Cole Christiansen (born July 30, 1997) is an

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, p ...

for the

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The tea ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

(NFL). He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

Army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

Early life and high school

Christiansen grew up on a horse farm in

Suffolk, Virginia Suffolk is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia, and as such has no county. As of the 2020 census, the population was 94,324. It is the 9th most populous city in Virginia and the largest city in Virginia by boundary land area as ...

and attended

Nansemond-Suffolk Academy Nansemond-Suffolk Academy (NSA) is a private school, founded as a segregation academy in 1966 in Suffolk, Virginia. NSA has two campuses. The Main Campus (adjacent to downtown Suffolk) includes 166,000 square feet of educational space situated ...

, where he played football and lacrosse. He was named the Virginia Independent Schools Athletic Association Defensive Player of the Year and the Tidewater Conference Player of the Year as a junior and as a senior.

College career

Christiansen played for the

Army Black Knights The Army Black Knights are the athletic teams that represent the United States Military Academy, located in West Point, New York. In sports contexts, since 2015, the teams are commonly referred to as Army. The Black Knights compete at the Nation ...

for four seasons. He became a starter in his sophomore season and finished second on the team with 84 tackles and was named a team captain going into his junior year. Christiansen finished second in tackles again as a junior with 77 while also leading the team with 12 tackles for loss. As a senior, he led the Black Knights with 112 tackles, with 3.5 tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks and two forced fumbles. Christiansen finished his collegiate career with 275 tackles.

Professional career

Los Angeles Chargers

Christiansen signed with the

Los Angeles Chargers The Los Angeles Chargers are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Chargers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) West division, and ...

as an undrafted free agent on April 25, 2020, after receiving a waiver that allowed him to serve in the reserves and delay his active duty commitment until after his playing career is over. He was waived by the Chargers during final roster cuts on September 5, 2020, but was signed to the team's

practice squad In sports, the practice squad, also called the taxi squad or practice roster, is a group of players signed by a team but not part of their main roster. Frequently used in gridiron football, they serve as extra players during the team's practices, ...

the next day. He was elevated to the active roster on November 21, November 28, and December 5 for the team's weeks 11, 12, and 13 games against the

New York Jets The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The J ...

Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. ...

, and

New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East divisio ...

, and reverted to the practice squad after each game. He was promoted to the active roster on January 1, 2021. On August 31, 2021, Christiansen was waived by the Chargers and re-signed to the practice squad the next day. He signed a reserve/future contract with the Chargers on January 11, 2022. On August 30, 2022, Christiansen was waived by the Chargers.

Kansas City Chiefs

On September 1, 2022, Christiansen was signed to the

practice squad. On October 15, 2022, he was elevated to the active roster. Two days later, he recorded his first tackle with the team against the

. Christiansen became a

Super Bowl champion The Super Bowl is the annual American football game that determines the champion of the National Football League (NFL). The game culminates a season that begins in the previous calendar year, and is the conclusion of the NFL playoffs. The winn ...

when the Chiefs defeated the

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. The team plays ...

Super Bowl LVII Super Bowl LVII is the upcoming championship game of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2022 NFL season. The game is scheduled to be played on February 12, 2023, at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. It will be the fourth Super B ...

. He signed a reserve/future contract on February 15, 2023. On August 29, 2023, Christiansen was waived by the Chiefs and re-signed to the practice squad.

References

External links

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Army Black Knights bioLos Angeles Chargers bioPersonal Website
1997 births Living people Players of American football from Virginia Sportspeople from Suffolk, Virginia American football linebackers Army Black Knights football players Los Angeles Chargers players Kansas City Chiefs players {{linebacker-1990s-stub