Why is Michael Gallup retiring?

Las Vegas Raiders wide receiver Michael Gallup unexpectedly retired from the NFL on Tuesday. Gallup was drafted by the Dallas Cowboys in the third round of the 2018 NFL Draft. He spent six years in Dallas before being released and signing a one-year deal with Las Vegas. His retirement comes just one day ahead of the Raiders training camp.

During his six-year NFL career, Gallup put up over 3,700 receiving yards and 21 touchdowns. Following his rookie season, in 2019, Gallup put up 66 catches on 113 targets for 1,107 yards and six touchdowns. In 2020, he caught 59 passes on 105 targets for 843 yards. The next season was cut short due to an ACL tear, but Dallas gave him a five-year, $62.5 million contract extension for the 2022 season.

Why did Michael Gallup retire?

Gallup practiced with the Raiders during their OTAs and minicamp this summer, so his retirement comes as quite a surprise ahead of training camp, where he was expected to compete for the WR3 position behind Davante Adams and Jakobi Meyers. Though he posted many well-wishes from friends and former teammates to his Instagram stories, Gallup has not made an official announcement on social media explaining his reasons for retiring at 28.

Related stories

NFL

CeeDee steering clear of the Cowboys

NFL

Davante Adams wants Tom Brady to unretire for a go with the Raiders

Usually, when a player retires young, it’s due to injury or risk of injury. Gallup, however, was healthy heading into the season. Still, the toll this sport takes on the body cannot be understated. It’s possible Gallup is just getting ahead of it.

It’s also possible that he was unsatisfied fighting for a WR3 position, never having fully established himself as a strong WR2 with the Cowboys. By 2022, he’d received only 74 targets and in 2023, just 57. Indeed, Fort Worth Star-Telegram’s Clarence Hill Jr. reoprted that Gallup’s “heart was no longer in it”.