A couple of weeks ago, reports surfaced that Carolina Panthers’ Pro Bowl offensive tackle Russell Okung is considering retirement due to coronavirus pandemic-related concerns. According to the player, however, ne never had doubts about playing this year.
The initial reports said that Okung, who dealt with pulmonary embolism due to blood clots last season, had concerns whether playing football will be safe. The sources close to the player told ESPN at the time that the 31-year-old player was weighing his options and considered opting out as well as walking away from football.
Still, Okung showed up for Panthers’ training camp and decided to use the recent chat with reporters to deny the retirement reports.
“I always expected to play,” said Okung. “It’s unfortunate that so many people, certain people in the media, are more interested in being the first to report as opposed to reporting something that is accurate. No conversations like that have been had in order for that individual to feel it’s necessary to put any information out there like that.”
Russell Okung joined Carolina Panthers from LA Chargers in the offseason in a trade that saw guard Trai Turner head in the opposite way. Okung, who also played with Denver Broncos and Seattle Seahawks, has 124 starts since entering the league in 2010. He won Super Bowl XLVIII with Seahawks and has two Pro Bowl appearances.
