Dwayne Rudd ordered to pay back child support of 540,000

The former Cleveland Browns linebacker Dwayne Rudd was ordered by a Tennessee district court to pay more than $540,000 in child support on Monday.

U.S. District Court Judge John Nixon followed the recommendation of prosecutors and gave Rudd a five-year suspended sentence which requires the former football player to contribute about 10 percent of his income to child support payments, the Associated Press reports.

Because retirement from the NFL significantly changed his income, however, the athlete will be due back in court on a later date to determine exactly how much back support he owes and what methods of payment to pursue.

Rudd had previously been ordered to pay $7,500 per month, though he has failed to make a single payment since 2004.

Never an elite linebacker, Rudd is known to most football fans as the player who cost his team a win in 2002 by throwing his helmet in the game's closing seconds. After a penalty was called for his excessive celebration, the opposing team was able to kick a game-winning field goal.