JC Tretter is calling it a career on his own terms.
On Thursday, the former Browns and Packers center and current NFL Players Association (NFLPA) president announced that he would be retiring from the NFL after eight seasons.
"I am proud of what I've accomplished and how far I've come from that night when I made the pledge to myself," Tretter wrote of a letter he wrote to himself at age 20 that outlined his desire to be an NFL player. "I feel like if my 31-year-old self could talk to my 20-year-old self, I could earnestly tell him that we did it. We did everything we said we'd do and more."
On to the next chapter pic.twitter.com/gDGTlyhZr0
— JC Tretter (@JCTretter) August 25, 2022
Tretter played in 111 games and made 90 starts during his career after being a fourth-round pick by the Packers in 2013. He started 82 of 83 possible games for the Browns over his last five seasons; his only missed outing came because of a positive COVID-19 test last season.
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Tretter consistently was rated highly among Pro Football Focus' center grades and ranked sixth of 39 players at the position in 2021. Despite his strong performance, he never was selected as an AP All-Pro and was never voted to a Pro Bowl.
Tretter has served as the NFLPA president since taking over the role from Eric Winston on March 10, 2020. In that time, Tretter has guided the players through CBA negotiations and several negotiations involving the NFL's COVID-related health and safety protocols.
Tretter hasn't been afraid to speak his mind in that role and was recently critical of the field conditions at the Bears Stadium, Soldier Field. That type of player safety advocacy has naturally endeared him to the players, who unanimously re-elected him as the NFLPA president in March of 2022.
Evidently, he hasn't found as much support in other segments of the league.
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Why did JC Tretter retire?
As Tretter revealed in a recent interview with Sports Illustrated, teams never really showed an interest in him after the Browns released him during the 2022 NFL offseason. He and his agent reached out to seven teams including the Panthers, Cowboys and Vikings but none displayed any interest.
That may have been because of Tretter's work as the NFLPA president, which his agent pointed out in a phone call with the center.
"I got a call in mid June," Tretter told Sports Illustrated, "and it was like, 'I didn’t realize how many people you pissed off.'"
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It's not just Tretter's agent that has noticed this. Tretter's former teammate, Joel Bitonio, was asked for his thoughts about Tretter's unsigned status during training camp. He hinted that Tretter may have been blackballed a bit because of his work as NFLPA president.
When you have a guy that’s top-five, top-10 at center in the league and he’s not on a roster, and he's the NFLPA president, and maybe some owners don't appreciate what he brings to the table on certain topics where he is trying to protect player safety and things of that nature, it seems a little suspicious to me.
Bitonio went on to say that he didn't know what was happening behind closed doors, but continued to say the situation didn't sit well with him.
#Browns Joel Bitonio suspects that his close friend JC Tretter might not have an #NFL team yet b/c of his #NFLPA stance on player safety issues, etc pic.twitter.com/kxCINmADE2
— Mary Kay Cabot (@MaryKayCabot) August 14, 2022
Though Tretter also has his suspicions about the reasons he remained unsigned, he doesn't appear willing to hold a grudge.
"I took [the NFLPA] job knowing the risks," Tretter told Sports Illustrated. "I think that’s the price of leadership."
Instead, he will shift his main focus to his work with the NFLPA as he transitions to life off the field.
"I'm looking forward to doubling down on my work as NFLPA president and pushing for more progress on behalf of the great players of our game, past, present, and future."
