Why early NFL player retirements actually make sense

For the majority of NFL players, retirement isn't a choice.

It's a reality that hits after being called into a general manager's office and released or after a contract expires without a new offer or after an injury has made it impossible to continue playing. When players are drafted into the NFL, they are told the average career lasts three to four years. And now the medical research tied to football and concussions adds another layer of concern about the long-term harm football can do to players' bodies.

It's all a reminder to save money, plan for the future and savor every snap.

So when in the span of five days four veterans — San Francisco 49ers linebacker Patrick Willis, Tennessee Titans quarterback Jake Locker, Pittsburgh Steelers outside linebacker Jason Worilds and Oakland Raiders running back Maurice Jones-Drew — chose to leave the NFL at the age of 30 or younger, it sent shock waves throughout the league, even as teams made blockbuster trades and players signed lucrative contracts.

"Twenty years ago, guys weren't informed about how this game affects you long term," said former NFL cornerback Champ Bailey, who last year retired at 36. "But now there's so much information out there. Nobody wants to be handicapped when they're in their 40s. That definitely plays a role. I think the fact that we've seen a lot of older players go through that, it's a little scary now."

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Willis, a seven-time Pro Bowler, thought his feet had failed him and he wouldn't be healthy enough to play at a high level. Locker, a first-round pick in 2011, said in a statement his passion for the sport was gone. For Jones-Drew and Worilds, each said he was leaving football to pursue other interests.

As Willis bid a tearful goodbye to San Francisco this week (he was the only one of the four to have an official retirement ceremony), he made it clear this wasn't a decision about money.

"Honestly, I pay attention to guys when they're finished playing, walking around and they've got no hips or they can't play with their kids or they can't play a pickup basketball game or they can barely walk or their fingers are all like this and people see that and feel sorry then, but nobody knows it's because you played those few extra years," Willis said. "And for me, I just feel like my life, there's more to football than this and football has been everything to me and it has provided an amazing platform for me to build upon now. So that's been in my heart. It's my health first and everything else kind of just makes sense around it."

All the players who announced their retirement this week had this in common: Each walked away from more money.

Willis had three years and nearly $20 million in base salary remaining on his contract, while Worilds and Locker were each prepared to become unrestricted free agents for the first time. The market for Worilds, one of the best young pass rushers available, was expected to be particularly hot. Jones-Drew, who likely would have been cut, probably could have landed a short-term deal somewhere.

The NFL and the NFL Players Association say they don't have precise statistics on when players choose to retire, in part because many players' careers just end without fanfare or formal statements. But the league uses the 3.5 years as a guideline for the average career, with estimates that for players who become starters in the league (such as Worilds), careers tend to last about eight years. For Pro Bowl players such as Willis or Jones-Drew, careers tend to last at least a decade.

Still, a union spokesman said the outside world shouldn't be so surprised to see players, no matter what their stature, choosing to leave on their terms.

"This happens a lot," union spokesman Carl Francis told USA TODAY Sports. "It goes to show that our players have other interests. It's a product of our players taking advantage of post-career programs, and I just think it's a part of the process of players playing the game but also planning for their futures."

Indeed, plenty of other players have retired with good years of football remaining, including Hall of Fame running back Barry Sanders, who retired in 1998 at 30, and Denver Broncos and Arizona Cardinals quarterback Jake Plummer, who had to pay back $3.5 million to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers after choosing to retire at 34 rather than play in Tampa.

Last year, former Steelers and Cardinals running back Rashard Mendenhall left the NFL at 26 to pursue a Hollywood writing career.

For as resolute as Willis was in his farewell address that he was ready to leave, he seemed less set on what would come next. Unlike Mendenhall, who has moved to Los Angeles and is working for HBO, Willis didn't have a set plan. He was looking forward to doing what he wanted, when he wanted, free from the rigors of a training schedule or mandatory workout dates.

Bailey had the same attitude, he said, when he signed his retirement papers in November. But five months later, he's grown restless with a life of leisure – and he figures most recent NFL retirees feel the same. Even after earning more than $100 million in his 15-year career, and having watched his brother, Boss Bailey, be forced into an early retirement because of knee injuries, Bailey wished he had been more prepared for life after football. As he prepares himself to start a career in broadcasting, he said he hopes Willis, Locker, Jones-Drew and Worilds each are ready for the major lifestyle change that's coming.

"You want to try to save as much as you can, and you want to have an idea of what you want to do. One thing that is going to hit you is your lifestyle is going to change. You're not going to be busy, you're not going to have any structure, so you have to be a really disciplined person to be able to handle retirement," Bailey said. "It's going to be so different. If you're a strong-willed person, you'll make it."

Yet there are other veterans trying to prolong their careers, delaying retirement for as long as possible. That group this year includes former Indianapolis Colts wide receiver Reggie Wayne, who was told by the Colts recently that he would not be re-signed. If he's going to play in 2015 at 36, it won't be in Indianapolis.

"I always tell a guy, 'Do what you want. If you don't want to play, don't play. If you want to play, play,' " Bailey said. "Don't worry about the pride thing or looking bad. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to play this game, so if you want to play, play.

"But if you don't, don't feel bad about walking away either. This is your career, your life. Live it how you want."

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Follow Lindsay H. Jones on Twitter @ByLindsayHJones