The New York Giants and Osi Umenyiora have signed a one-day contract so the defensive end can officially retire as a member of the team. The ceremony will be held Wednesday.
Osi Umenyiora will sign 1-day contract to retire a Giant
The veteran defensive end will call it a career as a member of the team that drafted him.
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Umenyiora has been in the league since the Giants took him with the No. 56 pick in the 2003 NFL Draft. The defensive end played nine seasons with the Giants, then spent the last two with the Atlanta Falcons. His level of play had dropped off in recent seasons, as he put up just 12 tackles and 2.5 sacks in 16 games with the Falcons in 2014. He was an excellent player throughout his career, however, and his 75 sacks as a Giant rank him fourth in team history, as noted by Dan Graziano of ESPN.
Umenyiora will retire with a pair of Super Bowl rings, two Pro Bowls to his name and two appearances on the All-Pro list. In 2005, Umenyiora was the NFL's sack leader with 14.5 sacks in 16 games. In 161 career games, he put up 435 tackles, 85 sacks, 35 forced fumbles, 14 fumble recoveries and one interception.
There was some speculation Umenyiora would keep playing. There’s always a market for pass rushers, and the Giants themselves had been named as a potential candidate to sign him in the wake of Jason Pierre-Paul’s hand injury. But it looks like Umenyiora is content with his career to this point and will hang his cleats up as a Giant.
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