Brother of Vontae Davis says cause of death unknown: 'Never showed a history of drugs'

The older brother of former Indianapolis Colts and Buffalo Bills defensive back Vontae Davis broke his silence after his sibling was found dead on Monday at his Southwest Ranches, Florida residence.

Vernon Davis, who played for 11 seasons in the NFL, said his 35-year-old brother "never really showed a history of using drugs or anything like that," adding that Vontae collapsed or slipped while getting out of his sauna.

A housekeeper found the two-time Pro Bowler slumped over in his home gym.

"This thing definitely caught me by surprise. I just don't know what to make of it," Vernon Davis told DailyMail.com. "I'm leaning on the detectives to figure it out, but right now, we have no answers. They are going to run tests, and they said they'll get back to us. It could be as long as a month, a month and a half, until we know anything."

Authorities initially said they did not suspect foul play in Davis' death.

When asked about the possibility of Vontae Davis having any brain injury, Vernon Davis said his brother never mentioned it to him but did say Vontae had attention-deficit disorder.

"Maybe that's the case, maybe it's not. We don't really have an answer to that because there is no way to see into our brain while we live," Vernon Davis said.

Vernon Davis said he was proud of his brother because of his work ethic and discipline.

"We were the difference makers in our family," Davis said. "We came from a tough background but we had goals and aspirations to be better than the space we came out of. I could not have picked a better little brother."

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Vernon Davis says cause of brother Vontae Davis' death still unknown