As a pro athlete, there are many ways to announce your retirement. Some call a press conference, some post on social media, some reveal it to a reporter, and some just retire because the phone doesn’t ring anymore.
I’m not sure what Ryan Fitzpatrick was planning to do for his retirement but it came out in a rather unique and unusual way, via a former teammate’s Twitter account.
Former Buffalo Bills running back Fred Jackson shared a screenshot of a text Fitzpatrick sent to Jackson and congratulated Fitzpatrick on his career. The two were teammates on the Bills for four seasons.
Congrats on a Helluva career, Fitzy!! Loved sharing the field with you!! The gratitude is all mine!! #BillsMafia #fitzmagic pic.twitter.com/s7n4DsiLJ7
— Fred Jackson (@Fred22Jackson) June 2, 2022
It sure looked like a retirement text but it was left a bit too vague to be absolutely sure. It didn’t take very long for word to go around and the various NFL insiders made sure it was true.
9 teams, 17 seasons, and a whole lot of swagger.
What a career for Ryan Fitzpatrick 👏 pic.twitter.com/5kJUrr6jOj
— NFL Films (@NFLFilms) June 2, 2022
Fitzpatrick ends his career as a journeyman quarterback. He played for the Rams, Bengals, Bills, Titans, Texans, Jets, Buccaneers, Dolphins, and the Commanders when they were the Washington Football Team.
With those nine teams, Fitzpatrick amassed 34,990 passing yards in 17 seasons. In his only game with Washington, Fitzpatrick injured his hip and was put on injured reserve.
