Baker Mayfield and Tampa Bay Buccaneers Donate $10K for Teen Who Died in Crash on Way to Game Against Chiefs

Quarterback Baker Mayfield and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are showing their support for the family of a fan who tragically died while on the way to their game against the Kansas City Chiefs last week.

The team has donated $10,000 to a GoFundMe in honor of Connor Barba, of Norman, Okla., who died in a three-car accident, while traveling from his home to Kansas City for last week’s Monday Night Football game in which the Bucs took on the Chiefs. His mother Megan Barnett was seriously injured and transported to a hospital in Tulsa, Okla., but survived.

News of the accident reached Mayfield, who played at the University of Oklahoma in Norman where he won the Heisman trophy in 2017. The quarterback said he was “honored and humbled” to know that Barba was such a big fan.

“My thoughts and prayers go out to Megan and her family as they deal with this heartbreaking loss,” Mayfield, 29, said in a statement obtained by ABC affiliate KOCO-TV.

He continued, “I would have loved to have met him. As a new parent, this really hits home for me. I realize there are no words that can provide true comfort at a time such as this, but I hope that Megan makes a full recovery and that she draws strength from the outpouring of support she is receiving from around the country."

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The 18-year-old was driving his mother — who had surprised him with tickets to the game for his birthday — when an oncoming car veered into their lane on a rural highway in southeast Kansas on Saturday, Nov. 2.

The 45-year-old driver of the other car also died in the accident, which occurred on U.S. 169 near Cherryvale just before 4 p.m., according to a Kansas Highway Patrol crash report.

Colin Barnett, Connor's uncle, told the KOCO-TV that "Connor swerved right in a way and slammed on the brakes as hard as he could."

"When Connor did that, he took the full brunt of the [Camaro]," he added, sharing that he believed those actions likely saved the boy's mom.

The boy's uncle told the news station that the teen "really wanted to see Baker Mayfield play" while his mom "wanted to see the Chiefs" and was likely hoping to catch a glimpse of Taylor Swift cheering on boyfriend Travis Kelce.

On Friday, Nov. 8 in a post on the GoFundMe, which has raised over $128,000 so far, organizer Seth Brooks shared an update on Megan’s condition. 

“Thank you to everyone for the continued support you've shown Megan's family during this difficult time, including the Tampa Bay Buccaneers,” Brooks wrote. “Your kindness means so much to us.”

Brooks added that Megan is in the ICU and has had multiple surgeries and “may have one or two more while she is hospitalized.”

“Megan and her family are incredibly grateful for the generosity shown by everyone,” he shared. “She still has a long recovery ahead of her but is uplifted by the support of everyone both near and far.”