TAMPA, Fla. — NFL and former Buccaneers running back Leonard Fournette appears to have avoided injury after his car caught fire Tuesday morning while he was driving on a freeway in Tampa.
Fournette posted a video to Instagram on Tuesday where he showed his burned vehicle on the side of the highway. Fournette doesn’t speak in the video, which shows extensive damage to the SUV.
"Man it was one of those days today, but I would like [to] thank God, my car caught on fire while I was driving. But I am still blessed," Fournette wrote in his social media post.
The Florida Highway Patrol says at 10:35 a.m., Fournette was heading northbound on Interstate 275 near Fowler Avenue when his SUV caught fire caused by a mechanical issue.
The 28-year-old then stopped along the inside shoulder of the interstate and got out of his 2021 Dodge Durango safely and with no injuries, troopers say.
Leonard Fournette's SUV erupts in flames on I-275 in Tampa
Other NFL players, such as Pittsburgh's Diontae Johnson and Miami's Jalen Ramsey, showed their support for Fournette by commenting on his post with praying hands emojis.
In the video, the front of the car looks completely burned and destroyed, whereas the back half of the SUV looks less damaging.
Although he did not show how he looked after the incident, it appears that the former Buccaneer avoided any serious injury and is OK.
Fournette has spent the past three seasons playing for Tampa Bay, with some of his most notable moments in the 2020 postseason helping the Bucs to a championship win in the Super Bowl. He started 25 of 43 regular season games in his three years with the Bucs and scored 17 rushing touchdowns,
Fournette, who was a first-round pick by Jacksonville in 2017, is currently a free agent after being released by the Bucs during the offseason in a salary cap move.
The Associated Press and 10 Tampa Bay's Jordan Highsmith contributed to this report.