ALACHUA COUNTY, Fla. — Action News Jax is hearing from the aunt and uncle of former NFL player Chris Payton-Jones, who was killed in a car accident on Saturday.
The Florida Highway Patrol reports Payton-Jones was driving in the wrong direction in Alachua County when he hit a pickup truck and his car caught on fire. Jones died at the scene.
The driver of the pickup truck, a 21-year-old man from Middleburg, and two passengers suffered minor injuries. The crash remains under investigation.
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Uncle Edward and Aunt Kelli Payton can describe Chris Payton-Jones in one word. “One, a dream chaser,” said Kelli.
Payton-Jones, a Sandalwood High School alum, achieved his dreams. He played college football at Nebraska.
He was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Lions in 2018. He got waived and was picked up by the Cardinals. He made his NFL debut in 2018 when he made the Cardinals’ active roster for the first time.
He played a few seasons in the XFL/UFL trying to get back to the NFL, before retiring from football at the beginning of the year. He was doing full-time content creating, while doing some individual and team coaching.
He spoke to Action Sports Jax about this in 2024. “I can’t thank God enough for the opportunity to play at that stage, unlike a lot of people. But like a lot of people, I got drafted in my dreams came true to play in front of thousands of people,” Chris Payton-Jones said to Action Sports Jax in November of 2024.
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Those dreams abruptly ended Saturday night, when Jones died in a car crash. His aunt and uncle said he was coming from a photo shoot, as he does photography on the side, and they said he apparently made a wrong turn.
“Yeah, he’s gone way too soon and not forgotten. He will never be forgotten. I don’t think he’ll be forgotten in the college world, which is Nebraska, the NFL, and all around the league. He’s an all-around guy,” said Edward.
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We asked Edward what one last thing he could say to Chris. He said, “Well done, my friend. I love you as a nephew and a patriarch that did what most of us would dream of doing.”
Making the situation all the more tragic is that Jones just had a baby who was born only three weeks ago.
Sandalwood High School’s principal says they’re talking with the family to see if they’d like a memorial at the school.
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