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List of Fantasy Football Players Who Retired This Offseason (2024)

matt ryan fantasy football rankings news NFL DFS lineup picks

Which fantasy football players retired during the 2024 offseason? Lance Fernandez looks at the players who hung up their cleats for good before the 2024 NFL season starts.

Father Time remains undefeated, especially in a highly physical sport like American football. At some point in their careers, NFL players won’t perform like they did in their younger years. Their inability to compete at a high level forces them to retire from the game.

It’s a tough pill to swallow because football has been their life since they were kids. Unfortunately, the inevitable has come because their bodies cannot take the hits anymore. Here are the NFL players who decided to hang up their cleats for good during the 2024 offseason.

However, this list will focus on players who could have directly contributed to a fantasy football roster. Therefore, elite defenders like Aaron Donald, Shaquil Barrett, and Fletcher Cox are omitted. Likewise, offensive linemen like Ryan Jensen and Jason Kelce are also excluded.

Be sure to check all of our fantasy football rankings for 2025:

 

Players Who Announced Their Retirement Before Super Bowl LVIII

Since the list focuses on NFL players who retired this offseason, here are those who announced their retirement before Super Bowl LVIII.

Quarterback Teddy Bridgewater announced his retirement on Feb. 2, 2024. In 10 seasons, he played for six teams (Minnesota Vikings, New Orleans Saints, Carolina Panthers, Denver Broncos, Miami Dolphins, and Detroit Lions).

Bridgewater’s fellow quarterback, Sean Mannion, officially retired on Feb. 3 and became an offensive assistant for the Green Bay Packers. He played for the St. Louis/Los Angeles Rams, Minnesota Vikings, and Seattle Seahawks in nine NFL seasons.

Meanwhile, tight end Antony Auclair officially retired on Feb. 1. Throughout his five-year career (2017-2021), he played for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Houston Texans.

Rex Burkhead announced his retirement on Feb. 5 after playing 10 NFL seasons. The running back from Nebraska won Super Bowl LIII with the New England Patriots and played for the Texans and the Cincinnati Bengals.

 

Tavon Austin

The wide receiver announced his retirement via an Instagram post on Aug. 13. The former first-round pick played five seasons with the Rams, two with the Dallas Cowboys, and one season each with the Packers and the Jacksonville Jaguars. While the Buffalo Bills signed him in 2022, he did not appear in a regular-season game. Austin finished his career with 223 catches and 197 rushing attempts for 3,376 yards from scrimmage and 25 touchdowns.

 

Tarik Cohen

Cohen announced his retirement on Aug. 1, three months after the New York Jets signed him to a one-year contract. The running back from North Carolina A&T hasn’t played an NFL game since 2020 when a torn ACL and MCL limited him to three games. Cohen was a first-team All-Pro return specialist in 2018 when he played for the Chicago Bears.

 

Pharoh Cooper

The wide receiver/return specialist announced his retirement on June 10, two years after his last NFL game. In addition to his three stints with the Arizona Cardinals, he played for the Rams, the Bengals, and the New York Giants. He was a first-team All-Pro return specialist in 2017 with 1,331 return yards and a touchdown.

 

Kenyan Drake

Drake made his NFL retirement public on July 19. He played only three games during the 2023 season, two with the Baltimore Ravens and one with the Packers. The running back from Alabama played in eight seasons but never played a full schedule after 2018. Drake finished his career with 869 carries for 3,866 yards and 33 touchdowns in 105 games.

 

Nick Foles

The one-time Pro Bowl quarterback announced his retirement on Aug. 8. Philadelphia Eagles fans will never forget him because he led the franchise to its first Super Bowl championship. Foles played for the Rams, the Kansas City Chiefs, the Jaguars, the Bears, and the Indianapolis Colts. Failing to sign with a team last year prompted his retirement.

