Photo courtesy: Jeff Vinnick/B.C. Lions
The B.C. Lions have released national defensive lineman Christian Covington after two Canadian Football League seasons with the team.
“Christian was the epitome of a professional, and we thank him for his dedication and leadership to the BC Lions,” general manager Ryan Rigmaiden said in a statement.
“Unfortunately, in this business you have to make decisions that are best for the team, but not necessarily for the individual player. Saying goodbye to people you care about is the worst part of my job, but we felt like we had to do it in the best interest of the club.”
The six-foot-three, 289-pound Vancouver native was selected by the Lions in round five, 43rd overall during the 2015 CFL Draft. He was selected in the sixth round, 216th overall by the Houston Texans in the 2015 NFL Draft.
Following nine seasons in the NFL, which included a four-year stint with the Texans from 2015 through 2018, Covington came home for the 2024 CFL campaign. In 29 regular season games with the Lions, the 32-year-old registered 29 defensive tackles, seven sacks and two forced fumbles.
In the NFL, Covington dressed for 102 regular season games with the Texans, Dallas Cowboys, Cincinnati Bengals, and Los Angeles Chargers. He recorded 196 total tackles, 19 tackles for loss, 9.5 sacks, two forced fumbles, and two pass knockdowns. According to Spotrac, the big man made $8.65 million USD in his NFL career.
Covington attended Vancouver College for high school, whose alumni also includes Bryan Chiu, Peter Dyakowski, Kevin Eiben, Adam Konar, Cal Murphy, and Angus Reid. He helped the school win the B.C. high school provincial championship in 2010 and was named the provincial defensive Most Valuable Player.
