NFL players react to shocking death of Dwayne Haskins

The football word is reeling following the sudden death of Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback and former Ohio State standout Dwayne Haskins, who was killed in a traffic accident in south Florida Saturday morning. NFL players throughout the league took to Twitter Saturday morning to give their initial reaction to the shocking news.

The world lost a great person today. When Dwayne first walked into the locker room I could tell he was an upbeat guy. He was always making people smile, never taking life for granted. His impact on me will last a forever.

— TJ Watt (@_TJWatt) April 9, 2022

RIP Dwayne Haskins.. heartbreaking… Prayers to his family & loved ones.
Love yours while they’re here!

— Kyler Murray (@K1) April 9, 2022

Devastated.

— Mason Rudolph (@Rudolph2Mason) April 9, 2022

Beyond saddened to hear of the loss of our NFL brother.. RIP Dwayne! Prayers to the entire Haskins family! 🙏🏾

— Tyrod Taylor (@TyrodTaylor) April 9, 2022

Tell YOUR loved ONEs…. tHAT YOU LOVE THEM!!! ❤️

Life is so short!! Rip Dwayne Haskins!
🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾

— Joe Haden (@joehaden23) April 9, 2022

Tough to find the words… you will be missed pic.twitter.com/x9bNzmRvCv

— Joey Burrow (@JoeyB) April 9, 2022

pic.twitter.com/1bNMONBwO1

— Michael Thomas (@Cantguardmike) April 9, 2022

Praying for the Haskins family!!! Damn 🙏🏾

— Darius Slay (@bigplay24slay) April 9, 2022

Haskins, who would have been 25 on May 3, was getting ready for his second season with the Steelers after starting his career with the Washington Commanders. He didn’t play for Pittsburgh last season, but the Steelers decided to bring him back to challenge Mitchell Trubisky for the starting job.

Him along with several Steelers teammates were in Florida this week because of a group trip to workout and bond together during the offseason put together by new Steelers signee Trubisky.

In two years with Washington before getting to Pittsburgh, Haskins threw for 2,804 yards and 12 touchdowns. The Commanders drafted him as the No. 15 overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft after a standout career at Ohio State. With the Buckeyes, he was First Team All-Big Ten and the Big Ten Championship MVP in 2018 before also winning Rose Bowl MVP.

Although Haskins didn’t play too often last season, Pittsburgh still gave him a contract worth $2.54 million this year to help back up Trubisky, who came in to presumably replace Ben Roethlisberger.

Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin has since released a statement regarding his quarterback’s death on social media, saying, “I am devastated and at a loss for words with the unfortunate passing of Dwayne Haskins,” Tomlin said. “He quickly became part of our Steelers family upon his arrival in Pittsburgh and was one of our hardest workers, both on the field and in our community. Dwayne was a great teammate, but even more so a tremendous friend to so many. I am truly heartbroken. 

“Our thoughts and prayers are with his wife, Kalabrya, and his entire family during this difficult time.”