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Which NFL wide receivers should retire after the 2023 season? Mike Fanelli looks at five NFL players who could hang it up in the upcoming 2023-24 offseason.
The NFL playoffs are underway with 14 teams hoping to become Super Bowl champions. However, that means 18 teams have turned their attention to the offseason.
While the NFL Draft gets all the offseason hype, free agency is equally as important to building a championship team. Yet, players retiring never get any attention.
So let's take a look at five wide receivers that should retire at the end of the season.
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Julio Jones, Philadelphia Eagles
Jones will be in the Hall of Fame one day and go down as one of the top wide receivers in NFL history. He had seven seasons with over 1,150 receiving yards, including five with over 1,400. The former superstar led the league in receiving yards twice (2015 and 2018). However, his production has cratered since leaving the Atlanta Falcons.
Injuries have played a role in Jones’ decline. The wide receiver has played for three teams over the past three years, totaling fewer than 850 receiving yards. Despite turning 35 in February, Jones can still luck out, scoring two touchdowns on two receptions in Week 17 against the Arizona Cardinals.
Laquon Treadwell, Baltimore Ravens
The former first-round NFL Draft pick has never lived up to expectations. Treadwell has bounced around the NFL during his eight-year career, playing for five different teams. He played the first four seasons with the Minnesota Vikings before spending a year with the Atlanta Falcons, Jacksonville Jaguars, Seattle Seahawks, and Ravens.
Despite getting a fresh start every season, Treadwell hasn’t taken advantage of the opportunities. He had only one reception on three targets in five games for Baltimore this year. The wide receiver has had fewer than 10 receptions in five of his eight NFL seasons, including four of the past five. It’s time for Treadwell to call it a career.
Randall Cobb, New York Jets
Cobb thought his playing days were over after the 2022 season with the Green Bay Packers. The veteran spent the first eight years of his career in Green Bay before playing with the Dallas Cowboys in 2019 and the Houston Texans in 2020. He rejoined the Packers in 2021, spending two seasons with the team that drafted him.
When Aaron Rodgers got traded to the Jets in the offseason, Cobb quickly followed the future Hall of Famer to New York. Unfortunately, Rodgers’ 2023 season ended before it could get started after he suffered a torn Achilles in Week 1. Cobb remained with the team but spent many weeks as a healthy scratch.
Robbie Chosen, Miami Dolphins
A fun fact about the veteran wide receiver – Chosen has legally changed his name more times than he has had a 1,000 receiving-yard season in his career (2-1). The wide receiver had a solid run with the New York Jets from 2016 through 2019. He joined the Carolina Panthers in 2020, having his only career season with over 1,000 receiving yards.
However, Chosen wore out his welcome in Carolina and got traded to the Arizona Cardinals last year. He had only seven receptions in 10 games with the Cardinals and got cut in the offseason. While the wide receiver has spent all season with the Dolphins, Chosen had only four receptions on six targets in nine games. Unless he will change his name to “I’ll keep your seat on the bench warm,” it’s time for him to go.
Matthew Slater, New England Patriots
I’m cheating with this selection, but technically, Slater is listed as a wide receiver on the team’s roster. However, the veteran has been a core special teams player for the Patriots and one of the best to do it in NFL history. The last time Slater had a target in a regular season game was in 2016.
Many hope the special teams star can make the Hall of Fame one day. Slate made the Pro Bowl 10 times in his 16-year NFL career. After spending his entire career with New England, the veteran likely played his final game Sunday against the New York Jets.
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