Former Steelers LB Arthur Moats announces retirement

Seventeen months after playing in his final game as a member of the Pittsburgh Steelers, Arthur Moats announced his retirement Monday.

Moats, who started 25 of the 62 games he played for the Steelers from 2014-17, posted a video to his verified Twitter and Instagram accounts. The montage of highlights from his days playing for the Buffalo Bills and Steelers ended with the message “Thanks for the memories! Don’t Cross the Moats!”

The latter was a catchphrase Moats put on t-shirts that teammates often wore around the locker room in honor of the popular Moats.

I have to give a big thanks to the Buffalo Bills and the Pittsburgh Steelers for giving me this opportunity to play 9 seasons in the NFL! Last but certainly not least, I have to give a big shoutout to #BillsMafia & #SteelersNation for all the support! #DontCrossTheMoats #Retired pic.twitter.com/KModl9Yyvx

— Arthur Moats (@dabody52) June 10, 2019

On the Twitter post, Moats wrote: “I have to give a big thanks to the Buffalo Bills and the Pittsburgh Steelers for giving me this opportunity to play 9 seasons in the NFL! Last but certainly not least, I have to give a big shoutout to #BillsMafia & #SteelersNation for all the support! #DontCrossTheMoats #Retired”

Moats played in 121 NFL games over eight seasons, making 45 starts and finishing with 228 tackles (136 solo), 16 ½ sacks and four forced fumbles after being a sixth-round pick of the Bills out of James Madison in 2010.

After his contract with the Steelers expired early last year, Moats signed with the Arizona Cardinals during the summer of 2018. But a knee injury during the preseason ended his season before he played a meaningful game with the Cardinals.

Although Moats had his greatest individual and team success with the Steelers, his NFL highlight might be a hard tackle on future Hall of Famer Brett Favre during Moats’ rookie season. The hit would end Favre’s streak of 321 consecutive games played (including playoffs).

Moats played inside linebacker for Buffalo but the Steelers signed him to be an edge player. Throughout most of his Steelers tenure he would split time with the likes of Bud Dupree, James Harrison or Jarvis Jones at outside linebacker.

Moats was the Steelers’ 2016 Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year award nominee for his off-field and charity work. During his time with the Steelers he made a sizable donation to James Madison.

View this post on Instagram

It’s been a awesome run and I’ve been blessed to have lived out my dream of playing in the NFL for 9 incredible seasons! The lifelong bonds I’ve made throughout this journey I will forever hold near and dear to my heart. I have to give a big thanks to the Buffalo Bills and the Pittsburgh Steelers for giving me this opportunity to not only live out my dream on the field but to have a platform to positively impact people off it! Last but certainly not least, I have to give a big shoutout to 2 of the best fan bases in all of professional sports with #BillsMafia and #SteelersNation !!! The support I’ve received throughout my playing career and up until now has been nothing short of amazing! ALL LOVE!! #DontCrossTheMoats #OfficiallyRetired

A post shared by Arthur Moats (@dabody52) on Jun 10, 2019 at 5:18am PDT

Moats’ playing time dwindled during his final season with the Steelers but he still was a respected voice in the locker room.

Moats, who maintained a home in the area, has been seen at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex often during the team’s summer workouts.

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