Cleveland Browns defensive end Chris Smith’s girlfriend Petara Cordero was killed in a car accident on Wednesday morning.
According to ProFootballTalk, Cordero was killed when she was hit by a car after exiting her vehicle following a minor accident involving a tire. The Browns defensive player was with her at the time of her death. Smith wasn’t impaired at the time of her death, but the driver who hit her admitted to police that they’d been drinking. It’s not known at this time if the driver was past the legal drinking limit.
Cordero had just recently given birth to a child.
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Cleveland Browns owner Jimmy Haslam released the following statement after the horrific tragedy:
Words cannot describe the sorrow we feel for Chris following the loss of his girlfriend, Petara. Our entire organization mourns with Chris, his family and the Cordero family. We will do everything possible to offer them our support, comfort and any resources in this most difficult time.
This is all the way around just a horrific tragedy, and there’s not many other words that can describe what has happened.
Smith and Cordero just started a family together, and now she’s dead after a minor car accident turned into something beyond nightmares.
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My guess is that Smith might step away from football for a substantial amount of time, and I don’t think a single soul would blame him for doing so.
Our thoughts and prayers are with Smith, his family, Cordero’s family and the entire Cleveland Browns organization.
This is an unimaginable tragedy, and I can’t imagine the pain he’s in right now.