Former Linebacker for the Browns Calls it Quits
After a successful nine-year NFL career, veteran linebacker Christian Kirksey has made the decision to ‘hang em up’.
Christian Kirksey, a former linebacker for the Cleveland Browns, has announced his nine-year NFL retirement. Kirksey was cut by the Texans at the end of the preseason, and he was most recently with the Buffalo Bills on the practice squad.
The Browns selected Kirksey in the third round of the 2014 NFL Draft. The first-round selections of Justin Gilbert and Johnny Manziel will always be the highlights of that draft class, but the team’s later selections of Joel Bitonio and Kirksey—who would go on to have a very successful career—were the greatest players.
Throughout his career, Kirksey participated in 114 games and recorded 778 tackles, 16.5 sacks, and 13 forced fumbles. After suffering setbacks in his last two seasons with the Browns, Kirksey signed with the Packers and played his final few seasons with the Texans, where he made a comeback. He was their captain and a vital member of the defence.
The player known by his teammates as “Kirko” was a vital member of the Browns teams that he played on. The majority of fans will always remember him with affection for creating the catchphrase known as the “Dawg Check,” which gained popularity during the exceptional 2018 season and is still used to this day.
