Laurent Duvernay-Tardif, who won a Super Bowl as an offensive lineman for Kansas City before leaving the NFL to combat Covid-19 as a doctor, announced his retirement from American football on Thursday.
The 32-year-old Canadian blocker was the starting right guard for the Chiefs in the 2020 Super Bowl at Miami, helping protect Patrick Mahomes as the star quarterback led Kansas City to a 31-20 victory over San Francisco.
“Although closing the door on this chapter of my life will be difficult, I am serene in this decision and I retire with the feeling of mission accomplished,” Duvernay-Tardif posted Thursday on social media.
“I view this incredible experience not as an ending but as a springboard towards other projects.”
Duvernay-Tardif, who began his NFL career with the Chiefs in 2014, studied during the off-seasons and graduated in 2018 from medical school at Montreal’s McGill University, praising Chiefs coach Andy Reid for his support.
“He believed that a player must flourish off the field to perform on the field,” Duvernay-Tardif posted. “Being able to count on that kind of leadership was an incredible opportunity for me.”
When the Covid-19 pandemic became deadly on a massive scale later in 2020, he left the NFL to work at a long-term care facility in Canada.
Duvernay-Tardif became the first NFL player to announce he would not play the 2020 campaign due to Covid-19.
His decision to take a front-line role in fighting Covid-19 led Duvernay-Tardif to be named among Sports Illustrated’s 2020 Sportspeople of the Year.
He was named a co-winner of the 2020 Lou Marsh Trophy given annually to Canada’s top athlete for his work on and off the field and in 2021 won the Sports Humanitarian of the Year award at the ESPY Awards.
Duvernay-Tardif returned to the NFL after he was traded to the New York Jets in November 2021 and concluded his career last season.
“I’ve had the chance to play in the NFL for 9 years and even today I sometimes can’t believe I was able to experience this adventure,” he posted.
“Being a professional athlete is a privilege as well as an extremely enriching human and personal experience.”
