Sad girlfriend connection with NFL star dead at 31

It’s been revealed there was recent tragedy and heartbreak in the life of 31-year-old NFL player Chris Smith before his death on Tuesday.

Chris Smith of the Jacksonville Jaguars. Photo by John Konstantaras/Getty Images.

Former NFL defensive end Chris Smith previously explained how he leaned on his Browns teammates after the tragic death of his girlfriend in September, 2019.

Smith, whose death was confirmed on Tuesday, said in 2019, that he was getting used to his “new normal” after his girlfriend Petara Cordero was struck and killed by a passing car after exiting his vehicle two months prior.

The 31-year-old’s death was announced by his former High School.

No cause of death was announced, The New York Post reported.

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The emerging news about his recent history with Cordero has added another layer of devastation to the tragedy.

Cordero, 26, was struck by an oncoming vehicle three years ago while the couple was standing on a Cleveland highway after Smith’s Lamborghini had a tire malfunction and spun into the median, the Browns said in a statement at the time.

Smith, who was entering his second season with Cleveland at the time, was driving while Cordero was in the passenger’s seat.

“She didn’t feel any pain,” Smith told Sports Illustrated of Cordero in 2020. “It was like she died in her sleep.”

Chris Smith and Petara Cordero. Photo: Instagram, Getty.

He said that former Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield, now with the Buccaneers, “stayed two doors down” from where he lived at the time.

“I fell into his arms, crying,” Smith said, adding that he nearly quit football but his teammates “lifted me up.”

On Tuesday, Mayfield’s wife, Emily, took to her Instagram Story, writing, “Life is fragile. RIP Chris Smith.”

“I’m doing good. I’m better than I was,” Smith told the Akron Beacon Journal in November 2019.

“I’ve gotten used to the new normal. I think that’s from being around my teammates, my family. Football’s helped me so much.

“Me as a spiritual person, things happen for a reason. You don’t like the way they happen, but God doesn’t make any mistakes. She’s one of God’s angels. He had to take her home.”

Smith and Cordero shared a daughter, Haven Harris Smith, who was four months old at the time of her mother’s death.

Smith, who missed a game against the Colts to attend the birth, has two other children from separate relationships.

Chris Smith and Petara Cordero. Photo: Instagram, Getty.

“That night we were talking about Haven, having a family, taking trips and stuff like that and then the next thing you know she was gone,” Smith told Charlotte’s WSOC-TV after signing with the Panthers in March 2020.

“So it’s like, ‘Man, God, really?”

Smith became an ambassador for Emergency Safety Solutions, Inc. in 2020, to advocate for a Hazard Enhanced Lighting Package (H.E.L.P.) to be implemented into all new passenger vehicles.

Smith’s former high school football program, West Rowan (North Carolina), shared the news of his death on Twitter Monday, followed by his agent Drew Rosenhaus.

No cause of death has been announced for Smith.

“Rest in Peace to a West Rowan legend!” West Rowan High School football program tweeted Monday.

Chris Smith has measurements taken during the 2014 NFL Combine. Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images

Chris Smith while playing for the Jacksonville Jaguars. Photo by John Konstantaras/Getty Images.

“Chris was a better person than he was player! The impact he had on those around him will be remembered forever!”

Rosenhaus added, “Rest in Peace Chris. Condolences to all his family, friends and loved ones. We will miss you.”

The former defensive end spent eight seasons in the league, playing for the Jaguars, Bengals, Browns, Raiders, and Texans from 2014-21.

Smith — who was selected by the Jaguars in the fifth round of the 2014 NFL Draft — appeared in 72 games, starting two contests for Cleveland in 2018.

He totalled 11 career sacks, three forced fumbles and 80 tackles.

Smith had a brief stint with the XFL, and played in four games with the Seattle Sea Dragons in 2022, making five tackles.

The Arkansas product was Second-Team All-SEC in 2013.

This story first appeared in the New York Post and was republished with permission.

Originally published as Sad girlfriend connection with NFL star dead at 31