By: Yuer Li

On September 15, 1980, 41-year-old Jim Tyrer shot his wife, Martha, before turning the gun on himself.

Jim Tyrer was a football player who played for the Dallas Texans/Kansas City Chiefs. He also played for the Washington Redskins.

Now, his legacy is secured in the lives of his and Martha’s children. The children told both their parent’s stories in an emotional documentary by Kevin Patrick Allen. The day before Jim Tyrer shot his wife was a strange one. Jim acted as if he would never see Brad, the oldest of the siblings, ever again. Then, Jim Tyrer spent his last afternoon at a Chiefs game with Jason, the youngest. Jim also complained about his head aching, but Brad thought it was because his dad had a larger-than-normal head. Because he had such a large head, the padding on his helmet was not thick enough. And because he was playing football, getting a concussion while wearing a helmet with padding “not even an inch thick” could be deadly. Football is infamous because of concussions, so you could die or experience brain trauma. That’s probably what happened to Jim Tyrer.

Article Link: Jim Tyrer’s murder-suicide and the family he left behind – The Washington Post.pdf