By: Alina Fang

ASHBURN, Virginia – Ryan Kerrigan was proud of his consistent approach, which yielded equally consistent results. When his left knee prevented him from doing so, he decided retirement was the best option.

Kerrigan announced his retirement on Friday, signing a one-day contract with the Washington Commanders to cap an 11-year career. He spent ten seasons with the Washington Redskins before joining the Philadelphia Eagles last offseason.

He claimed that doctors advised him to retire last year due to a bad left knee. “I wasn’t emotionally ready to not play football anymore,” Kerrigan said. “I had a good playoff game and that made me think I could still do this. As I got into training again in late June, the knee really bothered me again.”

That makes it easier for a player who claims football influences every decision he makes, including what he eats for breakfast in the offseason. Kerrigan, the 16th overall pick in 2011, became Washington’s all-time sack leader with 95.5 points and four Pro Bowl appearances. He didn’t get sacked in the Eagles’ regular season, but did have 1.5 sacks in the playoff loss to Tampa Bay.

“I just want fans to know that I gave them everything I had, like, literally everything I had,” Kerrigan said. “Emotionally, physically, they got all of me. Football was my life. I just want fans to know that it meant that much to me, that my performance and what I was showing on Sundays was that important to me, that it was my driving force in life.”

Though Kerrigan appears to be content with his decision to retire, he is far from finished with the game. His ambition is to transition his career as a mentor into one as a coach.

Perhaps his next job, as a consultant or assistant, will begin in Washington, where he feels at home in foreign territory: on the sidelines.

“I love football far too much,” he admitted. “I just love football too much to not be involved in some way.”