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The NFL is a brutal sport and Todd Gurley and Luke Kuechly can attest to that. They were just two of many players in their prime who retired due to injury. Some, like Kuechly, took the decision on their own terms, knowing the punishment their bodies were suffering. Others, like Gurley, were forced out due to injuries that robbed them of their effectiveness.
It illustrates the sacrifices players make stepping on the field every single day. This is one of the reasons why an average NFL career lasts only three years. On this list, we celebrate all these players who brought football fans so much joy in the short length of time they played the game at the elite level.
#1 - Todd Gurley, RB
Todd Gurley joined the St. Louis Rams in his rookie season and set the NFL alight and was named rookie of the year in 2015. While he did not make the Pro Bowl the following year, Gurley rebounded with a sterling 2017 season that saw him named the NFL's offensive player of the year. He was the rushing touchdown leader in both the 2017 and 2018 seasons and made it to the Pro Bowl in both campaigns.
In addition to his performances, Gurley was well regarded for his sense of the game where he played for the team rather than wanting to pad up his stats.
His lingering knee injury caught up with him and Todd Gurley was severely limited in the 2019 campaign, rushing for 857 yards and 12 touchdowns. As is the norm in the NFL, the Rams were ruthless and cut him before the end of the season. Gurley signed for the Atlanta Falcons in 2020 and rushed for 678 yards and nine touchdowns in that campaign. That wasn't enough for him to get another contract, though, and he sat out the entirety of the 2021 season in free agency.
Gurley confirmed his retirement from professional football this month at the tender age of 28.
#2 - Luke Kuechly, LB
Luke Kuechly burst onto the scene in his rookie 2012 campaign. Selected ninth overall in the NFL Draft that year, Kuechly was named the NFL's defensive rookie of the year. The following year, Kuechly was named the NFL's defensive player of the year. Over the coming seasons, Kuechly was one of the most reliable players in the league for the Carolina Panthers.
Kuechly made it to seven straight Pro Bowls from 2013 to 2019. He was the tackle leader in the league in both the 2012 and 2014 seasons and set a record for 26 tackles in the 2013 campaign against the New Orleans Saints. Luke Kuechly's consistent performances were one of the reasons the Carolina Panthers made it all the way to the Super Bowl.
In 2019 Kuechly retired from the game. He had right shoulder surgery in 2017, a torn labrum in 2015 and at least three recorded concussions. They had taken their toll and Luke Kuechly decided to walk away at the age of 28.
#3 - Tony Boselli, OT
Tony Boselli was a tackle who played for the Jacksonville Jaguars. As an expansion franchise in 1995, they selected him second overall in the NFL Draft. That first campaign he made it to the all-rookie team but more was to come from him. From 1996 to 2000, he made it to five straight Pro Bowls. His performances saw the franchise reach two AFC Championship games during his time there.
In 2002, he was selected by another expansion franchise as their first pick in the expansion draft as he joined the Houston Texans. But trouble with his left shoulder, which he blamed on an incorrect surgical procedure, meant he stayed the whole season on injured reserve. Following a wasted season, he decided to retire from football at the age of 30.
Boselli was the first player to ever be inducted into the Jaguars Hall-of-Fame (Pride of the Jaguars). He was also inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2022, making him the first person from that franchise to receive this honor.
#4 - Gale Sayers, RB
Gale Sayers was selected in the first round of both the NFL and the AFL Drafts, and he chose to play with the Chicago Bears. To say his rookie season was phenomenal would be an understatement. He scored 22 touchdowns and was the scoring leader for the league. The following year would see him named the rushing yards leader in the NFL. He made the Pro Bowl straight from 1965 to 1967.
A right knee injury in 1968 ruled him out for most of the season, but he came back strong in 1969. In that campaign, he won both the rushing yards leader and NFL Comeback Player of the Year award. He also made it to another Pro Bowl.
But in 1970, Sayers had problems with his left knee and played only intermittently. After an operation and coming back in 1971, he injured his ankle that ruled him out for the remainder of that season. He tried once again to return in 1972 but retired after a preseason game when he fumbled twice in three carries.
He was only 28 at the time and his is a story of what may have been. One honor that he still retains is that his induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame at age 34 in 1977 made him the youngest ever honoree.
#5 - Andrew Luck, QB
Andrew Luck is the final name on our list and his is a story that could have looked much different had it not been for injuries. A generational talent, it was his emergence that convinced the Indianapolis Colts to draft him and send Peyton Manning (then recovering from an injury of his own) to the Denver Broncos. The first overall pick in the 2012 draft, Luck started his career strongly and made it to three straight Pro Bowls. In 2014, he was the NFL's passing touchdown leader.
The next year saw him miss the majority of the season, first with a shoulder injury and then with a lacerated kidney and abdominal injury. The 2016 season saw him play through pain and elect for right shoulder surgery in the offseason, which caused him to miss the entirety of the 2017 campaign. He returned in the 2018 campaign and won NFL Comeback Player of the Year and made the Pro Bowl again, as he guided the Colts to the playoffs.
But a couple of injuries in the offseason meant he was unwilling to go through the entire injury and rehabilation process again. Saying that it was the hardest decision of his life, he retired from football in 2018 at the age of 29. His fellow first-rounder draftee from 2012, Luke Kuechly, was to follow him the next year.
