Chris Long announces his retirement from the NFL

It seems that Chris Long is officially calling this a career. The defensive end of the Philadelphia Eagles tweeted the following message Saturday night:

I type "seems" because I can not totally deny the possibility that this is a kind of troll job that Long is looking for. (UPDATE: It's not a troll job, unfortunately.)

But all the signs that led to this point indicated that retirement was the most likely option for Long. He said repeatedly that he still had an interest in playing, but not if he did not have the role he wanted. Earlier, the Eagles had told him explicitly that he would not play as much in 2019.

It looks like it's the end of the road for the 34-year-old Long. He had an incredible career after entering the league as a second-tier pick in the NFL draft in 2008. He finished his career in the NFL with 333 tackles in total, 70 sacks, 15 forced fumbles and a touchdown on the defensive. He won two Super Bowl titles with the NFL's Walter Payton Man of the Year Award.

Long will always to be a legend in Philadelphia for helping the Eagles win their first Super Bowl. He unleashed the biggest success story in the Lincoln Financial Field when he pushed Case Keenum to throw a decisive six-point to Patrick Robinson in the 2018 NFC championship game.

Of course, we will not remember Long as a great football player. We will also remember him as a guy who donated all of his 2017 salary to charity. And this is just a small example of what makes him so great.

The retirement of Long means that the Eagles will save $ 5.3 million in space (instead of $ 300,000 in dead money). It also means that they could afford to add veteran's depth to the defensive end (click here for options)unless they only rely on their young guys. The Eagles have a strong trio of smugglers to Brandon Graham, Derek Barnett and Vinny Curry, but we do not really know who to count on. Josh Sweat, Shareef Miller, Daeshon Hall and Joe Ostman have yet to prove themselves in the league.

It's really a disappointment. Long will not be coming back with the Eagles this season. He was still playing at a high level in 2018 (sixth highest number of quarterback hits in the NFL) and he is very active on the team. But we certainly respect his decision and we will always love him forever.

Best wishes in retirement, Chris.