Chris Long Retiring After 11 Seasons

Defensive end Chris Long of the Philadelphia Eagles is retiring after 11 seasons in the NFL. The current Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year announced on Saturday via social media.

The Eagles followed Long’s announcement by releasing their own statement. The team congratulated Long, saying he will always remain “part of the Eagles family.”

The statement added that there are not many NFL players that can say they won consecutive Super Bowls and the Walter Payton Man of the Year award.

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Long, 34, spent this offseason deciding if he would return for another season or retire. He was clear that the role he would play would have to be right for him to come back again.

Chris Long wanted plenty of opportunity to rush the quarterback but with Derek Barnett and Brandon Graham ready to start and tackle Malik Jackson likely to remain on the field for third down, the playing time for Long on pass-rushing downs would not have been up to what he wanted.

Chris Long was on two Super Bowl winning teams in successive seasons playing in 2016 for the New England Patriots and in 2017 with the Eagles. He was a big part in helping the Eagles win their first Vince Lombardi Trophy.

Long was drafted second overall in the 2008 NFL draft by St. Louis and played eight seasons with the Rams before he was released in 2016. The 6.5 sacks Long had during the 2018 season were his most in five seasons.

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The son of NFL great Howie Long, Chris had 70 quarterback sacks and 85 tackles behind the line of scrimmage during his NFL career.

While enjoying much success on the field, Long’s humanitarian efforts are even greater. Through Waterboys, his organization, he has provided over 200,000 people in Africa with clean water by building nearly 60 water wells across Tanzania.

In 2017, Long donated all of his salary to educational efforts across Virginia and 25% of his salary in 2018 to help children living in underserved neighborhoods receive books.

He was named the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year at this year’s Super Bowl.