‘HEARTS ARE BROKEN’

Former NFL Star, 30, Dies in Head-On Car Crash

Chris Payton-Jones played six seasons in the NFL, appearing in 29 games.

Former NFL defensive back Chris Payton-Jones died in a head-on car crash in Florida on Saturday night. Authorities said Payton-Jones, 30, was driving a sedan in Alachua County when it collided with a pickup truck, News 4 Jacksonville reported. He was the only person killed. Three others in the truck suffered minor injuries. Payton-Jones played six seasons in the NFL, appearing in 29 games in total for the Detroit Lions, Tennessee Titans, Minnesota Vikings, and Las Vegas Raiders. He recorded 48 tackles and seven passes defended. A Nebraska product, he later played in the XFL and UFL, most recently with the Seattle Battlehawks in 2024. Off the field, he built a local following in Jacksonville through his Flashflix media company and YouTube channel. “He had so much more to give,” his former high school coach, Patrick Clark, told Action News Jacksonville. Clark remembered him as “honest” and “true-to-himself.” Anthony Becht, another of Payton-Jones’ coaches, said his “heart was broken.”