Chiefs Super Bowl LIV champion details injury and off-field challenges in Instagram post that feels a lot like a retirement announcement
Former Kansas City Chiefs CB Bashaud Breeland had a lot to share in his recent Instagram post.
Another Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl LIV champion seems to be calling it a career.
Tyrann Mathieu hung up the cleats earlier this offseason, and now former Chiefs CB Bashaud Breeland appears to be the next one to do so. Breeland took to Instagram on Monday, detailing some of the challenges he faced during his NFL career, expressing frustration over injury and regrets over off-field decision-making. The 33-year-old Breeland first spoke about the foot injury that derailed his career.
In March of 2018, Breeland agreed to terms with the Carolina Panthers on a three-year, $24 million contract, with $11 million in guaranteed money, only for it to be “snatched back” after the team voided the deal with a failed physical designation. Breeland suffered a cut on his foot while traveling to the Dominican Republic that offseason. The infection was so severe that Breeland says amputation was a possibility, and you can see why in the video attached to his Instagram post.
Bashaud Breeland Quick Facts
- Fourth-round draft pick by Washington out of Clemson in 2014.
- Started 101 regular-season games during his eight-year NFL career.
- Played for Washington, Kansas City, Minnesota, and Green Bay.
From there, Breeland went on to sign a one-year deal with the Green Bay Packers to finish out the 2018 NFL season. He’d then earn an opportunity with the Kansas City Chiefs in 2019, but that wasn’t the end of his struggles.
“To get to the opportunity to play for the Kansas City Chiefs as a player, I did everything right, but you know what they say, if you do the same thing you get the same results,” Breeland wrote. “I fix myself as a player, but I didn’t fix myself as a person, and continue to make bonehead mistakes. I did what I had to do on the field. I contribute what I had to contribute to win a Super Bowl with the Chiefs, and yet I still had those devastated moments at the height of my career…”
Breeland’s postseason heroism in the AFC Championship Game and his pick of Jimmy G. in Super Bowl LIV won’t soon be forgotten by fans in Kansas City.
After starting every game for the Chiefs in 2019, Breeland was re-signed on a one-year contract for the 2020 NFL season. He was suspended for the first four games of the 2020 season for violating the league’s policy on substance abuse. He’d come back in October and start 14 games en route to Super Bowl LV against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. From there, he’d continue to sign one-year deals with other organizations until, as he says, “your one-year deals turn into no deal at all.”
While Breeland might approach things differently if he had another chance today, he seems to hope that his story can serve as a message to some younger players in the league.
“I tried to let the kids know that (one) mistake don’t define who it is as a person, but also that one (has) to dig deep inside and really fix themselves to prove that,” Breeland wrote. “I did and I didn’t. I mask things and it caught up to me… but I’m excited to see what’s next.”