Marshawn Lynch Un-Retiring Joins an Elite Club of NFL Players Returning Post Retirement
Beast Mode is back and he’s coming to a Black Hole near you… In Las Vegas, not Oakland, and not Seattle. Marshawn Lynch un-retiring is one of the worst kept secrets this NFL off-season, and it became official today, when the trade sending him from Seattle to the Raiders was completed.
Running back Marshawn Lynch has joined a select group of NFL players to interrupt retirement for a return to the league. The Oakland Raiders and Seattle Seahawks agreed to a trade on Wednesday that allows the running back to play in Oakland, sources confirmed to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
How have others fared in similar situations? The list is relatively small, especially when you eliminate those whose “retirements” lasted less than one offseason. (Ahem, Brett Favre.) I also didn’t consider players such as Michael Vick or Plaxico Burress, who returned to the field after time in jail. Here are five of the most notable efforts to return from retirement, ranked more or less in order of their success:
Cunningham had the best season of his career after retiring (for the first time). His career appeared over in 1995 when, at age 32, he received almost no interest on the free-agent market. So Cunningham retired, moved home to Las Vegas and operated a granite and marble shop. But Minnesota Vikings coach Dennis Green convinced him to resume his career as a backup in 1997. When starter Brad Johnson was injured in 1998, Cunningham took over and led the team to an overall 15-1 record (13-1 in Cunningham’s starts) with an MVP-caliber season, throwing for 3,704 yards and 34 touchdowns. He earned a contract extension worth up to $28 million but was benched after six starts in 1999. He finished his career as a backup for the Ravens in 2001.
Sanders fashioned an improbable second career as a part-time defensive back with the Baltimore Ravens — after a full three seasons away from the game. He initially called it quits after the 2000 season; he was so eager to get away that he forfeited part of an $8 million signing bonus he had received from the Washington Redskins. In 2004, he signed with the Ravens and took the number 37 to match his age. In 25 games, including six starts, he intercepted five passes — returning one for a touchdown — and defended a total of 10 passes. But the Ravens missed the playoffs in both seasons and he retired for good in 2006.
Steve
Steve is an affordable multifamily housing professional that is also the co-founder of Whiskey Congress. Steve has written for national publications such as The National Marijuana News and other outlets as a guest blogger on topics covering sports, politics, and cannabis. Steve loves whiskey, cigars, and uses powerlifting as an outlet to deal with the fact that no one listens to his brilliant ideas.
