Daunte Culpepper Announces Retirement

National Football League Blogcast, NFL Blogcast

Here is free agent quarterback Daunte Culpepper’s surprising retirement announcement to members of the media today:

Farewell NFL. When Free agency began this year, I had a new sense of excitement about continuing to rebuild my career in the same way that I had rebuilt my knee after my catastrophic injury in 2005. Unfortunately, what I found out was that the league did not share any of the optimism about me as an Unrestricted Free Agent that I expected. In fact, there was an overwhelming sense that there was no room for me among this year’s group of quarterbacks; whether in a starting, competing or a back-up role. No matter what I did or said, there seemed to be a unified message from teams that I was not welcome to compete for one of the many jobs that were available at the quarterback position. It seems that the stance I took in both Minnesota and Miami regarding my rights as a person and player has followed me into Free Agency.

After taking a long look at my career and my personal convictions, I have decided to begin early retirement from the NFL effective immediately. Since the beginning of training camp I was told that my opportunity would come when a quarterback gets hurt. I cannot remember the last time so many QB’s have been injured during the preseason. I have been strongly encouraged from family, friends and league personnel to continue to be patient and wait for an inevitable injury to one of the starting quarterbacks in the league. I would rather shut the door to such “opportunity” than continue to wait for one of my fellow quarterback’s to suffer a serious injury. Since I was not given a fair chance to come in and compete for a job, I would rather move on and win in other arenas of life.

The decision I made in 2006 to represent myself rather than hire an agent has been an invaluable experience. I now understand why so many people within the NFL community are uncomfortable with a player really learning the business. The NFL has become more about power, money and control than passion, competition and the love of the game. Regardless of this shift, player’s rights are still supposed to be a part of this league. Since I will not be given the opportunity to honor the memory of Gene Upshaw by wearing a patch on my uniform this year, I will instead spend some of my energy applying what he taught me about standing up for what is right and not sitting down for what is clearly wrong.

I want to thank my family and my fans for their unwavering belief in me as a person and a player. I embraced both the peaks and the valleys of the game and my career. I am a better person today as a direct result of the experience of playing in the NFL. I can now focus on the enjoyment of watching some of the greatest athletes in the world play the game I love without the distraction of waiting for those elusive return phone calls.

Thankfully,
Daunte Culpepper

I hate to say he sounds a little bitter — but he sounds a little bitter. Of course, players come out of retirement, too. I hope Daunte will reconsider his retirement in the not-too-distant future. This past offseason, he was offered $1 million to serve in a backup role to Aaron Rodgers in Green Bay. He should’ve taken that offer. Daunte also might have been able to serve in a backup role to Ben Roethlisberger in Pittsburgh, but he wanted to be the starter there as well and obviously that wasn’t a possibility. I think it was more a matter of Daunte’s ego getting in the way. I feel he just needed to get himself on a team, learn that team’s system and let things take care of themselves. I don’t doubt Daunte can still play the game at a high level. His 110+ passer rating in 2004 ranks fifth on the NFL’s all-time single season list. And his comeback from a knee injury three years ago was nothing short of remarkable. But his my-way-or-the-highway attitude is probably a big part of the reason there wasn’t more interest for his services this season.

Photo: Newscom