5 NFL players who shouldn't have come out of retirement ft. Brett Favre
When an NFL legend retires, tributes pour in and we reminisce about their legacy. However, on plenty of occasions we’ve seen these icons make u-turn decisions and announce their intentions of returning to the league. The most recent example of this, of course, is Tom Brady. Brady announced his retirement following the 2021 season and then shocked the world by changing his mind shortly afterwards.
BREAKING: Tom Brady announces he is unretiring and will return to the NFL for his 23rd season
WOW. https://t.co/bgP94n4ykl
While we have no doubt Tom Brady will be as good as ever in Tampa Bay in 2022, plenty of NFL superstars have had worse fortunes. Here are five of them.
#1 - Jason Witten
Former Dallas Cowboys tight end Jason Witten will go down as one of the best players ever in the position. That doesn’t mean he should have returned in 2019 after initially announcing his retirement after the 2017 season.
Witten returned to the Cowboys in 2019, but was only able to put up 529 yards across the year despite starting all 16 games. He spent 2020 with the Las Vegas Raiders, where in just seven starts he managed 69 yards total. Witten should have stayed retired rather than compete with the younger tight ends that replaced him. Players like Dalton Schulz in Dallas and Darren Waller in Las Vegas.
#2 - Steve DeBerg
Quarterback Steve DeBerg called it quits in 1993 after 16 seasons in the NFL. DeBerg spent time with the San Francisco 49ers, Denver Broncos, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Kansas City Chiefs and Miami Dolphins. He passed for 196 touchdowns.
There was a surprise around the league when, at the age of 44, DeBerg signed with the Atlanta Falcons. This was five years after his initial retirement. He would only go on to play in one game that year, a 28-3 loss. DeBerg completed only nine passes and threw an interception.