NFL training camps opened up back in July. And major roster moves are already happening around the league. Both expected and unexpected.
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The Washington Commanders were hit with a shock update on Tuesday (August 4). The
NFL Player Abruptly Retires in The Middle of Training Camp
Fans React to NFL Cornerback's Retirement
Of course, Witherspoon's abrupt farewell caused quite a stir around the NFL. Which, of course, led to a lot of reactions from fans on social media.
"Always hate seeing guys hang it up, but if this is it, congrats on a solid career. Wishing him the best," one user wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.
"A solid career quietly comes to a close. Wishing Ahkello Witherspoon nothing but success in whatever comes next," a second user chimed in.
"Witherspoon said nah I'm good on all this hitting s**t lol," a third person added.
The Commanders had signed Witherspoon to a 1-year/$1.4 million deal during the offseason. But it doesn't appear that he will ever officially play a down with the franchise.
Before signing with the Commanders, Witherspoon had made stops playing with the San Francisco 49ers and the Los Angeles Rams.
However, his play had clearly taken a hit in his last season in Los Angeles. In his last season with the Rams, Witherspoon logged just 6 solo tackles, one interception, and two pass deflections. For reference, he had logged 25 solo tackles in the previous season, and 43 solo tackles the season before that. In fact, his six solo tackles were a career low. And so were the 6 games that he appeared in last season.
Now the Commanders had a missing piece to fill in an already thin secondary that is now down to just three cornerbacks. Mike Sainristil,
Rasul Douglas, and Fabian Moreau. It will be interesting to see how they fill out this roster.
