Justin Britt (born May 29, 1991) is an American former professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

player who was a center in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL). He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

for the

Missouri Tigers The Missouri Tigers intercollegiate athletics programs represent the University of Missouri, located in Columbia. The name comes from a band of armed Union Home Guards called the "Fighting Tigers of Columbia" who, in 1864, protected Columbia ...

. He was selected by the

Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division. The club entered the NFL a ...

in the second round of the 2014 NFL draft, and also played in the NFL for the

Houston Texans The Houston Texans are a professional American football team based in Houston. The Texans compete in the National Football League as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. The team plays its home games at N ...

Early life

Britt attended Lebanon High School in

Lebanon, Missouri Lebanon is a city in and the county seat of Laclede County, Missouri, Laclede County in Missouri. The population was estimated at 15,013 at the time of the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Laclede County. The Lebanon Micropolitan Statistical ...

. He was a good overall athlete who was a three-year letterwinner in the sports of

( offensive left tackle),

wrestling Wrestling is a martial art, combat sport, and form of entertainment that involves grappling with an opponent and striving to obtain a position of advantage through different throws or techniques, within a given ruleset. Wrestling involves di ...

(heavyweight), and track. Britt won the class 4 Missouri state heavyweight championship in wrestling as a senior in 2009, going a perfect 45–0 during the season. He placed sixth at the state wrestling championships in the heavyweight division in 2008 and was a district heavyweight champion in 2008 and 2009, adding to a trio of conference titles he won in 2007, 2008 and 2009.

College career

Britt played

for the

from 2010 to 2013, after being

redshirted Redshirt, in United States college athletics, is a delay or suspension of an athlete's participation in order to lengthen their period of eligibility. Typically, a student's athletic eligibility in a given sport is four seasons, aligning with the ...

for the 2009 season. He spent 2010 as a second string

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, before being promoted to starting left tackle for the 2011 season, starting all 13 games. He continued to be a starter in the

offensive line In gridiron football, a lineman is a player who specializes in play at the line of scrimmage. The linemen of the team currently in possession of the ball are the offensive line (OL), while linemen on the opposing team are the defensive line ( ...

for the remaining two seasons of his Missouri career, playing at both left and right tackle.

Professional career

Seattle Seahawks

The

selected Britt in the second round (64th overall) of the 2014 NFL draft. He won the right tackle job in

training camp A training camp is an organized period in which military personnel or athletes participate in a rigorous and focused schedule of training in order to learn or improve skills. Athletes typically utilise training camps to prepare for upcoming events ...

in 2014, and started there in the opening game of the season against the

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. They ar ...

. Britt started all 16 regular season games at right tackle for the Seahawks, as well as their divisional round playoff game against the

Carolina Panthers The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Panthers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. The t ...

, before missing the

NFC Championship game The NFC Championship Game is the annual championship game of the National Football Conference (NFC) and one of the two semifinal National Football League playoffs, playoff games of the National Football League (NFL), the largest professional Ame ...

with an injury. He was one of the worst pass blocking tackles in the NFL as a rookie, according to Pro Football Focus. The Seahawks finished the season with a 12–4 record for an

NFC West The National Football Conference – Western Division or NFC West is one of the four Division (sport), divisions of the National Football Conference (NFC) in the National Football League (NFL). It currently has four members: the Arizona Card ...

pennant, but lost to the

New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. The Patriots compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The Pa ...

Super Bowl XLIX Super Bowl XLIX was an American football game played to determine the champion of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2014 NFL season, 2014 season. The American Football Conference (AFC) champion 2014 New England Patriots season, New Eng ...

. After a poor showing at right tackle in the first preseason game of the 2015 season, Britt was asked to change from right tackle to left guard. Britt was among the least effective pass blocking guards in football to start the season, but showed improvement. After being ranked 49th in pass protection, during weeks 5–10 he was ranked 33rd and weeks 11–13 he was ranked 27th. His run blocking became better as well. He started all 16 games at right guard. In the 2016 offseason the Seahawks moved Britt again, this time to center. Head coach

Pete Carroll Peter Clay Carroll (born September 15, 1951) is an American professional American football, football coach who is the head coach for the Las Vegas Raiders of the National Football League (NFL). He previously served as head coach for the NCAA's ...

stated that they had this move in mind when they first drafted him in 2014. On August 17, 2017, Britt signed a three-year, $27 million contract extension with the Seahawks. On November 12, 2018 during the Seahawks' week 10 matchup in Los Angeles, Britt engaged in a large altercation with

Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Greater Los Angeles, Greater Los Angeles area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West ...

' defensive tackle Aaron Donald causing both benches to clear. Following the game, Donald and Britt continued to throw punches at one another. Britt was fined $20,000 for his part in the altercation. On October 29, 2019, Britt was placed on

injured reserve The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in ...

with a serious knee injury. Britt was released by the Seahawks on April 27, 2020. The Packers had Britt in for a tryout on September 7, 2020. On January 21, 2021, Britt had a workout with the

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) West division. Established in 1959 ...

, after spending the 2020 regular season as a free agent.

Houston Texans

On March 8, 2021, Britt signed with the

. He was named the Texans starting center for 2021. He was placed on injured reserve on October 30, 2021. He was activated on December 4. On March 21, 2022, Britt signed a two-year contract extension with the Texans. He was placed on the reserve/ non-football illness list on September 20, 2022. On March 4, 2023, the Texans released Britt. Following his release by Houston, Britt retired from professional football.

References

External links

Missouri Tigers bio
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Britt, Justin 1991 births Living people American football centers American football offensive guards American football offensive tackles Missouri Tigers football players People from Lebanon, Missouri Players of American football from Missouri Seattle Seahawks players Houston Texans players 21st-century American sportsmen