Tag: Christian Kirksey

Two former Browns signing one-day deals to retire in brown and orange

Two former Browns will retire in the brown and orange!

Ready to hang up their cleats, two former members of the Cleveland Browns want to retire as members of the Cleveland Browns. Linebacker Christian Kirksey and wide receiver Rashard Higgins will both sign one-day deals with the team to retire in the brown and orange.

Kirksey, drafted in the third round of the 2014 NFL draft, spent the first six seasons of his nine-year career with the Browns. He was a team captain over the final three years of his tenure in Cleveland, starting a total of 54 games in the brown and orange. He then moved on, spending one year with the Green Bay Packers and two years with the Houston Texans.

Higgins joined the Browns two years later as a fifth round pick in the 2016 NFL draft. He also spent six seasons in Cleveland before signing a one-year deal with the Carolina Panthers in 2022. Higgins amassed a total of 1,900 yards and 12 touchdowns in Cleveland.

Congratulations on the careers, Christian and Rashard!

Former Bills LB Christian Kirksey posts retirement message

The #Bills got a mention:

Christian Kirksey’s career with the Bills was short lived.

Kirksey, 31, was cut by the Texans at the end of training camp this summer. He then signed to the Bills’ practice squad.

Some expected Kirksey to quickly be called up to the active roster, potentially to start for the Bills in their season opener. That didn’t happen and he has since retired from the NFL this past week.

Even with his shortened time in Western New York, Kirksey still noted the Bills in his ensuing retirement message posted to his social media account on Instagram.

The message in its entirety can be found below:

https://www.instagram.com/p/Cxd_HaHJOsu/

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Former Browns LB Christian Kirksey hangs up his cleats after nine NFL seasons

Former Cleveland Browns captain Christian Kirksey announces his retirement from the NFL.

Christian Kirksey, the former linebacker of the Cleveland Browns, retired from the NFL today per Mike Garafolo. Christian Kirksey played nine seasons in the NFL and signed to the Buffalo Bills’ practice squad after getting cut by the Houston Texans during cutdowns. The veteran linebacker also spent a season in Green Bay as a starter.

Christian Kirksey was the Browns’ third-round pick in 2014. The linebacker from Iowa became a starter in his rookie year and held that position during his six seasons with the Browns. Kirksey amassed 484 tackles, 11.5 sacks, and 5 turnovers in his 73 games with Cleveland.

Kirksey was named a team captain during the 2017-2019 seasons, marking him as the leader of the defense. Kirksey’s infectious attitude didn’t just win over his teammates; he became a fan favorite during the hard times in Cleveland. Christian Kirksey coined the phrase “Dawg Check” during his time in Cleveland.

Christian Kirksey developed a very philanthropic attitude while he was a member of the Browns. He led multiple charity events and donated generously during his time in Cleveland. This good habit would follow him for the rest of his career. Last season he was selected by the Houston Texans as their nominee for the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year award. Hopefully, we see him in Berea for a one-day contract. So here is a final farewell to “Kirko” to congratulate him on his nine seasons in the NFL; Dawg Check.

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Former Texans LB Christian Kirksey announces retirement

Former Houston Texans linebacker Christian Kirksey announced his retirement from the NFL via Instagram Sept. 21.

Former Houston Texans linebacker Christian Kirksey is calling it a career.

The two-time Walter Payton Man of the Year nominee took to Instagram Thursday evening to announce his retirement from the NFL.

Kirksey, 31, had presently been on the Buffalo Bills practice squad prior to his retirement announcement.

The Texans signed Kirksey in free agency 2021. The former Iowa product logged 214 combined tackles through 30 games with Houston, 29 of which he started.

Houston decided to go with younger linebackers in second-year Christian Harris and fifth-rounder Henry To’oTo’o at the end of preseason during the formation of the 53-man roster. Kirksey was the odd man out.

Prior to playing for the Texans, Kirksey was a former Cleveland Browns 2014 third-round pick. In 2020, Kirksey played for the Green Bay Packers.

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Bills’ Christian Kirksey retires from NFL

Kirksey out and Klein in:

Christian Kirksey’s career with the Buffalo Bills will go down as uneventful.

On Thursday, the team has announced that Kirksey has decided to retire from the NFL.

Following roster cuts at the end of training camp, Kirksey signed to Buffalo’s practice squad. At the time, the Bills did not have a very clear answer at linebacker in their quest to replace Tremaine Edmunds and the 31-year-old felt as a potential plug-and-play starter.

Instead, Terrel Bernard has started the first two games of Buffalo’s season after not playing at all in the preseason due to a hamstring injury. Bernard recorded his first-career interception last weekend against the Las Vegas Raiders.

With Kirksey out, AJ Klein has taken his spot on the practice squad. The team announced that Klein has signed in Buffalo once again.

Klein, 32, was with the Bills this summer in training camp but was released at the end of August. He has had multiple stints with the team previously.

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Bills sign LB Christian Kirksey, QB Shane Buechele

#Bills sign LB Christian Kirksey, QB Shane Buechele:

The Buffalo Bills signed LB Christian Kirksey and QB Shane Buechele to the practice squad completing their 16-man practice squad to begin the 2023 season.

Kirksey, who turned 31 on Thursday, was a surprise cut by the Houston Texans this week. He was third on the team with 124 tackles in 17 games last season. He was in Cleveland for six seasons, Green Bay for one and spent the last two in Houston. His career totals: 778 tackles, 16.5 sacks and seven interceptions.

