Ex-Texan Christian Kirksey Explains 'No Brainer' Signing With Bills

Former Texans linebacker Christian Kirksey has landed on his feet in Buffalo with the Bills.

Christian Kirksey was a surprising cut for the Houston Texans at the 53-man roster deadline this week. Fortunately for Kirksey, it did not take long for him to find a new home.

And as a result, of the sudden change to his situation, he's bringing some rookie-like motivation with him to Orchard Park after officially signing with the Bills on Thursday.

"Being a part of a winning culture, I'm all about that," Kirksey said Thursday. "I'm hungry, I'm ready to help out wherever I can. I'm ready to win, it was a no-brainer for me."

Kirksey will begin the season on Buffalo's 16-man practice squad, but has plenty of reason to feel motivated. He was cut by the Houston Texans on Tuesday's deadline day despite coming off a 2022 season that saw him finish with 124 total tackles, three sacks and two interceptions.

He suffered a hamstring injury this offseason that caused him to miss all three of Houston's preseason games. The Texans saved $5.2 million in cap space by cutting him.

While some vets might expect an immediate 53-man roster spot due to plain experience, Kirksey is hardly rushing the process. He understands that he'll have to pay his due behind the scenes first before getting a potential activation to the gameday roster.

"Right now head down, trying to learn this playbook," he said. "Everything will work out for itself. All I can do on my end is control the controllable. ... I'm going into Year 10 and this my seventh defense I've had to learn, so I'm familiar with adapting."

If and when Kirksey does get called up, he'll be bringing some unique experience not found on many practice squads throughout the league.

A third-round pick by the Cleveland Browns out of Iowa in the 2014 NFL Draft, Kirksey has been a tackle machine during his time in the league. He spent six seasons in Cleveland, one with the Green Bay Packers and two with the Texans. His best year came in the 2016 season with the Browns, which saw him finish third in the NFL with 148 total tackles.

Kirksey has played in 114 career games. Along the way, he's posted 779 total tackles (486 solo), 16.5 sacks, four forced fumbles, six fumble recoveries, seven interceptions and 34 passes defended.

The Bills will kickoff the season on Monday, Sept. 11 against the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium.