Former NFL player Chris Payton-Jones died in a Florida car accident on Saturday night. He was 30.
Payton-Jones, who was driving a sedan, collided head-on with a pickup truck in Alachua County, according to News 4 Jacksonville.
He was the only person killed in the crash. The truck’s three passengers suffered only minor injuries. His family confirmed his death.
Payton-Jones signed with the Lions, Titans, Vikings and Raiders, playing in 29 games over six seasons in the league. He recorded 48 tackles and seven passes defended in the NFL.
The 6-foot, 230-pound defensive back out of Nebraska most recently played for the Seattle Battlehawks of the UFL in 2024 after spending 2022 in the XFL with the SeaDragons.
“Seeing him get the call from the Detroit Lions to welcome him to the National Football League and, you know, hugging his family and just being in that atmosphere… it hits you a little different because he had so much more to give to the world,” Patrick Clark, Payton Jones coach at Sandalwood High School, told Action News Jacksonville.
In recent years, Payton-Jones became well known in his local community for his Flashflix media company and YouTube channel, which has more than 1.3 million views. The channel was focused on local sports in Jacksonville.
“He just was an honest, genuine, true-to-himself type of person,” Clark said.