Kirksey spent the last two seasons with the Texans and has previously played for the Packers and Browns. He started all 17 games for the Texans last season and should have a good chance of getting called up to the active roster and getting some playing time in Buffalo.

With Matt Barkley on injured reserve, the Bills have only Kyle Allen behind starting quarterback Josh Allen. Buechele will be the third man in the quarterback room.

Kirksey, a former linebacker for the Texans, has started in 29 games since 2021 and has experience playing both middle linebacker and outside linebacker. He is from St. Louis, MO and is going into his 10th NFL season.

Buechele spent the last two years with the Chiefs, who signed him as an undrafted rookie out of SMU in 2021. He has never appeared in a regular-season game but showed some promise in the preseason this year.

Buechele joins the Bills after spending the last two seasons with the Chiefs. The former SMU QB had a solid preseason showing for KC, throwing for 349 yards and three touchdowns with a 64.4% completion rate in three games.

Kirksey will wear No. 55 and Buechele will wear No. 6.

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Former Texans captain Christian Kirksey inks practice squad deal with Bills

Kirksey was a surprise cut by the #Texans on Tuesday, and quickly found a new home with the #Bills on Wednesday.

One day after being cut by the Houston Texans, former linebacker and team captain Christian Kirksey has found a new home with the Buffalo Bills, according to Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network. The nine-year NFL veteran was signed to the Bills practice squad as he continues to heal from a hamstring injury that kept him out of most of training camp and preseason action.

On Tuesday, the Texans cut Kirksey in a surprise move, especially with the lack of experience at the position. He finished the 2022 season with three sacks with 124 total tackles. Kirksey was nominated for the Texans Walter Payton Man of the Year Award last season.

“‘Kirko’ [Christian Kirksey], is a really great leader, a great man,” said Texans general manager Nick Caserio during his press conference on Wednesday.

Drafted by the Cleveland Browns in the third round of the 2014 NFL Draft, Kirksey has recorded 16.5 sacks and 778 total tackles in 114 games with the Browns, Green Bay Packers, and the Houston Texans.

“He [Kirksey] taught me a lot during my rookie year on how to become a good linebacker and NFL player,” said second-year linebacker Christian Harris on Wednesday after practice. “He will be missed in this locker room.”

3 reasons the Texans had to cut LB Christian Kirksey

The Houston Texans cut linebacker Christian Kirksey, and here are three readily identifiable explanations.

The Houston Texans decided to go in a separate direction and cut linebacker Christian Kirksey Aug. 28 as part of their efforts to finalize their 53-man roster.

Kirksey, 30, played 30 games for the Texans over the past two seasons, starting in 29 of them. The former Cleveland Browns 2014 third-round pick collected 137 combined tackles, 13 tackles for loss, nine quarterback hits, 3.0 sacks, 13 pass breakups, three interceptions, and three fumble recoveries.

The 6-2, 235-pounder was a decent fit for the Texans when they deployed their Tampa 2 the past two seasons. New coach DeMeco Ryans wanted to work with Kirksey despite the scheme change, but here three reasons why Kirksey won’t be in Houston in 2023.

Houston Texans cuts tracker: Trimming to get to 53

Here is a look at the cuts the Houston Texans have made as they build their 53-man roster.

The Houston Texans must get their roster at 53 men by 3:00 p.m. Central Time Aug. 29.

In that process comes easy cuts and also some difficult decisions.

“I appreciate guys just their work ethic and how much work those guys put in for us,” coach DeMeco Ryans told reporters Monday. “I don’t take that lightly. Our guys have done a great job of doing what we’ve asked them to do. We’ve asked them to work hard each and every day — our guys did that. They didn’t complain, they just worked. So, it’s a hard day. Over the next couple of days — it’ll be a hard few days having to let guys go because I know the work that these men have put in.”

Below are the moves the Texans have made as they build their first regular season roster under Ryans.

Texans release linebacker the Bills previously had interest in

A name to keep in mind for the #Bills:

There could be one name to already add to your list of players the Buffalo Bills could sign with roster cut down day quickly approaching.

According to NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo, veteran linebacker Christian Kirksey was released by the Houston Texans. For those who very intently follow the Bills, Kirksey is a name that’s been attached to Buffalo before.

During the 2020 free agency period, the Bills hosted Kirksey on a free-agent visit. That’s a clear sign of interest in the linebacker.

This offseason, Buffalo has been searching for their Tremaine Edmunds replacement and it’s still ongoing. Terrel Bernard has not had an opportunity to fight for the job due to a hamstring injury and Tyrel Dodson hasn’t taken full advantage of the extra snaps with Bernard out.

Kirksey, 30, opted to sign with the Green Bay Packers after his visit to Buffalo in 2020. He then went on to join the Texans as a free agent in 2021.

Now a free agent again, the Bills could show interest in Kirksey once more since there clearly was a level of it before.

After a strong start to his NFL career with the Cleveland Browns, injuries eventually derailed Kirksey.

He did not miss a game for his first four years in the pros. The ensuing four saw him miss multiple each season.

In 2022, Kirksey did again manage to stay on the field. He featured in all 17 games for the Texans, making 124 tackles, including seven for loss, with three sacks and five passes defended.

Kirksey played his college football at Iowa where he was a teammate of current Bills safety Micah Hyde.

Bills Wire will continue to bring updates throughout the roster cut process this week. NFL teams must be down to 53 players by 4 p.m on Tuesday.

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