69 Facts About Kyle Turley

Kyle John Turley was born on September 24,1975 and is an American former professional football player who was an offensive tackle for nine seasons in the National Football League.

Kyle Turley played college football for the San Diego State Aztecs and was selected seventh overall in the 1998 NFL draft.

Kyle Turley returned to football in 2006 as a member of the Kansas City Chiefs, where he spent the last two years of his career before announcing his retirement in December 2007.

Kyle Turley's career is best remembered by many for a 2001 incident in which he ripped off an opposing player's helmet and tossed it downfield, playing a key factor in his team losing the game but earning the respect of many Saints fans for his defense of the quarterback.

Kyle Turley has been outspoken and involved in a number of player health issues post-retirement, particularly in regards to the neurological problems resulting from his football career and his use of cannabis as treatment.

Kyle Turley is a board member and active supporter of the Gridiron Greats Assistance Fund, an organization providing medical care and other forms of assistance to retired NFL players in dire need.

Kyle Turley lived in Utah as well as the state of Washington before moving to southern California at the age of 10.

Kyle Turley attended Valley View High School in Moreno Valley, California.

Kyle Turley played defensive end during his only season of football as a senior in 1992, earning first-team all-league honors and attracting athletic scholarship offers from several universities seeking to recruit him.

Kyle Turley played baseball and was recognized with all-state honors as a wrestler.

Kyle Turley played college football at San Diego State University, redshirting his first year in 1993.

Kyle Turley chose offensive line as it allowed him the opportunity to work with O-line coach Ed White, a 17-year veteran of the NFL who played in four Super Bowls.

Kyle Turley was twice named All-Western Athletic Conference first-team during his time at SDSU.

Kyle Turley was inducted into the Aztec Hall of Fame in 2011.

Kyle Turley was selected in the first round with the seventh overall pick by the New Orleans Saints in the 1998 NFL draft.

Kyle Turley's performance caught the eye of then-Saints coach Mike Ditka, and the team subsequently made him the first offensive linemen selected in the 1998 draft.

Kyle Turley signed a six-year contract on July 24,1998.

Kyle Turley played a total of five seasons for the Saints, making an immediate impact by starting 15 games his rookie season and earning all-rookie honors from Pro Football Weekly, Football News, and Football Digest.

Kyle Turley would prove to be a versatile player as well, starting mostly at left guard his rookie season, then moving to right tackle the next three seasons, and over to left tackle in 2002.

Kyle Turley would turn down the Pro Bowl invite to serve as grand marshall of the Endymion Parade during Mardi Gras, however.

Kyle Turley's antics were less well-received among team management however, particularly leading up to his March 2003 trade when Kyle Turley engaged in a public dispute with general manager Mickey Loomis.

Amongst players in the league, Kyle Turley came to be known by some as a dirty player due to his frequent use of cut blocks and ambushing of unsuspecting defenders.

Kyle Turley defended his use of the cut block, noting that it is a legal maneuver and that he is simply doing his job within the rules of the game.

Kyle Turley stepped in and separated the two, then picked up Robinson by the facemask and threw him to the ground as referees and players from both teams tried to break up the scrum.

Kyle Turley emerged from the pile with Robinson's helmet in hand and flung it across the field before making an obscene gesture.

Robinson and Kyle Turley received offsetting personal fouls for the initial incident, but Kyle Turley was assessed an additional personal foul and ejected from the game for the helmet toss and obscene gesture.

Saints head coach Jim Haslett said he initially considered cutting Kyle Turley before seeing a clearer view of the incident on film and discussing it with quarterback Aaron Brooks, who thought his neck had been broken at the time.

Kyle Turley was fined $25,000 by the Saints organization and requested to attend counseling for management of anger issues.

Kyle Turley was traded to the St Louis Rams on March 21,2003, in exchange for a 2nd round pick in the 2004 draft.

Kyle Turley was immediately signed to a 5-year, $26.5 million extension, making Turley the fourth-highest paid offensive lineman in the league.

In December 2003, Kyle Turley was featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated.

Kyle Turley underwent surgery to repair a herniated disc in March 2004.

Kyle Turley ruled out a second surgery on his back and opted for a long rehabilitation instead, during which his weight dropped to 235 pounds from a normal playing weight of 310.

Kyle Turley harbored feelings of resentment leading up to the incident, believing that the organization acted recklessly and carelessly in pushing him to return from back surgery too soon and advising him to play through initial onset of the injury during the 2003 season.

