Adam Schefter reports that veteran G Richie Incognito wants to unretire and continue his NFL career, which is why the Bills elected to release him from the retired list on Monday.
Schefter adds that Incognito is hoping to sign on a with a new team before the start of the 2018 season.
Regarding the decision to retire, Incognito said that it was due to health issues he’s been dealing with.
“I’m done, I’m done, that’s it,” Incognito told The Buffalo News. “It’s been a long career. My liver and kidneys are shutting down. Nothing I can’t restore with some balance, but the stress is killing me.
“I went to a doctor’s appointment the other day and they said, ‘Listen, the stress is killing you, what are you doing?’ And I said, ‘Listen, I’m just doing what I love and that’s playing football.’ So that’s why I’m done.”
Incognito later said he had changed his mind, but was apparently joking.
It’s worth mentioning that Incognito agreed to a $2.675 million pay cut with the Bills earlier this offseason that reduced his base salary from $6.325 million to $3.65 million. Incognito received a $1 million bonus as part of the agreement and it created $1.675 million in cap space for the Bills.
Incognito, 34, is a former third-round pick of the Rams back in 2005. He played three years for the Rams and one year for the Bills before signing on with the Dolphins in 2010.
After four years in Miami, Incognito was released and out of football for a year before securing another shot with the Bills in 2015.
Incognito was in the final year of his three-year, $15.75 million contract that included $5.45 million guaranteed and was set to make a base salary of $6.32 million for the 2018 season when he agreed to the restructured deal.
In 2017, Incognito appeared in all 16 games for the Bills and is rated by Pro Football Focus as the No. 12 guard out of 77 qualifying players.
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