The father of Tennessee Titans player Caleb Farley was killed when a North Carolina home Farley owned exploded late Monday, officials said.
The blast, which occurred at the home in Mooresville just before midnight, killed Robert Matthew Farley, 61, the Iredell County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release.
No foul play is suspected, the sheriff’s office said.
Caleb Farley, 24, a cornerback drafted by the Titans in 2021, was not home at the time of the explosion.
“We’re looking into an issue of natural gas, but the investigation is ongoing,” Kent Greene, the director of fire services and emergency management, told reporters.
Another person, described as a friend of Caleb Farley's, was injured, Greene said. Fire officials found him leaving when they arrived, and his injuries were not considered to be life-threatening. He was concussed by the blast, Greene said.
Robert Farley lived at the home, and his body was found around 4:30 a.m. in the wreckage, Greene said.
Greene said officials believe Robert Farley was Caleb Farley's father. The news section of the Titans' website also reported he was Farley's father.
Farley’s mother, Robin Farley, died of breast cancer in 2018, the website says.
Utility company Dominion Energy said it was continuing to work with emergency officials in the investigation and said its condolences go to all those affected.
Titans head coach Mike Vrabel said his thoughts and those of the team are with Farley and his family.
“I think what’s important is that we do everything that we can to support Caleb, his family, and do everything that we can to be there for him,” Vrabel told reporters Tuesday.
A neighbor told NBC affiliate WCNC of Charlotte that the explosion occurred just about midnight and that it shook their house.
The cause of the explosion is under investigation. Mooresville is a town of around 50,000 about 25 miles north of Charlotte.
