Jon Dorenbos has made it to the Pro Bowl as a long snapper for the Philadelphia Eagles, but he might be more famous as a professional magician.

And despite his improbable football career -- he is headed into his 12th NFL season after going undrafted out of Texas El-Paso -- magic is what means the most to him.

When Dorenbos was 12, his father murdered his mother.

To help him deal with the depression that followed, a friend introduced Dorenbos to magic, and there was an immediate connection.

"It was something that at the darkest time in my life was genuinely fun for me," Dorenbos told Bryant Gumbel. "It saved me."

HBO's Real Sports takes a closer look at how Dorenbos recovered from such a shocking experience in an episode that premieres at 10 p.m. ET/PT Tuesday. Here's a preview:

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