Former NFL player faces DUI charge in Florida after crash

Updated Feb. 5, 2023 2:40 p.m. ET

Associated Press

HOLLYWOOD, Fla. (AP) — A former NFL player was arrested on a misdemeanor driving under the influence charge after troopers say his vehicle rear-ended a pick-up truck that was on the side of a South Florida highway because of a flat tire, injuring the truck's driver who had been standing outside.

Vontae Davis, 34, smelled of alcohol, had slurred speech and bloodshot eyes and could barely stay awake while being interviewed by a trooper after the accident early Saturday on the Florida Turnpike in Hollywood, Florida, according to a report from the Florida Highway Patrol.

According to troopers, Davis lost control of his Tesla sedan and it collided with the parked pickup truck on the side of the turnpike. The impact of the collision sent the pickup truck spinning into a concrete barrier, and the truck struck its driver who had been waiting outside. The driver was taken to a hospital with multiple injuries, the report said.

Davis refused to provide a blood or urine sample and wouldn't agree to perform a field sobriety test, the report said. He told the trooper that he had consumed two drinks at a club.

No attorney was listed for Davis in an online court docket.

Davis is perhaps best known for announcing his retirement in 2018 in the middle of a game between his team at the time, the Buffalo Bills, and the Los Angeles Chargers. Davis also played for the Indianapolis Colts and the Miami Dolphins.