New England Patriots LB Elandon Roberts hosts heart walk

New England Patriots linebacker Elandon Roberts is taking better health to heart.

Roberts hosted his second annual heart walk on Sunday at Memorial High School in Port Arthur, Texas. The event is held in the memory of Roberts' aunt, Felicia Carrier-Christian, who passed away from heart disease. She was 42.

"When it creeps up on someone [so young], you're like, 'Man,'" the 24-year-old Roberts said, per the Boston Herald. "A lot of people had reached out to me and were like, 'Yeah, my cousin passed away at 37 from it and my aunt passed away at 47.' I was like, 'Wow, this is really a lot of people.'

"I started doing a lot of research on it, and basically started seeing that it was the No. 1 silent killer in the United States."

A total of 546 participants pre-registered for the event.

Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver and Houston native Brandon LaFell, Bengals cornerback William Jackson III, Chicago Bears wideout Demarcus Ayers and Los Angeles Chargers linebacker D'Juan Hines were in attendance.

"It's humbling because you know you're doing it for a cause," the 6-foot, 235-pound Roberts said. "You're not doing it for popularity or just to say I did something. You're actually doing it to really help people, and to help in your community."

Roberts recorded 67 tackles and two sacks in 15 games last season.