Just over three years after appearing in the Super Bowl for the Cincinnati Bengals, one NFL defender has decided to hang up his cleats.
Bengals defensive end Sam Hubbard announced in a post to Instagram on Wednesday that he is retiring from the NFL. Hubbard is calling it a career at just 29 years old.
“In my heart, I know that I gave this game, this team, and this city everything that I had,” Hubbard’s statement read in part. “That is why today, with great pride, I am announcing that I am moving on from my playing career in the NFL and entering the next chapter of my life.”
Hubbard also said in his statement that he was looking forward to exploring other business opportunities, continuing to do charity work (namely, with his Cincinnati-based charity The Sam Hubbard Foundation), and focusing on his health and family. You can see Hubbard’s full post here.
A third-round pick by the Bengals out of Ohio State in 2017 (No. 77 overall), Hubbard played his entire NFL career with Cincinnati. He recorded 38.5 total sacks (placing him eighth all-time in that category among Bengals players) and did his best work during the 2021 NFL season when Cincinnati made the Super Bowl. Hubbard’s finest moment that year came with his clutch strip-sack of Kansas City Chiefs star QB Patrick Mahomes in the AFC Championship Game that helped the Bengals win in overtime. To date, Cincinnati is still the only AFC team to eliminate the Chiefs from the playoffs ever since 2018.
Hubbard, who also had another incredible playoff moment for the Bengals the very next season, saw his 2024 campaign end early due to a torn PCL. Amid rumors that the Bengals were potentially looking to part ways with him this offseason, the Cincinnati native Hubbard has decided to retire instead. The news also comes just a few days after another NFL defender announced his retirement at the age of 29 as well.
