Defensive lineman Wolfe signs 1-day contract to retire with Broncos
ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Derek Wolfe will happily spend his time chasing around his 3-year-old daughter instead of NFL quarterbacks.
The 32-year-old defensive tackle retired Friday, saying a hip injury that required a second operation last month made it too hard to spend an 11th year in the league.
Wolfe, who was released by Baltimore in June with an injury settlement, signed a oneday deal with the Broncos so he could retire in Denver, where he spent eight seasons and won a Super Bowl after being picked in the second round of the draft out of Cincinnati in 2012.
“I’m happy to be done with the game because [the injuries] were piling up and I know my wife is very happy not to have to watch me crawl into the shower every morning,” Wolfe said.
“It was just getting bad, so it was time to call it” a career, Wolfe added. “I get to be a father; I get to be a husband. I get to focus on those things now . ... My daughter, she just turned 3 years old and I get to play with her and hang out with her.”
Wolfe lamented all the family time he missed out on after signing with the Ravens two years ago. He hurt his hip last August and missed the season.
“I get to relish in the moments that I wasn’t around for, especially the last two years when I was in Baltimore during COVID, your family can’t be around, it was tough, I missed a lot of time,” Wolfe said. “So, I’m going to make up for that now.”
Wolfe said he appreciated the Broncos bringing him back to say good-bye.
“I had a lot of great times here,” he said, “played a lot of good football, won a lot of games, won a Super Bowl.”