5 Greatest Achievements of Luke Kuechly's Career

The Carolina Panthers, and the NFL as a whole, were left with their jaws totally on the floor when All-Pro linebacker Luke Kuechly announced that he was walking away from the game at just 28 years old.

Kuechly may not have a championship to show for his exploits with the Panthers, but he did manage to cram several careers worth of achievements into one unforgettable eight-year run.

5. Insane Rookie Year

His rookie year was the only season in which he did not pick up Pro Bowl or All-Pro honors, and he still managed to lead the league in tackles. Kuechly's 163 tackles paced the NFL, and he threw in a sack and two interceptions for good measure. He was the Defensive Rookie of the Year in his first season after being picked ninth overall out of Boston College in 2012, and it was only the beginning.

4. 24 Tackles Against the Saints

The 2013 matchup against the New Orleans Saints exemplifies the cerebral, vicious vacuum that Kuechly was on the field. Kuechly made 24 (yes, 24) tackles in one game against Drew Brees and the Saints (and intercepted a pass) as Cam Newton and company clinched a playoff spot. It will go down in history as one of the greatest games ever played by a middle linebacker in NFL history.

3. Pick-6 Against Russell Wilson in the Playoffs

Carolina rode a terrific defense and an MVP year from Cam to the Super Bowl, and it was Kuechly who helped put the Seattle Seahawks away before they ever got rolling. Kuechly picked off a Russell Wilson pass and ran it back for a touchdown, giving Carolina an early 14-0 lead they would not relinquish on their way to the NFC Championship Game.

2. Performance on Carolina's Super Bowl Squad

Kuechly was utterly dominant as a First-Team All-Pro player in 2015, and it was his ferocity that helped push Carolina to the Super Bowl. Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos prevailed, but Kuechly did all he could, making a game-high 10 tackles and sacking Manning once. It's a shame that a player as talented as him only got one crack at a Lombardi trophy.

1. Defensive Player of the Year

Kuechly's second NFL season in 2013 was one for the ages. The seven-time Pro Bowler, five-time First-Team All-Pro, and two-time Second-Team All-Pro piled up 156 tackles that year. With two sacks, four interceptions, and seven passes defensed, he was the unquestionably the best player on that side of the ball in 2013, and only the greatest season in quarterbacking history from Peyton Manning could take him out of the running for MVP.