Former Packers CB Kevin King Says He Tore Achilles Preparing for NFL Comeback

He did not play in the 2022 season, deciding to take the year off due to the mental strain from injuries he faced in his career.

Former Packers cornerback Kevin King announced that he tore his Achilles tendon while training to get himself in shape to return for the 2023 NFL season.

King, who was selected at No. 33 in the second round of the ’17 NFL draft, elected to not play in the ’22 season, citing that he needed a break from the mental strain of injuries he faced throughout his career. The 28-year-old suffered a left shoulder injury during his rookie season that required him to undergo surgery to repair a torn labrum. In ’18, King suffered a hamstring injury that required him to miss games and later be placed on injured reserve.

In a YouTube video that was released on Friday, the 28-year-old said he missed being on the field for Green Bay but that he wished there was more discussion about the mental effects of injuries to athletes.

“After my fifth year with the Packers I was actually pretty healthy,” King said in the video. “It was a time when I felt pretty good for the first time in a while. My first four years I had a surgery after every year, so I didn’t have too much of a chance to have an offseason. … They don’t really talk about the wear and tear on you mentally that it does, dealing with injuries.”

During the ’19 season, King played in 15 games while starting in 14—the most of his NFL career—and registered career highs in combined tackles (66), pass deflections (15) and interceptions (5). But in the ’20 and ’21 seasons, King only played in a combined 21 games.

Even with the injuries, King calls his five years in Green Bay “some of the best times in my life.”

King missed 30 of a possible 81 regular season games during his stint in Green Bay.