Charvarius Ward is a Super Bowl champion. But first and foremost, the Indianapolis Colts star cornerback is still a grieving father.
It’s rare that professional athletes share such a raw and personal side, but the 29-year-old All-Pro took to his Instagram Stories to reveal the heartbreaking emotions he still feels three years later.
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Oct. 5, 2025; Indianapolis, Indiana, USA; Indianapolis Colts safety Cam Bynum (0) high fives cornerback Charvarius Ward (7) after an interception against the Las Vegas Raiders during the second quarter at Lucas Oil Stadium. / Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images
“Happy heavenly birthday AMANI,” Ward wrote yesterday. “Haven’t been happy since you left us. God was wrong for this.”
Amani Joy, who he had with fiancée Monique Cook, tragically passed away in October 2024.
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“F**k Football. F**k this money. F**k any type of fame,” Ward wrote in another caption. “Don’t care for none of it. Lost without my baby. Amani JOY Ward XOXOXO.”
In one of the photos of the proud father with his baby girl, the one-time undrafted pickup by the Dallas Cowboys also had broken heart emojis to show his indescribable pain.
Charvarius Ward with his late daughter Amani / Charvarius Ward/Instagram
If there is a silver lining, it’s that Ward and Cook have a son, Charvarius Jr., that was born late last year, although that too almost ended in unspeakable heartache as he too almost died early in Cook’s pregnancy before Amani passed away.
Ward admits that because of the immense sorrow he experienced in his personal life, missing three games because of Amani’s death, and another game to be there for the birth of his son, that he struggled on the field.
Charvarius Ward shares a a father-daughter photo with Amani Joy. / Charvarius Ward/Instagram
“It took everything physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually,” Ward told ESPN in January. “It took all of that every day for me to just come here and be able to practice. I wasn’t going to meetings half the time. My social battery was so low. It was just hard being around people. I didn’t want people to feel sorry for me and everything like that. I just tried to show up and be there for my teammates.”
Hopefully his Colts teammates can get him through this extremely emotional week, as he plays his former team, the Kansas City Chiefs, who he was with when he won his Super Bowl.
Jan. 16, 2022; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Kansas City Chiefs cornerback Charvarius Ward (35) reacts to a call against the Pittsburgh Steelers in an AFC Wild Card playoff football game at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. / Denny Medley-Imagn Images
In a since deleted Instagram post that Ward wrote when Amani died, he ended it saying, “Having the privilege of being her parents and seeing the world through her eyes has changed us for the better. She will forever be daddy’s best friend and mommy’s little girl. We’ll miss you and love you forever, Amani Joy.”
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