Keith Mitchell, the former Texas A&M linebacker who went on to make a Pro Bowl with the New Orleans Saints, has died at 51. KBTX in College Station, Texas confirmed his death on Thursday.
No cause of death has been released yet. Mitchell’s family described his passing as “sudden and unexpected” in a statement to the outlet.
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Mitchell suited up for the Aggies from 1993 to 1996, playing a key role on the school’s legendary “Wrecking Crew” defense – a unit that terrorized offenses across the Southwest Conference during that era.
His breakout came in 1995. That season, A&M went 7-0 in conference play and finished 10-2 overall, with Mitchell earning second-team All-Southwest Conference honors along the way. He topped that a year later, racking up 14.5 sacks and 10.5 tackles for loss en route to first-team All-American recognition. By the time he left College Station, Mitchell had piled up 34 sacks for his career.
Texas A&M inducted him into its athletics Hall of Fame in 2015.
Nobody drafted Mitchell coming out of college, but the Saints signed him anyway – and it paid off. He spent five seasons in New Orleans, making the Pro Bowl in 2000 after a year where he posted 86 tackles, 6.5 sacks, four fumble recoveries and an interception.
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His best individual season actually came a year earlier, in 1999. Mitchell finished that year with 115 tackles, 3.5 sacks, three interceptions, four forced fumbles and a fumble recovery – the kind of all-around production that made him one of the more underrated linebackers of that Saints era.
Mitchell wrapped up his NFL career with one-year stints at both the Houston Texans and Jacksonville Jaguars. Across seven seasons and 94 regular-season games (70 as a starter), he tallied 416 tackles, 19.5 sacks, 24 tackles for loss, 10 forced fumbles and four interceptions.
He didn’t stop being a linebacker once he retired, though – not in spirit anyway.
According to his family, Mitchell spent much of his post-football life speaking internationally, writing a book, and diving deep into mindfulness, meditation and yoga. It was a second act that, by all accounts, meant just as much to him as his playing career did.
“On behalf of our entire family, we want to express our deepest gratitude for the overwhelming love, prayers and support that have surrounded Keith during this incredibly difficult time,” the Mitchell family said in their statement.
“Keith dedicated his life to inspiring others through his professional NFL career, international speaking engagements, his book, and his unwavering commitment to mindfulness, meditation, and yoga,” the statement continued. “To witness that same love and generosity being poured back into him has been a tremendous source of comfort and strength for our family.”