Indianapolis Colts draft pick announces surprise retirement from NFL

Kevin Hickey

Indianapolis Colts draft pick announces surprise retirement from NFL image

In a surprise twist, Indianapolis Colts offensive tackle Jake Witt announced his retirement from the NFL on Wednesday.

Witt, a second-year offensive tackle, was selected by the Colts in the seventh round (No. 236 overall) of the 2023 NFL Draft.

The announcement came via his Facebook page and was first reported by Joel A. Erickson of The Indianapolis Star.

According to his Facebook post, the decision was "due to personal reasons and consideration for my long-term health."

Witt was part of the roster cuts for the Colts as the team trimmed the roster down to 53 players ahead of Tuesday's deadline. Witt also said he cleared waivers and "received multiple offers to join practice squads."

Although he was viewed as a practice squad candidate, Witt is calling it a career very early on. The Colts hoped he could develop into a depth piece on the offensive line.

Witt blew the Colts away at his pre-draft workout in 2023, which led to them using their final pick in the draft on him. Unfortunately, he spent the entirety of his rookie season on the Reserve/Injured list due to a hip injury.

The Colts were mostly interested in Witt's upside because of his athletic profile. At 6-foot-7 and 302 pounds, Witt measured in with 33.5-inch arms. He posted a 4.89 in the 40-yard dash with a 1.71 10-yard split, a 37-inch vertical and a 10-foot-3-inch broad jump.

Witt played basketball at Michigan Tech in 2018. He then took a year off from sports and joined the Northern Michigan football team just before the pandemic hit in 2020.

Though he started out as a tight end, he moved to the right tackle position near the end of the season. Witt then started all 11 games in 2022 at left tackle for Northern Michigan.

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Kevin Hickey

Kevin Hickey Photo

Hickey was previously the managing editor of USA Today's Colts Wire. His work is also featured as a fantasy football analyst for The Huddle. A career .232 hitter, he is an avid reader of Spider-Man comics, an admirer of the James Webb Space Telescope, and a keen enthusiast of Ma’s sauce. You can find him on Twitter/X @KevinHickey11