NFL player may retire over neck surgery put on hold due to the pandemic
NFL safety Reshad Jones is contemplating retirement after a planned neck surgery was postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Speaking with the Palm Beach Post’s Joe Schad on Monday, the 32-year-old safety said he’s not planning to play this season and he’s unsure if he’ll play again.
Jones needs neck surgery, which was put on hold as hospitals are dealing with the influx of coronavirus patients. He said he would be unable to pass a physical and would be unable to sign with a team even if he wanted to right now.
“I definitely can play again,” Jones told Schad. “I just don’t know if I will. I had a couple teams call my agent, but I can’t pass a physical right now. So a lot of teams when they call it’s just no point. They find out I have to have surgery. So right now, a lot of teams don’t want to talk because I can’t get on the field or pass the physical. But it’s not career ending. I don’t think it is. The doctor said I can get a surgery and play again. But in year ten, with all I have accomplished and financially I am set, I have a couple things I have to weigh out.”
If Jones does retire, he told Schad that he would turn his focus to real estate, the sports agency industry along with other possible business opportunities.
Jones was cut by the Dolphins in March. He signed a five-year contract with the Dolphins in 2017 that would’ve paid him up to $10.5 million this upcoming season with $2 million guaranteed, according to Sportrac, a website that tracks sport player contracts.
“I definitely wasn’t shocked,” Jones told Schad. “I knew it was about time. They owed me a lot of money. Injury became a part of it. It was time to part ways.”
Selected in the fifth round of the 2010 NFL draft, Jones was selected to two Pro Bowls and has amassed 21 interceptions, 10.5 sacks, 55 pass deflections and 776 tackles throughout his career, according to Pro Football Reference.
