Boldin retires for greater goal
ORCHARD PARK — Anquan Boldin abruptly announced his retirement just under two weeks after signing with the Buffalo Bills, saying he hopes to serve a greater purpose and to “make the larger fight for human rights a priority.”
Boldin’s decision Sunday came as a complete surprise, especially after he talked about building on his legacy entering his 15th season and serving as a mentor for Buffalo’s young group of receivers.
But the sudden change of heart was at least in part attributed to Boldin’s desire to enact change in his community.
“Football has afforded me a platform throughout my career to have a greater impact on my humanitarian work, and at this time, I feel drawn to make the larger fight for human rights a priority,” Boldin told ESPN. “My life’s purpose is bigger than football.”
General manager Brandon Beane made it official Sunday night by saying the team respects Boldin’s decision to retire.
Boldin was the NFL’s 2015 Walter Payton Man of the Year winner and ranks in the top four among active receivers with 1,076 catches, 13,779 yards receiving and 82 touchdowns receiving.
I’LL STAND BY YOU: The sight of defensive end Chris Long putting his arm around Eagles teammate Malcolm Jenkins during the national anthem inspired Buffalo Bills offensive lineman Cameron Jefferson to make his own statement.
Jefferson raised his fist in what he called a silent, peaceful gesture protesting racial inequality before the Bills’ preseason game at Philadelphia on Thursday night.
“It gave me some courage,” Jefferson said Sunday, referring to seeing Long support Jenkins, who stood with a raised fist. “Just seeing that togetherness on their team between different races, different people, I felt like that’s all I wanted. I wanted togetherness to build awareness for that.”
SIEMIAN TO LIKELY WIN BRONCO JOB: Even though coach Vance Joseph isn’t saying it, the steady and solid Trevor Siemian appears to have won the Denver Broncos’ quarterback derby for the second straight summer.
The seventh-rounder from Northwestern has outplayed former first-round pick Paxton Lynch of Memphis.
STEELERS 17, FALCONS 13: James Conner overcame Hodgkin’s lymphoma and a serious right knee injury to reach the NFL. He showed in his Pittsburgh Steelers debut Sunday that he plans to stick around for a while. The rookie running back broke off runs of 17 and 19 yards, leading to Bart Houston’s go-ahead, 6-yard touchdown pass to Justin Hunter in the fourth quarter of host Pittsburgh’s exhibition victory over the Atlanta Falcons.