A legendary Denver Broncos player is calling it a career. This week, Demaryius Thomas announced his retirement from the NFL. The Pro Bowl wide receiver spent nine seasons with the Broncos before moving on to the Houston Texans, New England Patriots and New York Jets.
“It was a tough decision, a real tough decision,” Thomas told DenverBroncos.com from his home in Atlanta. “… Always as a kid or always when I did something, it was always [giving] my best to go and go and go. And football was my go. Every year I tried to get better and better, and I knew I was aging, of course. It was something tough, but I’m grateful I did 10, 11 years. I’m so grateful for that and now I can move on. I’m happy, I’m healthy. And now I can try to find my next itch.”
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“I’m Demaryius Thomas, and I’ve finally come to a decision to hang it up. I’m going to retire, and I’m going to retire a Denver Bronco.” pic.twitter.com/Q6nNrxc59B
— Denver Broncos (@Broncos) June 28, 2021
Thomas was drafted by the Broncos in the first round of the 2010 NFL Draft out of Georgia Tech. In his nine seasons with the Broncos, Thomas caught 665 passes for 9,055 yards and 60 touchdowns. He was selected to the Pro Bowl five times, the All-Pro Second Team two times and helped the Broncos win the Super Bowl. Thomas accomplished all this while proving the doubters wrong.
“I came in with … the broken foot, and then coming off the Achilles, it was some doubt there because there was other things going around ball that bothered me,” Thomas said. “But at the end of the day, I still chased it. I kept my head on and I still chased it. I got around some people that could help me get better and get healthier. I was still chasing the goal of being the ultimate best receiver, you know, being the best I can be and trying to get a Super Bowl.”
In October 2018, Thomas was traded to the Texans and played in seven games. In 2019, Thomas signed a one-year contract with the Patriots but was traded to the Jets at the start of the season. He didn’t play football in 2020. In his 11-year career, Thomas caught 724 passes for 9,763 yards and 63 touchdowns. He ranks third all-time in Broncos’ total receptions, second in receiving yards and second in receiving touchdowns.
