Dwayne Haskins, a starting quarterback for the Pittsburgh Steelers, was struck and killed by a dump truck early Saturday in South Florida. He was 24. According to the Florida Highway Patrol, Haskins was walking on Interstate 595’s westbound lanes for unknown reasons when he was hit. He was pronounced dead at the scene. The crash is under investigation as a traffic homicide.
Haskins starred at Ohio State in 2018, finishing third in the Heisman Trophy voting and setting numerous school passing records. He was also a starter in the Buckeyes’ Rose Bowl win over Washington. The following year, he was selected by the Steelers with the 15th pick in the NFL draft. He was in South Florida this weekend working out with some teammates, as captured in Instagram stories from the player and running back Najee Harris.
The crash occurred near the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport in Broward County, and Haskins was attempting to cross the westbound lanes of the interstate at about 6:30 a.m. when he was hit by the dump truck, authorities said. The driver of the truck stayed at the scene and has not been charged.
Police say Haskins was “under the influence of alcohol” when he was hit, and his blood-alcohol content was more than three times the legal limit. He called his wife, Kalabrya, from a local restaurant around the time of the accident and told her to stay there because he had no way to get home. She told a 911 dispatcher she was worried when he didn’t call back, and she could be heard praying on a recorded message left for the emergency services.
A toxicology report found that Haskins had a BAC of 0.24, or three times the legal limit in Florida, at the time of the accident, a police spokesman told NBC News. A toxicology report for the other occupants of the car has not been released yet.
An SUV driven by 23-year-old A.J. Lytton Jr. hit the Charger, which then crashed into two tree stumps and a palm tree before overturning. Jackson, the driver of the SUV and another man inside the vehicle were all killed. The surviving passengers have not been named, but authorities said they were all in their 20s.
MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Former Minnesota Vikings and Seattle Seahawks quarterback Tarvaris Jackson died in a one-car crash Sunday night near Montgomery, Alabama, police say. The 2012 Chevrolet Camaro Jackson was driving went off the road, struck a tree and overturned about 7 miles south of Montgomery, Trooper Benjamin “Michael” Carswell of the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency said in a statement. Jackson was pronounced dead at a hospital.
In a statement, the Vikings wrote that they were “devastated by the news” of Jackson’s death on X. “Our thoughts and prayers are with his family, friends, teammates, coaches and all the victims of this tragic accident,” the team added. The team did not immediately respond to a request for further comment from ESPN.