Selected by Pittsburgh in the second round of the 1992 NFL draft, he played nine seasons with the Steelers, and one each for the Seattle Seahawks and the Philadelphia Eagles.
[3] By 1995, he was recognized as one of the top inside linebackers in the league, and had a stellar performance in Super Bowl XXX against the Dallas Cowboys at the end of the season.
[4] The Steelers had lost their emotional leader, outside linebacker Greg Lloyd, at the start of the season to a knee injury, but Kirkland took over the mantle of leadership.
In a surprise move, the Steelers waived Kirkland just before the 2001 season due to salary cap pressure[citation needed].
That year many star players were waived due to the salary cap including John Randle, Troy Aikman, and Jerry Rice.
The next year, he played his final season for the Eagles, becoming the veteran leader of a defense that ranked seventh in the league and advanced to the NFC Championship game before losing to the Buccaneers.