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Browns LB Christian Kirksey earns performance-based bonus and is in line for contract extension

By NATE ULRICH Published: March 16, 2017

Browns linebacker Christian Kirksey earned a performance-based bonus for his breakout 2016 season, and he's in line to receive a contract extension from the franchise.

On Thursday, the NFL announced Kirksey will receive $84,154.17 from the veteran performance-based compensation pool.

The NFL's performance-based pay program compensates players based on their playing time and salary levels. The NFL Players Association also elected to dedicate $32 million in benefits ($1 million per NFL team) to fund a veteran performance-based compensation pool. According to the league, a combined $159.84 million will be disbursed to players from the pools.

Only six players earned more than Kirksey from the veteran performance-based compensation pool.

Kirksey, 24, became a full-time starter last year, started all 16 games and provided a bright spot on a dismal defense. He finished third in the NFL with 148 tackles and tallied 2.5 sacks and three passes defensed.

Kirksey's base salary last season was $650,000. He's scheduled to make $1.797 million in 2017, the final season of his rookie contract.

But the Browns don't want this year to be Kirksey's last with them and will work to secure him long term with a contract extension.

The organization recently signed left guard Joel Bitonio to a five-year, $51 million contract extension, and it views Kirksey as another valuable piece of its foundation.

The Browns picked Bitonio in the second round and Kirksey in the third round of the 2014 draft.

resign him for sure!

There's not much love for Kirksey here around this place, and it makes me wonder if people were even watching the kid play on Sundays?

I've been a fan since he was drafted and he keeps getting better. Be interesting to see how solid he looks with better pieces around him (Collins and Garrett)

Keeper. Sign him soon I hope.

Yep agreed. Very Deserving. Open that overfunded checkbook and get it done asap. Also throw in an extra bonus on his coverage skills, which is better then some DB's in my opinion.

he was only good on passing downs in his first year, but he's improved markedly against the run

What would deion neion say "Pay Da Man"

I vaguely remember a play from a game (dunno which) where he just shot through a hole and took the RB down in the backfield in a toss or something.

I think he's a lot better than people thought he'd be, and he's still getting better.

Is he ever going to be Patrick Willis? Probably not. Be he can definitely be a core guy.

So let's draft a LB at #12 and let him walk for a comp pick..

Young man who has made steady progress at his position !

Will there ever be a Patrick Willis? He was a freak specimen.

But there were a bit of plays like the one you've described.

Like Eotab referenced his explosion, and myself being a fan/usually watching the linebackers - a few plays I had to wait for him to get up so I could read the jersey number because if you just wasn't watching him from a get go, you wasn't aware who busted into the backfield like a bolt of lightning.

In addition, he is the linebacker that will make the sure tackle, but if there's an opportunity on a poor crossing TE or WR - he will destroy you violently and celebrate it afterwards. Which IMO, is exactly what you want in a LB'er. I hope he can continue to learn and improve.

Kirksey had a very good year. He impressed me this past year and I really hope the Browns keep him.

He did not impress me his first couple of years. I viewed him as a special teams' player who was getting a lot of snaps because our talent was so poor.

But, he really stepped up his game and his performance changed my opinion on him. tab is right that he does have explosion. He can really flash at times. That goes along w/him having good speed.

I think he struggles to get off blocks once engaged, but he has the ability, due that speed and suddenness, to avoid a lot of would-be blockers.

No sense creating another hole. Keep the man!

Why would we do that? I prefer we re-sign him.

I think that he's a keeper. Hopefully we get long term deals done with both him and Crowell.

Need to re-sign him.

my fav story about kirksey is hios small man beast mode in Madden

I thought at the end of Pet's regime that Kirksey really began to get it. We were playing some really bad football at the time but kirksey just seemed to go from feeling for the clutch to just shifting effortlessly. It carried over this year and he was a stud in the middle.

I have liked him since he was at Iowa, and was glad we drafted him, I will be happier when we Re-Sign him ...

I watched every damn game in 2016, every steaming one.
Kirksey stood out.
He is around the football a lot, tackles well and is fast. Deserves a raise.

I call him Captain Kirk! (he says as he's watching Star Trek, the original series).

x2 .. he and Shelton showed the most improvement imo

No question about it.

Yep.

It amazes me when people say that the young players we drafted last year are bums .... or busts ..... when they were rookies playing with other rookies and very young players last season.

I think that there is a good possibility that 2-4 (or maybe even more) of those young players take big steps forward this year. I could easily see Ogbah, Corey Coleman, Shon Coleman, Nassib, Kessler, Kindred, DeValve, Drango, and Higgins all taking fairly big steps forward this year, with a full off-season program, and another year of experience under their belts.

I Agree Y-Town give these guys an oppurtunity to grow ... +1

The examples in the post I originally quoted are perfect examples of why you need to have some patience with young players. Shelton went from "ok" as a rookie, to very good as a sophomore. It took till Kirksey's "junior year" for him to start playing really well, and making game changing type plays. Crow is staring to really come on strong, (even with very limited snaps) and that took a couple of years.

These kids have to be evaluated through the prism of the inexperience at play all around them. I am excited to see how they have developed between last season's end and this coming year.

I always liked Kirksey from day one. I thought he did a good job from Rookie on up. I know some didn't, but I never saw anything bad about his play.

Kid needs resigned asap before he has another great season. I'd love to see what he can do with a better unit around him. He should be our defensive leader for the next 5-8 years.

I wasn't a fan when we drafted him. Every time Iowa played OSU, I came away considerably unimpressed. He was never an impact defender. I thought he was a really bad pick.

Now I can't even remember who I wanted instead. lol I was wrong on him.

I'd rather be wrong that way, than to be really high on a player, only to see him turn out to be nothing ...... like with Trent Richardson and Justin Gilbert.

The first couple years I will admit I was on the Kirksey sucks wagon... last year he proved me wrong.

Lets hope he keeps getting better

If the Browns don't re-sign him, the rhetoric on here will be that he is a one-year wonder who is greedy and didn't want to play here.

to be fair if he's worth re-signing he will be a two year wonder... lol, but I hear ya.


and GOD forbid we don't sign him but sign another ILB FA... we know what they will bring... Front Office Page 201

LOL

He played well last season, I do fear that we have boxed ourselves into a corner where we HAVE to re-sign guys but with the year he had there is no reason not to work out a new deal.

My only real criticism his first year or so was that he didn't play very disciplined and often got himself caught getting blocked out of the play. This is where I've seen the most and vast improvement from him. The effort has always been there.

that's interesting, why do you feel we boxed ourselves in?

I just wish they'd have hammered a deal out with Kirk set last season before giving Collins mega bucks. It's going to be pricier to keep kirksey in board now.

I thought the same thing. I guess the one thing he doesn't do all that well is rush the QB, but then again I don't know how often we asked him to blitz. It's hard to sack QBs if you aren't put in to a position to do so.

Still, I think working out a extension will be easier then waiting until after next season. If the numbers don't seem to work, it is still early enough we could trade him.....and all read this carefully, I am not in favor of trading him.

i don't recall many times when Kirksey was sent in to blitz either. He's mostly a coverage guy ... but last year even better on the first 2 downs in the box