One of the most perplexing and troubling things for sports fans is watching an athlete derail a promising career because of poor decisions.
Whether it’s by drugs, alcohol, choice of friends, bad grades, rotten attitude, an inflated ego (or all the above), a talented athlete can watch their dreams go up in smoke if they’re not careful.
That’s what happened to Christian Peter.
The former defensive tackle was one of the linchpins of a very good University of Nebraska team in the early 1990s.
During his time playing for legendary Huskers coach Tom Osborne, Peter and his teammates won back-to-back national championships.
His play on the team’s vaunted “Blackshirt” defense brought Peter postseason accolades.
99 days until the Giants kickoff their 101th season. #giants @giants
Forgotten Giants to wear 99
Christian Peter – 1997-2000
Cullen Jenkins – 2013-2015
Robert Thomas – 2016-2017
Mario Edwards Jr – 2018 pic.twitter.com/wJqh8dtmKH— Giants Daily Trivia (@trivia_nyg) May 31, 2025
However, off the field, the D-tackle exhibited disturbing behavior.
More often than not, Peter’s name was in the local papers not for his play but for his arrests.
He was arrested eight times for numerous offenses and was accused by several women of inappropriate behavior.
Despite his obvious issues, the New England Patriots selected Peter in the fifth round of the 1996 NFL Draft.
After receiving public backlash for the pick, the Pats backtracked on their decision just days later and released him.
A year later, the New York Giants took a chance on him, and Peter ended up playing in the league for six seasons, mostly as a backup.
Since then, he has done his best to leave his troubled past behind and has gone out of his way to help people who suffer from the same problems.
This is the story of Christian Peter.
One Hit Wonder
Christian Peter was born on October 5, 1972, in Locust, New Jersey.
He was the oldest of four children, including three brothers.
As he advanced through his high school years, Peter was growing fast and wanted to play sports, especially football.
The school he attended as a freshman and sophomore didn’t have the sport, and he transferred to Middletown South High School in New Jersey before his junior year.
That’s when he shined as a brutish defensive tackle for head coach Bob Generelli in 1989.
During the season, the Eagles went a perfect 9-0 and won the state championship while Peter was named an All-State athlete.
Then, because of his transfer as an undergraduate, state rules stipulated that Peter was ineligible to play ball his senior year.
Nebraska Shows Interest
It’s difficult for any aspiring young athlete to get the attention of college coaches, especially if they have limited game reps.
That was the obstacle that sat in Peter’s way as his high school years came to an end.
With only one year of prep football on his resume, the odds were long that he would get to play in college.
Even worse, Peter didn’t have the best academic record.
Thankfully, Frank Solich saw just enough of the kid to take an interest.
At the time, Solich was an assistant coach under Tom Osborne at the University of Nebraska, and he viewed film of a scrimmage Peter took part in.
Impressed by the effort and motor he displayed in the footage, Solich convinced Osborne to take a chance on Peter as a project.
The only other school that showed interest in Peter was Temple University in Philadelphia.
Although the Owls were closer to his home in New Jersey, Peter wanted the chance to play with a prestigious program like the Huskers.
He enrolled as a Prop 48 student-athlete because of his grades, meaning he would be ineligible to play as a freshman in 1991.
Peter Finally Sees the Field
Peter continued to watch from the sidelines in 1992 as he took his official redshirt year and Nebraska went 9-3.
Finally, he got to play in the red and white as a sophomore in 1993 and played at nose tackle for all 11 games of an incredible 11-1 season.
During the year, he tallied seven combined tackles, including three solo tackles, on November 26 against Oklahoma.
That front four that year might be the best ever at Nebraska. Christian Peter Jared Tomich Jason Peter and Grant Wistrom. pic.twitter.com/3YUc2vxVTm
— NU5TimeNC (@milnerthx) July 16, 2023
Nebraska was undefeated that year until Florida State tripped them up in the national title game, 18-16.
The loss was devastating, but only made Peter and his teammates come back with a vengeance in 1994.
