Former NFL player Chris Payton-Jones d!ed in a Florida car accident at the age of 30.
Payton-Jones, who was driving a sedan, collided head-on with a pickup truck in Alachua County on Saturday night, April 11, according to News 4 Jacksonville.
He was the only person k!lled 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.
Former coaches of Payton-Jones have praised him as a role model, dedicated athlete, and community pillar following his death.
Sandalwood High School coach Adam Geis — who coached Payton-Jones as a three-star cornerback prospect in 2014 — remembered him as a genuine, dedicated player, driven by an elite work ethic.
“He was one of my all-time favorites! The kid never missed a workout, never missed practice, and never wanted to come off the field. Everyone loved him,” Geis said, according to News4Jax.
“He was always unbelievably positive. I’ve never heard that kid ever say anything negative about anyone or anything. … It was always a pleasure to be around him. You were always happy to see him.”
Another of his high school coaches, Patrick Clark, described him as the “hardest working human being I’ve ever been around.”
“A great player but even better person. He was never the biggest or fastest, but he did things the right way, and the game paid him back for it,” Clark said.
“Ultimately, he was going to make his biggest impact off the field as he was transitioning to a career of service in media and development of young athletes. I credit Chris as a huge inspiration to my coaching career as I moved up in the ranks. He is everything you want in a student athlete.”