Julian Edelman, the wide receiver for the New England Patriots, revealed on Monday that he is quitting professional football. The 34-year-old has had an illustrious 11-season career in the NFL and emphasized that stepping away from the game was a difficult choice for him.
In a surprising turn of events, Edelman’s time with the New England Patriots came to an abrupt halt after he did not pass a physical examination. The reason for this was a knee injury that limited his participation in the 2020 season to just six games.
During his time with the team, Edelman was chosen by Tom Brady to be part of three Super Bowl-winning squads and was named the Super Bowl 53 Most Valuable Player in 2019.
In a video shared on Twitter, Edelman expressed, “Nothing in my career has ever been easy. And, it’s no different in this case… I’ve always said I’ll keep going until I can’t anymore. And that moment has finally arrived.”
Owner of the Patriots, Robert Kraft, described Edelman’s journey as “one of the most remarkable success stories in our team’s history.” Edelman started his career as an undersized college quarterback and worked his way up. However, following a knee surgery that curtailed his last season, it would have been a tough task for him to secure a spot on the new roster. Since the end of the previous season, the Patriots have brought in new receivers Kendrick Bourne and Nelson Agholor.
