Browns linebacker Christian Kirksey’s 2019 season officially ended when he had surgery to repair his torn pectoral muscle. Kirksey was already on injured reserve, but there was some sliver of hope he could come back later in the season.
The surgery ended that hope. Did it also end his career in Cleveland?
Unfortunately, the answer is probably a sullen “yes.”
Kirksey was the longest-tenured member of the Browns defense. He, Joel Bitonio and Charley Hughlett have all been in Cleveland since 2014. “Kirko” has been a very popular player in the locker room and the community. He’s been a team captain for the last three seasons. Kirksey even finished in the top five in tackles in both 2016 and 2017, a rare bright spot in an otherwise dark time for the franchise.
He’s also gone on IR two years in a row, playing just nine total games. In that time, the Browns have effectively brought on his replacement, Mack Wilson. The fifth-rounder from Alabama is longer, faster and learning quickly. Sione Takitaki, drafted before Wilson in the third round, has the ability to have the same sort of impact as a run defender when he gets on the field.
And that’s part of why Kirksey is likely done in Cleveland, too. In Steve Wilks’ defense, there are never more than two LBs on the field. Joe Schobert — presuming he gets a contract extension — hasn’t left the field yet. Wilson played every snap in Week 4. Adarius Taylor and Takitaki are lower-priced backups.
Kirksey is set to earn $7.75 million and $8.25 million in base salary in 2020 and 2021. Wilson won’t earn more than 10 percent of that in any year through 2022. With other more critical mouths to feed (JC Tretter, Damarious Randall, Schobert and Myles Garrett to name a few), cutting Kirksey’s bloated salary is a no-brainer. It will cost the team just $3.6 million in dead cap room over those two seasons.
While it’s unofficial, it sure seems like we’ve seen the last of Kirksey in a Cleveland Browns uniform.