“After that game, I think it was a couple of days later, guys started rallying up and getting into the weight room and offseason conditioning and stuff like that,” Peter recalled in 2019. “There were no coaches involved, we just did it on our own. It was just something where nobody had to say anything to anyone, nobody had to fire anyone up, no one had to get anyone motivated. That’s who we were.”
Champs
Looking back with the benefit of hindsight, it was probably a good thing the ‘Huskers lost to FSU.
Already a talented team, the Nebraska players didn’t need a lot of motivation to perform in ‘94.
Peter became a starter at defensive tackle and developed into one of the best on the defense.
As the team bulldozed through another undefeated regular season, Peter was one of the leaders of the “Blackshirt” defense, a unit that ranked third in the nation.
(Joining him that season was his younger brother Jason, a fellow defensive tackle).
Christian was responsible for 71 combined tackles and led the program with 14 tackles for a loss and seven sacks, and was chosen a second-team All-Conference.
How tough were the Nebraska teams of the ‘90s?
Well, here’s Christian Peter wearing a teal fleece pullover referring to a future NFL Hall of Famer as “one of those pussies from last year.” pic.twitter.com/VDkIflaluE
— Big Red Fury (@BigRed_Fury) August 30, 2019
Peter was the first defensive tackle to lead the ‘Huskers in both categories in four years.
Even more remarkably, in the final two contests of the regular season against Iowa State and Oklahoma, Peter played the part of the Terminator.
Against the Cyclones, he bagged a career-best 11 combined tackles, including four tackles for a loss and two sacks.
He added nine more stops the following week against the Sooners.
Then, as Peter and his teammates won the national title against the Miami Hurricanes in the Orange Bowl, the defensive tackle added to his totals with two assisted tackles in the 24-17 victory.
Back-to-Back Champs
In 1995, Nebraska was stacked on both sides of the ball, and the Peter brothers started next to each other on the defensive line.
Now a team captain, Christian Peter hyped up the troops before each game with highly energized speeches.
“Well, the best way to speak is from the heart,” remarked Peter years later. “That’s the best way to get through to people. I just always said what was on my mind and what I thought was right, and I guess it was enough to get the guys excited and want to go out and play. But again, it wasn’t me, it was a combination of the guys that we had.”
Thankful as they were for Peter’s exhortations, his teammates didn’t need much motivation to play well.
Bowl game fun with Christian Peter high-stepping to the end zone. @KentPavelka on the radio call. pic.twitter.com/JBK6GezbSy
— Est. Huskers (@EstHuskers) December 22, 2024
During yet another undefeated regular season, the ‘Huskers bulldozed opponents and the Blackshirts continued to dishearten foes with the fourth-best defense in the country.
Peter had 46 total tackles, including five tackles for loss and two sacks.
He was named first-team All-Big Eight and an honorable mention All-American.
For the third season in a row, Nebraska advanced to play in the national championship game and this time beat the Florida Gators 62-24.
Off-Field Terror
When he played on the gridiron, Peter was a terrifying menace who threatened anyone who carried the ball.
Greatest Huskers by the Numbers – 55
Russ Hochstein and Frank Solich's first seasons as head coach.
Jason & Christian Peter and the Blackshirt brothers who helped lead NU to championships.https://t.co/LNE9f3s6OC
— Dave Feit (@FeitCanWrite) July 4, 2025
Unfortunately, when he wasn’t on the field, Peter had a habit of tormenting the general public and women in particular.
At various points during his days in Lincoln, Peter was arrested eight times.
The charges included trespassing, illegal possession of alcohol, public urination, and threatening a parking lot attendant.
In 1993, Peter was accused of groping a woman in a bar, and the result was 18 months of probation.
A year later, he was accused of disturbing the peace at a local bar when he grabbed a woman by the throat after she called him a rapist.
Then, in 1995 another woman, Kathy Redmond, stepped forward to say that Peter raped her twice in 1991 and filed a Title IX suit against the school.
Tom Osborne endorses the rubber stamp for the impeached felon. #Nebraska puts winning before people.
