Offensive lineman Zach Fulton has decided to retire after seven NFL seasons. Tom Rock of Newsday reports that Fulton informed the team of his decision on Thursday night.
Fulton, who spent the first four years of his career with the Kansas City Chiefs and last three with the Houston Texans, had signed with the New York Giants on a one year, $1.2 million contract earlier this offseason. Fulton was expected to make the roster as a backup interior offensive lineman, but will instead have to be replaced by the Giants.
Earlier this week, backup guard/center Joe Looney, who had spent the most recent five seasons of his nine-year career with the Dallas Cowboys, retired just four days after signing with New York. And he was not the only player to retire after just a few days days with the team. Linebacker Todd Davis, who signed the same day as Looney, announced his retirement a day before Looney.
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Kelvin Benjamin, whose comeback and position change attempts were cut short after he was released by the Giants after just one day of camp under somewhat unusual circumstances, also elected to retire after the experience.
As head coach Joe Judge noted, it's not that uncommon for players to retire during training camp for one reason or another. "These are tough decisions on guys," Judge said. "As you get vets later in their career, they started training camp, it's not uncommon for this to happen. Now, you don't want it to happen, but you have to respect the decision each person makes for their family."
But four players from the same training camp retiring before the first preseason game, including three inside of a week -- a week that included a full-scale brawl and controversy over the way that coach is running camp itself -- is enough to raise some eyebrows. Coming off a somewhat disappointing season and in the wake of a free agent spending spree, it's something to watch, as it relates to the job statuses of Judge and general manager Dave Gettleman.
