Best moments from OLB Tamba Hali’s career with Chiefs
Former Kansas City Chiefs outside linebacker officially called it a career on Monday, signing a ceremonial one-day contract to retire with the team. The 12-year veteran was released by the team back in 2018 and hasn’t played in the NFL since, but it was time for him to make things official and put his playing days in the past.
Hali put together an impressive career in Kansas City with plenty of accolades and highlight-reel moments on the field. His effort, energy, leadership and commitment to greatness stood out on a daily basis. Those attributes are the foundation for what will surely earn him recognition in the Chiefs Hall of Fame one day.
In order to celebrate Hali’s illustrious career with the Chiefs, let’s count down some of his best moments with the team.
Strip sack of Tom Brady on Monday Night Football in 2014
Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images
The Chiefs delivered an epic beatdown of New England for the whole world to see on Monday Night Football. It was one of the worst losses the Patriots suffered during the Bill Belichick-Tom Brady era. They made Brady look so bad that he was benched toward the end of the game. The talking heads were chattering as if Brady's career were over. Too bad it actually wasn't or Kansas City might have a few more Super Bowl wins. https://twitter.com/goldmctNFL/status/1392140304321503236 Hali had one of the key plays during this game, helping to make the deficit too much for New England to overcome. It was second-and-7 about midway through the third quarter and the Chiefs led the Pats 17-0. He timed the snap perfectly and notched an ever-impressive strip-sack and fumble recovery on Brady. It's hard enough to sack a player and force a fumble, but to recover his own forced fumble was truly an impressive feat.
Fourth quarter takeover vs. Texans in 2013
John Rieger-USA TODAY Sports
The Chiefs were undefeated to start the season in their first under new HC Andy Reid. The Texans had lost five consecutive games heading into Kansas City, but people were looking for the Chiefs to slip up after a 2-14 season the year prior. It was a closer game than you'd like if you're Kansas City, but when the team needed a spark, Hali was there to provide it defensively. Hali completely took over in the fourth quarter of the game, notching three sacks against Texans QB Case Keenum on three separate drives in the final eight minutes. The entire time K.C. led by just one score. On Hali's final sack of Keenum, he forced a fumble which was recovered by LB Derrick Johnson. It gave the Chiefs the ball with just over a minute remaining, which allowed the Chiefs to kneel the game out and secure a one-point victory over Houston.
Hali vs. undefeated Packers in 2011
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Hali played a big part in one of the more unlikely victories in Chiefs history. The Chiefs were virtually in shambles after the dismissal of HC Todd Haley and they had the undefeated Green Bay Packers coming to town. Romeo Crennel was the interim head coach, Kyle Orton as the starting quarterback and Jackie Battle starting in place of Jamaal Charles. https://twitter.com/goldmctNFL/status/1392146572788523010 Kansas City was a big-time underdog heading into the game, but that didn't phase Hali. He recorded four total tackles, three sacks and a forced fumble on the day, helping hold the Aaron Rodgers and the explosive Packers offense to just 14 points. The upset win by Kansas City would be Green Bay's only loss of the regular season.
Three-sack performance vs. 49ers in 2010
John Rieger-USA TODAY Sports
The 2010 NFL season was one of the best of Hali's career. He notched 14.5 total sacks on the year and helped propel the Chiefs to their first playoff appearance since 2006. One of his best games of the season came in Week 3 against his future teammate in Alex Smith, who was still the starting QB for the San Francisco 49ers. https://twitter.com/goldmctNFL/status/1392136640781594631 Hali provided a source of constant pressure throughout the game, despite facing off with a great tackle in Joe Staley. He made things super uncomfortable for Smith during the course of the game, even on what should have been easy plays. His three second-half sacks and forced fumble helped take the game from a close one to a 21-point win for Kansas City.
Leaving it all on the field vs. Colts in 2010
Screen Capture
The Chiefs didn't actually win this game against the Colts in 2010. Hali actually only notched a single sack of Peyton Manning during the game. This performance wasn't impressive because of his stats or the result of the game. It was impressive because he left everything on the field. https://twitter.com/goldmctNFL/status/1392154509032497160 Hali showed more heart, toughness and tenacity during the game than perhaps any other in his career. The game produced the crazy screencap shown above, but also this highlight-reel sack of Manning, where Hali uses his signature pass-rush move — the double-hand swipe. This game really epitomized his career during Kansas City. He was here through some of the most difficult and frustrating seasons the franchise ever had, but he kept fighting through it all. He gave the team and the fans everything he had, both on and off the field. For that, we'll always be eternally grateful.
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