Wide receiver Eric Decker, who had signed a deal with the New England Patriots on August 3 this year, took to his Instagram handle on Sunday and announced his retirement. The 31-year-old Decker had struggled a lot in his NFL career with the New England and did not appear bound for the team’s need on the roster bubble. He did play in the first half of the preseason loss of New England to the Carolina Panthers on Friday, the only period when quarterback Tom Brady was playing.
The Patriots had signed the wide receiver after they had released Jordan Matthews as he held a kind of volatility in the training camp. Additionally, the club had also released receivers Kenny Britt and Malcolm since the time the training camp began.
Julian Edelman stands at the topmost position of the team’s depth chart, after which rank Chris Hogan, Phillip Dorsett and Cordarrelle Patterson. Edelman will be missing out on the first four games of this season as he is serving a four-game suspension for violating the policy of the league on performance-enhancing substances.
After the trading off Brandin Cooksin the offseason and with Danny Amendola leaving in the free agency, the club prepared for major changes at the position. Decker had struggled several times in the training camp with the dropped passes and underwent a tennis ball drill to work on his hands before the game on Friday began.
He has played for the New York Jets, Denver Broncos as well as Tennessee Titans during the eight season career, catching 439 receptions for 5816 yards with 53 touchdowns. The seasoned wideouts taking retirement after spending limited times along with the Patriots has become a kind of trend in the last few years. Reggie Wayne rode off into the sunset in the year 2015 after spending less than 15 days with the New England.
