Fant honors late mother by continuing to grind on the field

Through the growing pains of his rookie season and injury issues last year, Denver Broncos tight end Noah Fant has shown flashes of greatness on the field.

Now, following the unexpected death of his mother Kathy earlier this month, Fant is determined to push through his biggest obstacle yet to ensure his place among the upper echelon of NFL tight ends.

“I know that she’s looking down in heaven upon me and is proud of what I’m doing,” Fant said Thursday after the team’s OTAs. “I’m going to keep grinding and keep pushing for her.”

The self-described “momma’s boy” said he’s taking things one day at a time following his mother’s death, adding that she would want him to “keep working and keep grinding.”

“This is one of those things that wasn’t expected to happen, but I definitely use that as motivation. The way I look at it is if I went off a cliff, how would that make my mom feel? How would that make my dad feel? They would want me to keep playing,” Fant said. “I’m not going to necessarily say that’s going to push me into the upper echelon, but that’s always been goal, even before all this stuff happened with my mom.”

Fant said he’s working this offseason on being more consistent with his play, and that if he can figure that out the “sky is the limit.”

“Consistency is a big word I’ve been focusing on this year. I’m starting to figure things out, starting to be more knowledgeable about the game and starting to get those vet aspects to what I’m doing,” Fant said. “Now, it’s just consistency. Consistently being at the top level of play amongst the league.

“I’m not just competing with myself. I’m competing with every tight end across the league. There’s some good ones, so I have to step up to that level.”

Among Fant’s top supporters is star linebacker Von Miller, who said this week that the third-year tight end is his “favorite guy on the team.”

“Noah Fant, I’m super excited about this guy,” Miller said on Monday. “He’s buff; he’s strong. I think he’s going into Year 3 now, and he just looks like a beast. I was excited when we picked Noah, and you can kind of see everything coming together for Noah and ‘Albert O’ (Albert Okwuegbunam) — both of those guys.”

Fant said on Thursday that Miller’s words “meant a lot” to him and that the veteran pass rusher has helped him through a lot over the past few seasons.

“I remember my rookie year and him constantly talking to me and helping me through growing pains,” Fant said. “This last year and everything I’ve been through these last couple months, he’s been there for me. It meant a lot. I think we’ve become closer over my span here.

“I just want to maximize my potential on the field and be that household name that he is for the Broncos. Help lead a team and do all those things that he’s so great at.”