Takeo Spikes Takeo Gerard Spikes ( ; born December 17 , 1976 ) is an American football linebacker . He played college football for Auburn University . He was drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals 13th overall in the 1998 NFL Draft . A two - time Pro Bowl selection and two - time All - Pro , Spikes has also played for the Buffalo Bills , Philadelphia Eagles , San Francisco 49ers , and San Diego Chargers . Spikes has the distinction of playing in 219 regular season games without a playoff appearance , which is the most in NFL history . Early years . Spikes was born in Augusta , Georgia . In high school at Washington County High School in Sandersville , Georgia he earned All - America n honors from " Parade " and " USA Today " and was named Georgia ' s " Mr . Football " by state coaches as a senior . Spikes was also named Georgia Player of the Year as a senior . College career . Takeo entered Auburn University , majoring in liberal arts . In the 1997 campaign , he led Auburn with 136 tackles as Auburn advanced to the SEC Championship game where they were defeated , 30 - 29 , by the Tennessee Volunteers led by Peyton Manning . Spikes was college teammates with productive tailback Stephen Davis . Professional career . Cincinnati Bengals . Spikes entered the 1998 NFL Draft and was drafted in the first round by the Cincinnati Bengals . In his rookie season he started all preseason games and all regular season games . He became the first rookie to lead the Bengals in tackles since James Francis led them in 1990 . He also led the team by total snaps played on offense and defense , which added up to 997 . In 1999 he was the team captain , playing in all his games as a Right Inside Linebacker and a Right Linebacker . He forced four fumbles and recovered four , leading the team in that as well . In 2000 he played every game as a Right Linebacker and recorded 128 tackles . He passed the 100 tackle mark for the third straight time and led the team in tackles and fumble recoveries . In 2001 , Spikes started at RLB for all of the 15 games he played that season . He once again led the team in solo and total tackles in the 2001 campaign . Spikes missed Game 5 because of his father ' s death . The 2002 season was his final season with the Bengals , as he played all 16 games . In his tenure with the Bengals , he played 79 of a possible 80 games , missing one for his father ' s funeral . He led the team in solo and total tackles once again and scored his second defensive TD by way of fumble recovery . Following the season , Spikes was given the designated player tag making him a restricted free agent . After not finishing better than 6 - 10 during any of his seasons in Cincinnati , Spikes stated he rather sign with a playoff contender . ( Though rather ironically , the Bills did not make the playoffs for the entire 2000 ' s decade , while the Bengals went 11 - 5 and won their division in 2005 ) . Buffalo Bills . The Buffalo Bills signed Spikes to an offersheet worth $ 32 million over six years , that the Bengals did not match . The 2003 season , earned Spikes his first Pro Bowl selection . He recorded 126 tackles , with the addition of a pair of sacks , a pair of interceptions , and a pair of fumble recoveries . On September 25 , 2005 , Spikes suffered a season - ending tear to his right Achilles ' tendon while tackling Michael Vick during the Bills 24 - 16 loss to the Atlanta Falcons in Week 3 . In 2006 , while recovering from a torn Achilles tendon , Spikes played in 12 games while missing 4 games early in the season due to a hamstring injury . During the first series of the first game of the year , Spikes made a blind side sack on Patriots QB Tom Brady , forcing a fumble which was recovered by Bills LB London Fletcher for a touchdown . The sack and forced fumble were Spikes ' only of the season . Philadelphia Eagles . On March 26 , 2007 , he was traded alongside Kelly Holcomb to the Philadelphia Eagles , in exchange for Darwin Walker and a 2008 draft pick . After an effective first season as an Eagle , Spikes season was cut short in week 14 when he suffered a torn rotator cuff injury against the Dallas Cowboys , a game the Eagles won 10 - 6 . With emerging linebackers Stewart Bradley and Omar Gaither ready to take over , the Eagles chose not to pick up his team option , thus making him a free agent . Ironically , the Eagles made the playoffs six of the previous seven years before he was traded there , and also the following three after he left ( including a trip to the NFC Championship game the next year ) . However , by not making the playoffs in his lone season in Philadelphia , Spikes had gone eight seasons without being part of a playoff team . San Francisco 49ers . On August 10 , 2008 , Spikes was signed by the San Francisco 49ers on the same day they released linebacker Brandon Moore . Spikes was assigned No . 51 , with Dontarrious Thomas changing from 51 to 56 - the number previously worn by Moore . On February 27 , 2009 Takeo was re - signed to a 2 - year contract . He was injured on November 1 , 2009 . After being assured that he would be re - signed by head coach Mike Singletary , the 49ers fired Singletary and decided to go with rookie NaVorro Bowman as the starter , making Spikes a free agent once again . Coincidentally , the 49ers also made the NFC Championship game the following season after Spikes departure . It ended an eight year playoff drought for the franchise , and the team went to three straight NFC Championship games and a Super Bowl over the next three seasons . San Diego Chargers . Spikes signed a three - year contract with the San Diego Chargers on July 26 , 2011 . On September 30 , 2012 , he forced Jamaal Charles to fumble when playing against the Kansas City Chiefs . The Chargers later won the game 37 - 20 . Spikes was released by the Chargers on March 7 , 2013 . Spikes insisted that he had no plans to retire , however he went unsigned for the 2013 season without yet appearing in a single playoff game . The Chargers won a playoff game the season after Spikes was released . Personal . According to Spikes , his nickname TKO stands for " The Knock Out " . Several of Spikes ' jerseys from the early days of his career are preserved in glass at the Dairy Lane restaurant in Sandersville , Georgia . He was named after Japan ' s 66th Prime Minister Takeo Miki after Spikes ' parents saw a news report . Miki ' s successor , who was appointed the nation ' s 67th Prime Minister on December 24 , 1976 a week after Takeo was born , was also Takeo ( Fukuda ) . Takeo ' s younger cousin Brandon Spikes is currently a Buffalo Bill .