Kyle Long tweeted out that he will be stepping away from football and will officially retire from the Chicago Bears. Once a Chicago Bear always a Chicago Bear.
Although the Chicago Bears were not playing in a playoff game this weekend, it did not stop the team from making headlines. Massive news broke around Halas Hall on Sunday night as Kyle Long turned to social media. Long did hint at the idea of retiring but did never made it official until today when he went on twitter and tweeted out that he is “stepping away” from football.
Some chicagoans are probably happy to hear I’m finally stepping away and getting my body right. Some Chicagoans may be sad to hear this. Either way ufeel about it, I want u to know how lucky I am to have spent time in your city. I became a man while playing in Chicago.Thank you❤️
— kyle (@Ky1eLong) January 6, 2020
He says he is stepping away to get his body right. I mean since stepping onto the field in 2013, Long has dealt with nonstop injuries. Not something you want to deal with as a football player.
Long will be tough to replace because of his size and his abilities as well as his locker room presence.
The Chicago Bears drafted Long with the 20th overall pick in the 2013 NFL draft. He’s one of those players who has been with this organization through the bad years and through the good years. He did everything the team asked him to do.
He started blocking for Jay Cutler and dealt with the Marc Trestman and John Fox era. He’s one of my all-time favorites and should be everyone’s because of his tenacity and loyalty to the Chicago Bears.
Long looked to get back on the field in 2019 but unfortunately went down with an injury that landed him on injured reserve. He would miss the rest of the 2019 season.
He was also one of the main reasons why the offensive line struggled to begin the year. After Long went down, Rashaad Coward stepped in and look better than Long at the time.
Long, who is 31 years old, could not stay healthy and could not stay on the field. Guarantee if he was able to stay on the field and stay healthy, he would be an all-pro every year.
Now that Long is retiring, Ryan Pace will need to find a replacement either through the draft or free agency. Coward who took over for Long this year, is a restricted free agent for 2020.
Even though Long did say he was stepping away from football, that does mean that he won’t try to sign with another team in the future. The Bears would still own the rights to Long’s contract should he try and return, but I would expect the Bears would work out a deal to let him walk. Do you think he tries to sign with a different team?
Thank you Kyle for the memories, Enjoy Retirement.