Former Cleveland Browns WR Rashard Higgins and LB Christian Kirksey are both signing one-day contracts and will retire as members of the team, the Browns announced today.
Higgins spent 2016-2021 with the Browns after being a fifth-round pick by the team out of Colorado State in the 2016 NFL Draft. He headed to Carolina in 2022 for a stint with the Panthers, but he didn’t record a reception in his three games with the Panthers. That was his last NFL action. For his career, he caught 137 passes for 1,890 yards and 12 touchdowns. The announcement by the Browns also said that Higgins is an active member of the Cleveland community and has volunteered at numerous events, including ones for military causes and Special Olympics.
Kirksey also spent six seasons with Cleveland. He was a third-round pick in the 2014 NFL Draft and played for the Browns from 2014-2019. He spent 2020 with the Green Bay Packers and 2021 and 2022 with the Houston Texans in what was his last NFL action. Kirksey had 484 tackles, 11.5 sacks and two interceptions along with 16 passes defensed during his time in Cleveland.
Kirksey was the Walter Payton Man of the Year nominee for Cleveland in 2018 and Houston in 2022, and during his time with the Browns, he began the Kirkland Foundation, “with the purpose to aid and encourage individuals to be them, be proud, be their own rockstar. Kirksey provided opportunities for local kids in need, including bowling events, youth football camps, fashion shows, bringing kids to Cedar Point and sporting events.”
Both Higgins and Kirksey seemed to make their impact on and off the field during their time in Cleveland, and now the two of them will officially retire as Browns after spending the final years of their career elsewhere. Kirksey had announced his retirement in September but must not have officially retired as now he and Higgins will ride off in the sunset together following one-day contracts they’ll sign with Cleveland.
