Robert Farley, the father of Tennessee Titans cornerback Caleb Farley, died late Monday night in an explosion at a suburban Charlotte home owned by Caleb, according to authorities in Mooresville, North Carolina.
Fire and emergency rescue representatives confirmed that 61-year-old Robert Farley died in the explosion, which caused the house to collapse.
Another man, whose identity has not been released, was transported by an emergency team to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
According to reports, the Iredell County Sheriff’s Office, Troutman Fire, Mooresville Fire, Lake Norman Fire, and Dominion Energy were some of the agencies that responded overnight to the scene.
Footage from on X, formerly Twitter, via Queen City News shows the aftermath of the explosion.
The outlet reported that several neighbors told authorities that they smelled gas and heard a loud explosion. Robert Farley’s body was recovered by emergency crews searching through the debris.
Caleb Farley, 24, wasn’t home when the explosion happened. He arrived at the property to speak with police early Tuesday morning.
According to Iredell County officials, the 6,300-square-foot house is ruled a complete loss, along with multiple vehicles parked on site. The home was built in 2016 and was listed for over $2 million in 2022, records showed. The cause of the explosion has not yet been officially released.
There is no evidence of foul play, according to the Iredell County Fire Marshal’s Office, which is investigating the blast.
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Titans express support for Farley
In a press conference Tuesday, Tennessee Titans personnel shared their support for their teammate.
“I just found out the news, praying for him, keeping him in my prayers,” said Derrick Henry, one of last year’s team captains. “I’m praying for his family. Send my condolences. We all send our condolences. It’s a tragic situation. I don’t want to speak too much on it because I don’t know all the details, but I can’t describe how he feels right now. Just let him know we’re praying for him, we love him and we’re all here for him if he needs somebody to lean on.”
“What’s most important is that we do everything we can to support him emotionally, teammates, coaches, organization,” said head coach Mike Vrabel. “Just shocking, but also got to focus on Caleb and his family and what we can do to support them and be there for them.”
Farley played his college football at Virginia Tech. He had multiple injuries requiring surgery during his college career, but was still a first round draft pick for the Titans in 2021. A knee injury ended his rookie season after just three games, and a back injury landed him on injured reserve in 2022 after nine games. Farley is currently on the Titans active/PUP list.