Thomas Howard dies in car crash

Former NFL linebacker Thomas Howard died early Monday morning following a high-speed car crash on a freeway in Oakland. The driver of the other car, 64-year-old Zeng Long Liu of Hayward, also died in the crash. Howard played his first five seasons with the Raiders and two seasons with Cincinnati. 'Dreaded phone call' I didn't lose a best friend or former teammate, I truly lost a brother today in Thomas Howard." Howard left the Raiders as a free agent in 2011 and started 15 games in his first season with the Bengals. Howard tore his ACL after his first game in 2012 and missed the rest of the season. Howard's father, Thomas Sr., also played nine seasons in the NFL as a linebacker.