Getty Marshal Yanda during a Ravens game in 2016.
The Baltimore Ravens lost Marshal Yanda to retirement this offseason, and there was a good reason for it. The offensive lineman simply wanted to go out on top after a remarkable career.
Recently, Yanda joined the Pat McAfee Show to discuss walking away from the game and showed some major insight into why he did that when all was said and done a few months back.
“I was not willing to risk another injury for another year. I just couldn’t do it. That rehab is life draining”
Marshal Yanda on his decision to retire after 13 years and a 14-2 season with the #Ravens #PatMcAfeeShowLIVE
Yanda said:
“It was an accumulation of 2017, I broke my ankle and I had shoulder surgery the same year. I had 2 offseason surgeries in 2017 after that I knew I was put on notice,” Yanda said. “Going into the 2018 season, If I got hurt I was going to retire. Or even last year I was going to retire. The last 2 years I’ve been mentally prepared to retire if I got hurt again. I don’t want to push it too far, but it was great. It was great. I got to play ’18 and ’19, started every game, got to play healthy and finish it the right way. Going into ’19, take it for what it is, and I didn’t want to risk another injury.”
McAfee then wondered if it was tough to walk away from Lamar Jackson and a Ravens roster seemingly primed to do damage. Yanda admitted it was a pretty difficult decision to make, but one that his body made for him thanks to never wanting to deal with rehab again.
“I get it, trust me, that was one of my best years, the most fun I had in a regular season atmosphere,” he said. “But at the end of the day, I still had 13 seasons, 8 surgeries on my body. I’ve had the wear and tear and I was just not willing to risk another year for another injury.”
Certainly, fans have to respect Yanda for putting his personal health above everything else.
Marshal Yanda Revealed NFL Retirement
According to ESPN’s Jamison Hensley a few months back prior to free agency, Yanda decided to hang up the cleats following the 2019 season. Initially, he had been debating whether or not to return, but it’s true that Yanda wants to walk away following last season.
Source: Ravens guard Marshal Yanda decides to retire – via @ESPN App t.co/VLz17jFk67
It’s obvious the guard will be missed in a big way up front for the team, and now, the Ravens’ biggest goal will be figuring out what to do with the gaping hole up front. It’s tough to quantify how much Yanda has meant to the team given his 13 year career has never taken him anywhere but Baltimore.
Yanda, 35, was a third round pick out of Iowa in 2007 and was an 8 time Pro-Bowl player as well as a 2 time first team All-Pro and a 5 time second team All-Pro. He started in 166 NFL games and played in 177 total as well as a winner of Super Bowl XLVIII. Obviously, his resume could lead to enshrinement in the Hall of Fame one day given what he was able to do.
Now, Yanda will shift to life outside of football. Clearly, that has already begun.
How Ravens Will Replace Marshal Yanda
The team managed to do a few things in order to account for the loss of Yanda up front. First, they signed Seattle Seahawks offensive lineman D.J. Fluker to be part of the mix. Before that in the NFL Draft, they added Michigan’s Ben Bredeson to the mix in order to chip in up front. Obviously, those pair would figure to be part of the plan in order to account for the loss of Yanda this season.
It’s not fair to think either will measure up in terms of doing what Yanda could do on the field, but in the long run, the hope is that the duo can help account for him deciding to walk away.
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