Kyle Turley was released by the Rams on June 6,2005 after failing a physical.

Kyle Turley ended up spending the entire 2004 and 2005 seasons out of football, continuing his recovery and training for a return in 2006.

Kyle Turley started the first two games of the season, but recurring back problems and a shoulder injury late in the season ended up limiting him to 7 starts in 7 games played.

Kyle Turley was overpowered at times on the field due to playing below his normal weight from before his 2004 back surgery.

Kyle Turley was released by the Chiefs in March 2007, but re-signed to a new one-year contract on July 26,2007.

Kyle Turley started 5 of 7 games played in and ended the season on injured reserve.

Kyle Turley announced his retirement from football on December 21,2007.

Kyle Turley listened to punk, grunge, and metal growing up as a teenager in southern California, and was exposed heavily to country music from being around his father.

Kyle Turley jammed with other NFL players, and learned to play bass and drums.

Kyle Turley continued networking and honing his musical abilities in St Louis, jamming with local musicians and performing at a number of charity events.

Kyle Turley formed The Kyle Turley Band and released his first album, a 4-track self-titled EP, in 2009.

Kyle Turley describes his style of music as "power country", drawing influences from old-school country, heavy metal, Southern rock, and punk rock.

The song "My Soul Bleeds Black and Gold" is a tribute to the city of New Orleans and its football team, which in the years since his 2003 departure Kyle Turley has expressed regret for leaving.

Kyle Turley has toured extensively with his band, including in spring 2010 when he hit the road with Hank Williams III across the western United States.

Kyle Turley launched Gridiron Records in 2006, along with two of his friends Mike Doling and Tim Pickett.

Kyle Turley has dealt with a number of neurological health issues since retiring from football in 2007.

Kyle Turley has a seizure disorder, suffering a particularly severe episode in 2009 when he blacked out suddenly followed by several hours of slipping in and out of consciousness while seeking treatment in an emergency room.

Kyle Turley has been active in speaking about his personal experiences dealing with head trauma-related health issues and participating in efforts to reduce risks for current and future players.

Kyle Turley was a plaintiff in a class action lawsuit filed against the NFL seeking medical benefits and compensation for former players suffering from the effects of head trauma, initially resulting in a 2013 settlement of $765 million but later amended to allow for a payout expected to exceed $1 billion.

Kyle Turley has agreed to donate his brain posthumously to the Center for the Study of Traumatic Encephalopathy at Boston University to help advance research in the area of sports-related neurological disorders.

Kyle Turley retired from football with an addiction to pain-killing drugs.

Kyle Turley has criticized the manner in which painkillers are dispensed by medical staff in the NFL, stating that pills were handed out to players "like candy" after games.

Kyle Turley says team doctors gave him painkillers while concealing the true nature of a serious back injury in 2003, in an effort to keep him on the playing field until season's end.

In 2014, Kyle Turley was one of more than 500 former players who took part in a class action lawsuit against the NFL alleging similar complaints, charging that team medical personnel neglected to inform players of the serious health risks of the drugs they were taking.

Kyle Turley uses cannabis to treat the neurological issues that he suffers from post-NFL career.

Kyle Turley has been active in speaking about his personal experience using cannabis, and in 2015 founded the Gridiron Cannabis Coalition to help advance policy change regarding the use of cannabis in professional sports.

In November 2016, Kyle Turley was among the signatories of an open letter addressed to the NFL, urging a change in the league's policy towards cannabis.

Kyle Turley is a member of the Doctors for Cannabis Regulation NFL steering committee.

In January 2017 Kyle Turley announced the launch of Neuro Armour, a THC-free cannabis oil that is rich in cannabidiol and various terpenes.

Kyle Turley received criticism in March 2020 for claiming his CBD products could cure COVID-19 by boosting the immune system.

Kyle Turley is a board member and active supporter of the Gridiron Greats Assistance Fund, a non-profit 501 organization providing medical care and other forms of assistance to retired NFL players in need.

Kyle Turley first became involved as an active player in 2007 when he pledged one of his game checks to the fund and challenged other players to do the same, many of whom joined in helping to raise several hundred thousand dollars.

Kyle Turley became the first active player to publicly take up the cause, taking NFLPA executive director Gene Upshaw to task at the time for failing to address the issue.

Kyle Turley conceived of the idea after Junior Seau committed suicide in May 2012.

Kyle Turley has helped instruct the Arlington High School football team in Riverside, and hosted a football camp at the school.