Unexpectedly, a former Broncos Super Bowl winner chooses to retire

Shaquil Barrett is calling it a career in the NFL.

You know we’re getting really far removed from the Denver Broncos winning Super Bowl 50 when multiple guys who were young players at the time have started retiring from playing. Last offseason, it was Malik Jackson who retired from football, and this offseason, it’s former Broncos pass rusher Shaquil Barrett hanging up the cleats.

Barrett was an undrafted free agent pickup by the Denver Broncos 10 years ago — signed after the 2014 NFL Draft as one of the more shocking players to go undrafted. Although he didn’t have jaw-dropping pre-draft athletic measurables, Barrett was the Mountain West Defensive Player of the Year in 2013 and clearly had natural gifts as a pass rusher.

Actually, to make myself feel even older, I dug up my original scouting report on Barrett which is loaded with excitement and optimism over what his NFL career could potentially be. What’s most shocking in hindsight is that Barrett was actually cut by the Broncos after his rookie camp. Although the Broncos ended up having an embarrassment of riches off the edge for that 2015 season, the team chose to keep Quanterus Smith and Lerentee McCray on the active roster over Barrett, at least initially. The Broncos stashed him on the practice squad for most of his rookie year.

Barrett spent his first five NFL seasons in Denver although he was essentially redshirted in his rookie year. The shocking thing is that he ended up cracking the 53-man roster in 2015 after the Broncos used a 1st-round pick on Shane Ray out of Missouri. And not only did he crack the 53-man roster, but Barrett contributed heavily to the defense with 5.5 sacks, 12 QB hits, and four forced fumbles.

Thus, “Sack” Barrett was born in Denver, and he was instrumental in the team’s Super Bowl 50 run.

Unfortunately, Barrett was blocked in the lineup in 2016 by the trio of Von Miller, DeMarcus Ware, and Shane Ray. He finally had an opening in 2017 to play the most snaps of his NFL career (at that point), but it didn’t result in a long-term gig in Denver. The Broncos did keep Barrett in 2018, but his role diminished substantially after the Broncos drafted Bradley Chubb with the 5th overall pick that draft class.

Barrett ended up finally leaving Denver in 2019 and signing a very modest one-year deal with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He parlayed that modest one-year deal into one of the best individual pass rush seasons we have seen over the last 5-10 years in the NFL. Barrett racked up an unreal 19.5 sacks as a member of the Buccaneers along with six forced fumbles and a whopping 37 QB hits. It was everything Denver Broncos fans believed Barrett could do, but it was manifesting in Tampa Bay.

Barrett turned that All-Pro season into a big-money deal with the Bucs where he racked up 45 total sacks in five seasons. In his five seasons with the Bucs, Barrett had 15 forced fumbles. Over the course of his NFL career, he had 22 forced fumbles and has been one of the best in the NFL at punching the ball out when he got to the quarterback.

Former Broncos pass rusher Shaquil Barrett retires from the NFL
Barrett’s decision to retire from the NFL came as a pretty big shock to the football world, but it makes a ton of sense for him and his family.

Barrett and his wife Jordanna welcomed another child to their family this year with the birth of a baby girl, and they have three other kids: Shaquil Jr., Braylon, and Aaliyah. Last year, they tragically lost a two-year-old child named Arrayah whose memory they honored after the birth of baby girl Allanah.

It’s impossible to fathom what Barrett and his family have been through over the last 12-18 months unless you’ve been through it yourself. I was shocked to see him back on the field last season for the Buccaneers, but perhaps that was a necessary escape during one of life’s most tragic times. Now, after the birth of a brand-new baby girl, and with his other kids being ages 8 and above, I can’t say enough how much I respect what Barrett is doing by stepping away from football to be a full-time dad.

He signed a one-year, $7 million contract this offseason with the Miami Dolphins where he would have — somewhat ironically — been teammates with Bradley Chubb.

With multiple Super Bowl rings and multiple Pro Bowl nods on his résumé, Barrett has reached the pinnacle of the sport. I know I speak on behalf of everyone in Broncos Country when I say that we’re all proud to have gotten the chance to see him play in Denver, to wear the #48 jersey and give his all whether he was rushing the passer or playing special teams. And everyone was extremely proud of his accomplishments in Tampa Bay, many even wishing the Broncos would have just kept him instead of going after Bradley Chubb in the NFL Draft.

Mile High salute to Shaquil Barrett and his whole family.