Voters repeatedly elected the former coach, A.D., Congressman after incidents with Lawrence Phillips + Scott Frost, Christian Peter + Kathy Redmond. #Huskers https://t.co/iswa4dOho5— NeBra$ka WINnINg 🇺🇸🌽 (@NebrNice) October 3, 2024
Peter responded by saying the sex was consensual, and local police declined to press charges when the university and Redmond settled out of court for $50,000.
In 2014, Peter tried to explain his behavior at the time and blamed ADD, alcohol dependence and, perhaps, steroid use during his high school years.
“When you’re 18, 19, 20 years old, and playing on national championship teams, and winning and winning and winning, you can’t do anything wrong,” he said in 2014. “Sometimes that gets to your head, and it obviously got to my head. And with my other problems that had not been identified at the time, it was a recipe for disaster.”
Drafted then Released
Despite his off-field issues, Peter was still considered a good mid-round prospect before the 1996 NFL Draft.
Sure enough, with the 149th overall selection in the fifth round of the event, the New England Patriots picked him.
Then-head coach Bill Parcells called Peter to welcome him to the team and told him to make his way to New England for rookie camp.
Not even a week later, the Pats, responding to a backlash from fans (including push back from Myra Kraft, the wife of owner Robert Kraft), the team decided to release him.
Shocked and dismayed, Peter openly called Kraft and the team liars and called them out publicly for going back on their word.
“To say I wasn’t investigated thoroughly by the Patriots is a total lie,” said Peter in an interview with Sports Illustrated. “I know the truth. The Patriots know the truth. It’s obvious they’re covering it up. I’ve been more scrutinized than the President of the United States. Whoever did this is a coward.”
Following his release, other NFL clubs stated they were thinking twice about signing him.
“We had him as a draftable player. He was our sixth-rated defensive tackle. Whether we take him now, I don’t know,” said a personnel director for a rival NFL team.
Kraft, who had to save face after releasing Peter, told the media he wasn’t fully informed before the pick.
“Either they [Patriots scouting personnel] lied to me when we picked him or we didn’t do a very good job in the investigation process,” Kraft said. “Part of the fault lies with our investigation,” said Kraft. “But part lies with NFL Security, and NFL Security people have called to tell me they were sorry.”
Almost two decades later, Peter remembered clearly the moment he was released.
“I didn’t even want to go through life anymore,” Peter told USA TODAY Sports. “I can’t say that I had suicidal thoughts. But I thought, ‘I don’t want to live.'”
The Giants Give Peter a Second Chance
Rejected by New England, Peter sat at home wondering what was next for his life.
He had been on top of the world for two seasons at Nebraska before that same world came crashing down in a heap.
Just when he was at his lowest, a lifeline was extended.
New York Giants general manager George Young and Joel Goldberg, a psychologist who worked for the team, called Peter and asked to meet.
(Franchise owner Wellington Mara and his family had to be thoroughly convinced that Peter could turn his life around, but were finally convinced by Goldberg).
Following a lengthy meeting to gauge where his head was at, Young gave Peter encouraging news.
The team would sign him only under the condition that he get treatment for his anger and alcohol abuse and find medication for his ADD.
1999: HBD Christian Peter turns 52. Peter was part of the dominant Nebraska teams in the 90s & signed w/ #NYGiants as a FA in 1996 where he turned his life around. He played 4 years for NYG & was part of a strong DL rotation & scored his 1st NFL TD v Tampa #Giants100 pic.twitter.com/RrYMc3Ajkh
— BigBlueVCR (@BigBlueVCR) October 5, 2024
Having been a fan of the team since his days growing up in New Jersey, Peter enthusiastically agreed.
“When you’re not happy with yourself, you look for ways to cover the pain, and drinking was my outlet,” he said. “Every time I drank, I didn’t necessarily get into trouble. But every time I was in trouble, I had been drinking.”
After beginning treatment for his behavior and agreeing to meet with Goldberg three days per week, the Giants made it official.
“I’m thrilled to have this over with, finally,” Peter said of his three-year, rookie minimum contract. “I think the contract’s great. I know I’m getting the minimum, but beggars can’t be choosers.”
