cunningham entered the NFL as a seventh-round selection of the Arizona Cardinals in the 2018 draft.

Cunningham started the six games that he played as a rookie.

On Aug. 29, 2019, Arizona traded Cunningham to the New England Patriots in exchange for a sixth-round selection in the 2020 NFL Draft. Cunningham played in 12 games over two seasons with the Patriots.

After New England waived Cunningham at the end of the 2021 preseason, he joined the Giants as a member of their practice squad the next week. He played in 12 games that season but appeared in only one in 2022, when he had foot surgery.

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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.