Matthew Bryant and Melissa Bryant Grieve Death of Infant Son

Tampa Bay Buccaneer placekickerand his wifeare grieving the loss of their three month old son, who was discovered to be unresponsive in his crib on Wednesday morning. The infant, born on June 16, was the younger of two sons born to Matt and Melissa. Son Tre turned two on Monday.

Hillsborough Sheriff's deputies responded to an emergency call from the Bryant residence and arrived on the scene at 7:30 a.m. Wednesday morning. According to law enforcement spokeswoman, Debbie Carter, the baby's mother was in the process of waking Melissa's four school age children when she discovered that the baby wasn't breathing. A cause of death has not been released.

A funeral service was held on Saturday for the baby. The Bucs organization, unable to send the entire team, sent several members to attend and support their teammate. A representative said "we're going to do the best we can to lend as much love and support as we can to the Bryant family. At the same time, when he gets back we'll open our arms to him and try to help him through this as best we can as a team."

The General Manager of the Buccaneers, Bruce Allen, released the following statement by the team: "The entire Buccaneer family is deeply saddened by the tragedy. The Bryant's have been an inspiration to our entire community through their commitment to their family and exhaustive efforts working with children and those in need in the Bay area."

Matt Bryant was named the 2007 Tampa Bay Buccaneers Man of the Year. He was also a finalist for 2007 Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year.

The Bryant family released a family photo that was taken two weeks ago (see below) as well as the following statement: "Tryson enriched our lives for the short time that he was with us and we will never forget his smile. We know that Tryson's death has deeply touched the community and we appreciate the love and support from our Buccaneer fans."