IT has been just over a decade since a Super Bowl champion was called upon to help those in need during the Boston Marathon bombing.

For nine seasons, Joe Andruzzi blocked for the likes of Tom Brady and Brett Favre in the NFL.

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Joe Andruzzi (pictured) made 122 career appearances in the NFLCredit: Getty

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Andruzzi was on hand to help those in need following the Bostom Marathon bombingCredit: AP:Associated Press
Originally from Brooklyn, the now 48-year-old went on to become a two-time All-American at Division II South Connecticut Island.

After going undrafted in 1997, Andruzzi was picked up by the Green Bay Packers.

Wisconsin was home for Andruzzi for the next three seasons, barring a brief stint in Scotland playing for NFL Europe’s Claymores.

In 2000 he made his way to the New England Patriots where he would become Bill Belichick’s starting right guard.

Andruzzi was a stalwart on New England’s offensive line for five seasons, during which time they would win three Super Bowls.

In 2005 he made the move to join the Cleveland Browns where he’d spend just two seasons before a devastating diagnosis forced him into an early retirement.

In 2007 Andruzzi was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s Burkitt’s lymphoma, as per his foundation’s website.

Thankfully, despite its aggressive nature, he was declared cancer-free later that year and has remained so ever since.

The following year he went on to co-found the Joe Andruzzi Foundation alongside his wife Jen with the aim of raising money for cancer patients in New England.

Fast forward to April 2013, and 21 runners were participating in the Boston Marathon to raise funds for the foundation.

Others, including Andruzzi and Jen, enjoyed a watch party at a restaurant near the finish line.

“It was starting out to be a great day, great event. Unfortunately, it did not end up that way,” Andruzzi told Boston.com in 2013.

Hoping to celebrate with their runners, he and Jen made their way to the finish line along with a photographer.

“We found one and were looking for the next and all of a sudden that first explosion happened,” Andruzzi explained.

“It was loud, you felt the effects. In that instant, nobody knew anything.

“There were some screams and yelling and a lot of smoke. You didn’t know if it was coming from a restaurant, kind of like a kitchen [explosion].

“Then about 10-15 seconds later there was the second explosion. Then mayhem just started.”

In what he described as “a battle scene,” Andruzzi did what he could, helping people to their feet, and carrying a woman to an ambulance.

“I turned and saw three young women carrying somebody on their back,” Andruzzi explained.

“I ran over and that’s the picture you saw. I told them, ‘Let me help.’ Scooped her up and I remember them yelling at the cameraman, ‘Stop taking pictures of my mom.’

“I walked her down the block and to an ambulance. Later I was talking to her, she was calming down. She had hurt her ankle.

“One of the kids had blood on their hand, must have gotten hit with something. She said she was fine, a little scrape and EMS was there and they were taking care of her.”

As for those who had attended with the foundation, thankfully nobody suffered anything more severe than concussions or cuts.

“We were very lucky,” Andruzzi said, adding: “Later on television I saw many people from my foundation and the restaurant helping the many people in front. It was a tragic, heart-wrenching day for many.”

But despite his efforts to help those in need, Andruzzi said he was “definitely not a hero,” and that “I am just a bystander, and that led to my help.”

For Andruzzi, his three brothers are heroes, all of whom worked as first responders during the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center in 2001.

He explained: “Many heroes that I look upon are people like my three brothers that are running into burning buildings when others are running out.

“Explosions are going off and they are driving their cars down Boylston [Street] right into the heart of the scene.

“They are the people that don’t care about their safety and are worried for other people’s safety and survival.”

Fast forward to 2023, and Andruzzi and his foundation are still working hard to support those in need.

“Foundation was born May 2008. Since our inception, we’ve donated $10million dollars,” he told NBC affiliate WJAR.

Their work has helped around 40,000 cancer patients.

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Andruzzi was named to the Patriots’ All-Dynasty TeamCredit: Getty