Former NFL linebacker Darron Lee — once a first-round pick with a promising future — is now behind bars after police say he murdered his girlfriend inside a Tennessee home.
Authorities were called to the house, located near Ooltewah Elementary School just outside Chattanooga, after someone reported CPR in progress. When first responders arrived, they tried to save the woman’s life, but she died from her injuries. Investigators quickly determined her death was a homicide.
Lee, 31, was arrested at the scene and has been charged with first-degree murder and tampering with evidence. According to jail records, he’s being held without bond and is expected in court this Wednesday.
The news stunned many football fans who remember Lee as a top prospect out of Ohio State. After winning a national championship in 2014, he was drafted 20th overall by the New York Jets in 2016. Over three seasons in New York, he logged 241 tackles, 17 tackles for loss, and four sacks before being traded to the Kansas City Chiefs.
Lee’s NFL career fizzled soon after. He spent a single season with the Chiefs, appearing in 16 games but failing to secure a long-term deal. He later had brief stints with the Buffalo Bills and the Las Vegas Raiders before ultimately being released in 2021.
The former linebacker has a troubling history off the field as well. In 2023, he was arrested in Ohio for assault and domestic violence after allegedly pushing a woman into a wall, throwing her to the floor, and striking her in the face and head multiple times. He later pleaded guilty as part of a plea agreement.
Now, with a new homicide charge, Lee’s once-bright football career has turned into a grim true-crime saga — one that continues to unfold as investigators release more details about the killing.
You can take them out of the hood, but you can’t take the hood out of THEM.