Comeback
Suddenly, because he received help that he desperately needed, Peter’s antics stopped.
In 1997, he played in seven games and collected two tackles and a half sack.
The following season, he started six games and had 32 tackles, a sack and a forced fumble.
During the 1999 season, Peter started 10 games and made a crucial play in a Week 8 game against Philadelphia.
With the Eagles comfortably ahead, 20-10, with six minutes left in the contest, Peter blocked a Philly field goal attempt that would have put them up by 13 points.
Instead, the block led to a Giants comeback, which the team won in overtime, 23-17.
Afterward, the local media praised Peter and Mara for giving the troubled youngster from Nebraska a second chance.
“They definitely turned my life around,” Peter said. “Who knows what would have happened if they didn’t give me the help I needed. It is a wonderful thing that has happened,” he continued. “Sometimes people have to go through bad times to get to the good times.”
In 2000, New York exceeded expectations after two down years and won 12 games to advance to the playoffs.
Along the way, Peter started 15 games, a career-high, and racked up 40 combined tackles and a sack.
During the postseason, the G-Men beat Philadelphia and Minnesota on the way to a Super Bowl XXXV date with the Baltimore Ravens.
A few days before the big event, the media found Peter sitting off to the side and happily away from the spotlight.
When asked, the defensive lineman was still singing the praises of Mara and the organization and just happy to be a part of the festivities.
“It feels good (to be a relative non-issue, even at a Super Bowl),” said Peter. “Once I took care of my personal problems, everything else fell into place. Now I’m just excited and happy to be able to be part of all this. I’m just trying to take everything in.”
Peter played in the sport’s biggest game but ultimately wasn’t able to help much as Baltimore bullied New York for a 34-7 triumph.
Peter Retires
Not long after the Giants’ Super Bowl season ended, Peter’s time in the Big Apple also ended.
He was released and then signed by the Indianapolis Colts in 2001, where he amassed 16 tackles and a sack.
After getting released again, Peter was picked up by the Chicago Bears in 2002.
By that time, he had been married for over a year to his wife, Monica, and the couple had a five-month-old daughter.
It just so happened that Monica was employed as a psychologist at an elementary school when the two met.
Peter told her his entire history, warts and all, and his wife-to-be didn’t flinch.
“I’m a pretty good judge of character and I can read people,” said Monica. “That’s what my area of interest is. And he gave me no reason to not trust him.”
For their part, the Bears were focused on the good Peter could do for the defense.
“He has a motor, he’s strong, he’s very prideful and he gives it all he has,” Bears defensive line coach Rex Norris said. “Technique and all those things aren’t always perfect, but he’s trying to get there. That’s important. It’s a tough man’s game and he’s a tough man.”
Sure enough, Peter made the team, and during Chicago’s 4-12 season, he started three games and made 33 tackles.
When the season concluded, he decided to call it quits.
During his career, Peter started 34 times and played in 81 games.
He had 149 combined tackles, 3.5 sacks, one pass defended, one forced fumble and a fumble recovery.
Life After Football
After retiring, Peter relapsed into his old habits for a short time, but quickly changed when he saw how his behavior was affecting his family.
Since then, he has been a model citizen.
In 2006, Peter was inducted into the Nebraska Football Hall of Fame.
Then, in 2007, after working in the insurance industry for a few years, he started his own insurance business and soon expanded to three locations.
Peter has also been a regular on the motivational speaker circuit, sharing his story and warning others of the perils of bad judgment.
Additionally, he is involved in the Tigger House Foundation, an organization that helps people overcome substance abuse.
In 2014, the NFL asked Peter, among others, to meet and help the league understand the rising tide of sexual assault and domestic violence among NFL players at the time.
— John D (@J_DeVitis) June 29, 2025
When the news broke about why the league was meeting with Peter, his former victims, including Kathy Redmond (who sued Nebraska in 1995) were alarmed and spoke out.
Peter responded to the issues raised by explaining each of his missteps while at Nebraska to the media.
Currently, Peter, Monica, and their three children, Olivia, Juliet and Christian Jr., live in New Jersey.
References
