For the second time in less than a week a 12-year Pittsburgh Steelers veteran defensive player has decided to call it a career.
Just five days after longtime Steeler Troy Polamalu announced his retirement, another defensive force Ike Taylor, has decided to do the same.
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported that like Polamalu, the team was not willing to offer Taylor a new contract so the cornerback announced he was hanging up his cleats.
“I wasn’t cut, I wasn’t released. It was just my contract was up and it was time to retire,” the 34-year-old said.
Taylor also expressed his gratitude for playing with the same organization throughout his career.
"Other than having my son, playing for the Steelers has been the best experience in my entire lifetime," he said. "It is rare; in this day of free agency that is super rare to play for one team. For me to have this opportunity says a lot about how they felt about me, what I gave back to the organization.”
Taylor won two Super Bowls with the Steelers and ends his career with 14 interceptions, four fumble recoveries and over 500 tackles.
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