 

Michael Gallup

Gallup announced his retirement on July 23, three months after he signed a one-year contract with the Las Vegas Raiders. Therefore, he will end his career playing only for the Cowboys, the team that selected him in the third round of the 2018 NFL Draft. Gallup had a 1,000-yard season in 2019, the same year he collected a career-high six touchdowns.

 

Damien Harris

Harris announced his retirement via Instagram on March 25. He suffered a scare during his lone season with the Bills when his collision with linebacker Bobby Okereke led to a neck sprain that had him taken off the field in an ambulance. The running back retired after five NFL seasons, four of which he played for the Patriots.

 

Rashard Higgins

Higgins shared his retirement from the NFL on April 15 after not playing in the league in 2023. The year before, he played only three games with the Panthers. The wide receiver from Colorado State played for the Cleveland Browns from 2016 to 2021 before signing with Carolina. Higgins had his best year in 2020, establishing career highs in yards (599) and touchdowns (four).

 

David Johnson

Johnson announced his retirement on May 19 after playing eight NFL seasons. However, he was out of the league in 2023, which might have led to his decision. He became a first-team All-Pro member in 2016 after finishing with 2,118 yards from scrimmage and 20 touchdowns. The running back from Northern Iowa played for the Cardinals, the Texans, and the Saints.

 

Duke Johnson

Randy “Duke” Johnson made his retirement public on May 5 after eight seasons in the league. Like David Johnson, he did not play in the NFL last year. While he was a running back, he had more receiving yards (2,870) than rushing yards (2,265). Johnson played for the Browns, the Texans, the Dolphins, and the Bills from 2015 to 2022.

 

DeVante Parker

Parker announced his retirement on May 20, two months after he signed a one-year contract with the Eagles. Therefore, he ends his NFL career after nine seasons, playing the last two with the Patriots. The Dolphins selected him in the first round of the 2015 NFL Draft. He recorded his only 1,000-yard season with Miami (1,202 yards, nine touchdowns in 2019).

 

Rashaad Penny

While Penny signed a contract with the Panthers in May, the team confirmed his retirement after placing him on the reserve/retired list two months later. Injuries prevented him from living up to the hype of being a first-round draft pick, and he finished with 1,951 yards and 13 touchdowns in six seasons. Penny played his final year with the Eagles after spending the first five with the Seahawks.

 

Jalen Richard

While Richard last played in the NFL in 2021, he officially announced his retirement on July 17. The running back from Southern Mississippi played his entire six-year career with the Oakland/Las Vegas Raiders after being undrafted in 2016. Richard finished his NFL journey with 267 carries for 1,336 yards and four touchdowns in 89 games.

 

Matt Ryan

While the former NFL Most Valuable Player took his final snap in 2022, he announced his retirement on April 22 and signed a one-day contract to retire as an Atlanta Falcons player. The third overall pick in the 2008 draft became a Falcons legend, especially after leading them to a Super Bowl appearance. Ryan has one All-Pro and four Pro Bowl selections in 15 seasons with the Falcons and the Colts.

 

Matthew Slater

Slater was listed as a wide receiver throughout his 16-season career with the Patriots. However, he carved his niche as one of the best special teamers ever, garnering eight All-Pro and 10 Pro Bowl selections. The former UCLA standout announced his retirement on February 20, nine days after Super Bowl LVIII.

 

Darren Waller

Waller made his retirement official on June 9 after playing eight NFL seasons. It would have been nine if he wasn’t suspended for the 2017 season for violating the league’s substance abuse policy. He became a Pro Bowler in 2020 after leading the league in receptions (107) and establishing a career-high 1,196 receiving yards with the Las Vegas Raiders. The tight end from Georgia Tech also played for the Ravens and the Giants.

 

Derek Watt

Watt shared his retirement via an Instagram post on March 12. The fullback didn’t play in 2023, which could have been his eighth NFL season. J.J. Watt’s younger brother played for the San Diego/Los Angeles Chargers from 2016 to 2019 before reuniting with his other brother, T.J. Watt, in Pittsburgh. Derek Watt has 279 yards from scrimmage in seven seasons.



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