Kansas City Chiefs GM Brett Veach's first draft pick retires from football after a successful playing career outside of the NFL

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Kansas City Chiefs GM Brett Veach's first draft pick retires from football after a successful playing career outside of the NFL

Jan 12, 2019; Kansas City, MO, USA; Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Breeland Speaks (57) against the Indianapolis Colts during the AFC Divisional playoff football game at Arrowhead Stadium. Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Charles Goldman · AtoZ Sports

Thu, Jul 2, 2026 ·

6 min read

Former Chiefs second-round pick Breeland Speaks announced his retirement on Instagram

The Chiefs didn't have a first-round pick because of the Mahomes trade with the Bills. Veach traded their 2018 second-round pick (No. 54) and third-round pick (No. 78) to the Cincinnati Bengals to acquire picks Nos. 46 and 100. With pick No. 46, Veach selected Speaks.

Breeland Speaks Quick Stats & Facts

Speaks appeared in just one NFL season in 2018. An injury sidelined him for the 2019 NFL season. He won a ring in Super Bowl LIV while on injured reserve. In 2020, the team released Speaks as part of 53-man roster cuts.

Games played:18

Games started:4

Tackles:24

Tackles for loss:3

Sacks:1.5

Forced fumbles:1

Fumble recoveries:2

Speaks didn't find success with the Chiefs in the NFL. Kansas City released him before his rookie contract ended. Yet, his UFL career with the Michigan Panthers is one worth celebrating.

Former Chiefs DE Breeland Speaks led a wildly successful USFL & UFL career

Speaks kicked off his retirement video with a background on his football journey.

"We're here to wrap up this career and call it a day, man," Speaks said in his retirement video. "It's been a long road, but we made it. Started playing football at Callaway High School in Jackson, Mississippi. Went on to play at Ole Miss, got drafted in the second round by the Kansas City Chiefs, won the Super Bowl with them in 2020 (Super Bowl LIV), and then went on to play for the Raiders and Cowboys later that same year."

Speaks never stuck in the NFL, but reinvented himself in the spring leagues. He first joined the USFL with the Michigan Panthers in 2023. That came after stops with the Las Vegas Raiders, Dallas Cowboys , New York Giants , and Buffalo Bills . He recorded 7 total tackles, 3 sacks (league leading), and 1 forced fumble that season before leaving in August to join the San Francisco 49ers .

"Next year, come back, play for the Cowboys a second time, finish up the season with Buffalo Bills, came back to spring football with the Michigan Panthers in 2023 wind up leading that league in sacks, and 2024 went on to with the merger, and the UFL went on to be a defensive player of the year, the first defensive player of the year that league had, and 2025 was my last year playing for Michigan with ended it in the championship game, didn't didn't work out the way we liked it, but just happy to be there."

After the UFSL and XFL merged to create the UFL in 2024, Speaks once again joined the Michigan Panthers. That same year, he won UFL Defensive Player of the Year , made the All-UFL Team, and led the league in sacks. His team lost the conference championship game that year. The following year, Speaks and his Michigan Panthers made it to the UFL championship game, but lost to the DC Defenders 58-34.

Breeland Speaks sums up his football career in his own words

For the first time, Speaks delved into what it was like being cut by the Chiefs and how it impacted his outlook on the game of football.

"Kind of went through some adversity in Kansas City, got injured, wound up getting cut by the Chiefs, which was devastating," Speaks said. "That was hard. I don't feel like I really truly got over that little span of my life, until like recently. Just understand what it all meant, understanding like what lessons I needed to learn from all of those different situations, but at some point, I think I realized, like I'm doing this for me. At the end of the day, I love to play football. I just love to be around the guys. I love the locker room, so I think that's what I started on the back end of my career: Appreciating more than thinking about things I wasn't getting, so appreciating the things I was.

"Football is giving me life lessons, whether it's hard work, effort, or accountability. It's taught me things about life that I feel like only sports can teach. I hope they remember me by the way I played the game, my effort that I brought to it, and the attitude I brought to it. I want people, when they look back on my career, to be like, 'Hey, bro, like Breeland Speaks, bro…'"

Speaks didn't have your traditional success-story career. It was filled with adversity and the pursuit of a dream to play in the NFL. Asked if it was all worth it, Speaks said exactly what you'd expect.

"I think it was all worth it," Speaks said. "When I look back on all of it, the good, bad, ugly, I think at the end of the day I would still look at myself as a kid and tell him, 'Bro, keep going, keep going, you gonna, you gonna enjoy the ride.' It'll be tough, but you'll make it on the other side."