Luke Kuechly

Luke Kuechly is a professional American football player in the National Football League (NFL). He currently holds the middle linebacker position for the Carolina panthers. Kuechly is known as one of the most complete defensive player in the league and a top impact player.

Born on April 20, 1991 in Cincinnati, Ohio, Kuechly was St. Xavier High School’s safety and linebacker. He went on to attend Boston College where he received the Butkus Award, Lombardi Award, and ACC Athlete of the Year Award to name a few. Kuechly was selected by the Carolina Panthers in the first round of the 2012 NFL Draft.

He started his first season as an outside linebacker but was moved to middle linebacker when Jon Beason became injured. In 2013 he was named the Best Defensive Player of the Year and ranked 15th in the league. By next season, Kuechly was leading the NFL in defensive stops.

Kuechly had his first Super Bowl appearance in 2015 but the Panthers lost to the Denver Broncos. In the 2016 season, he suffered from a concussion but was still the highest ranked middle linebacker at number 20 in the Top 100 Players of 2017. He rose to the 12th spot in the 2018 list.

In 2018, he was named to his fifth First Team All-Pro and his sixth Pro Bowl. Kuechly’s current player statistics are 948 total tackles, 12.5 sacks, 16 interceptions, 7 forced fumbles, 9 fumble recoveries, 55 pass deflections, and 2 defensive touchdowns.

Achievements:

• 6-time Pro Bowl (2013–2018)
• 5-time First-team All-Pro (2013–2015, 2017, 2018)
• Second-team All-Pro (2016)
• Art Rooney Award (2017)
• 3-time Butkus Award (pro) (2014, 2015, 2017)
• NFL Defensive Player of the Year (2013)
• NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year (2012)
• PFWA All-Rookie Team (2012)
• ACC Defensive Player of the Year (2011)
• Bronko Nagurski Trophy (2011)
• Butkus Award (college) (2011)
• Lombardi Award (2011)
• Lott Trophy (2011)
• 2-time Consensus All-American (2010, 2011)
• 3-time First-team All-ACC (2009–2011)