Wide receiver Rishard Matthews was released by the New Orleans Saints on Saturday. Head coach Sean Payton, speaking cryptically of the breakup, said of Matthews, “it’s not for everyone,” which together with a “left squad designation” accompanying his release indicated that Matthews voluntarily bailed on a reasonable chance at landing a regular season gig with the Saints.
Matthews took matters a step further Monday, announcing on Instagram that he has retired from football altogether. This was not your polite, boilerplate farewell to coaches and teammates—in a poem-like post titled “No Longer Exist,” Matthews listed some of what he’s leaving behind, a lot of which is sharply negative:
Matthews played for three teams over his seven full seasons in the NFL, and had his best years in a two-year stretch with the Titans. He spent the back half of last season with the New York Jets, which it is probably safe to assume explains a lot of why he’s feeling so completely shitty and demoralized about the sport of football these days.