Husain Abdullah Retires At Age 30, Citing Concussions

Chiefs safety Husain Abdullah announced his NFL retirement this morning after seven NFL seasons, becoming just the latest in a string of players calling it quits while still effective, and yet another one citing his health as a reason to hang it up.

Abdullah, who was a UFA but surely would have found work, made the announcement on his Instagram.

“Sitting for five weeks last year after suffering the fifth concussion of my career,” he wrote, “I had a lot to contemplate. My goals moving forward are to be of benefit to my family, my community, my country and hopefully the world. Having a sound mind will be vital in accomplishing these goals.”

Abdullah was a useful player for Kansas City, not a full-time starter but a versatile free safety who the Chiefs often called on to drop into man-to-man coverage as a nickelback, or to rush the passer on blitzes.

He’s probably best known for getting penalized on a 2014 TD celebration for bowing in prayer, a flag that the NFL immediately and sensibly said shouldn’t have been thrown.

Abdullah, a devout Muslim, took the 2012 season off to make Hajj to Mecca—and to recover from a concussion suffered with the Vikings the year before.