Sad: Raiders Star Man Confirm Accident On His Way To Trending Field…

n a tragedy that unfolded in Houston, Texas on Saturday, November 11, former Raiders cornerback DJ Hayden was killed in a major traffic accident around 2 a.m. local time.

According to Houston Police Assistant Chief Megan Howard, the accident took place at the intersection of Pierce and Fannin streets in the city. Two vehicles were involved, and six people were killed. One of the vehicles, Howard said, “ran a red light, appears to be going very fast, high velocity.”

Four people were pronounced dead at the scene, and four others were taken to the hospital, where two died.

Reporter Joseph Duarte, who covers the University of Houston for the Houston Chronicle, reported on Twitter (X) that Hayden and former teammate Zach McMillan were among the dead.

“Tragic news to report this morning: I can confirm from multiple sources that former Houston football players DJ Hayden and Zach McMillan were among those killed in a collision early Saturday morning in Houston,” Duarte wrote.

Even before the Raiders chose DJ Hayden in the first round of the NFL draft in 2013, Hayden had garnered national attention when he suffered a near-fatal tear of the inferior vena cava—the main vein that brings blood to the lower body—while at practice with Houston in November 2012.

During a normal pass-defense drill, Hayden took an awkward hit, went down and struggled to breathe. He knew something was wrong immediately.

It was only through quick action from the school’s training staff, emergency responders and doctors at Memorial Hermann Texas Trauma Institute in Houston that Hayden’s life was saved.

Hayden described the surgery done by Dr. Ron Albarado later. “He put some sutures in, stitched (the IVC) back together, closed me back up and here I am today,” he said. “They said it was like sewing together wet tissue paper. I don’t know how he did it, but he did it.”

Hayden spent a week in the hospital after the surgery, but, three months later, Hayden was showing off his first-round form at the NFL Combine. The Raiders made him the 12^th overall pick in 2013.