PITTSBURGH – Twin centers Maurkice Pouncey and Mike Pouncey have retired from the NFL, Ramon Foster, a former teammate of Maurkice’s, announced on Twitter.
“It is my honor that my brothers from another have asked me to announce the next stage in their lives. After more than a decade, @MaurkicePouncey and Mike Pouncey RETIRE from @nfl,” Foster posted on Twitter.
It is my honor that my brothers from another have asked me to announce the next stage in their lives. After over a decade @MaurkicePouncey and Mike Pouncey retire from @nfl 🤝. Below are their notes to thank those involved in their careers. #Steeler # chargers #Miami #NFL pic.twitter.com/v9IALOrZaX
– Ramon Foster (@RamonFoster) February 12, 2021
Maurkice finished 18th at the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 2010 draft, while Mike finished 15th at the Miami Dolphins the following year. The two instantly started full-time for their teams, mostly downtown, though Mike spent a season on the right guard in Miami.
“I started this journey at the age of 6 and now at the age of 31 we will close this chapter of our lives as I announce my retirement from @nfl and move away from the game,” Mike Pouncey said in a statement provided by Foster .
While Maurkice played 11 seasons with the Steelers, Mike spent 10 seasons between the Dolphins and the Chargers after their college careers in Florida. Mike’s last season ended in September, when he entered the injured reserve with hip surgery at the end of the season. A year earlier, the four-time Pro Bowler season ended early, with a neck injury in early October.
Maurkice Pouncey and Pittsburgh defender Ben Roethlisberger are close friends and have often sworn to play as long as the other. Everyone has a contract that lasts for the 2021 season, although Roethlisberger has not announced his intentions for next season. With his retirement, Pouncey leaves behind $ 6,475 million in dead capital, but saves the team $ 8 million in space.
The exciting moments that Maurkice Pouncey spent with Roethlisberger on the bench after the loss of the Steelers in the playoffs on January 10 became his last in the NFL.
“I like that guy,” Roethlisberger said after the loss at the end of the season. “He’s one of the best competitors and teammates I’ve ever had. It was so much fun to share a football field with him. I hate that it ended the way I did. I just wanted to apologize for that I wanted to win it for him. “
Maurkice Pouncey, a nine-time Pro Bowler, had told teammates and loved ones that she was seriously considering retiring from the wild card loss, sources told ESPN.
“I will always love the game of football and I will always be the biggest competitor in life @nfl @steelers! I am not in love with the sacrifice that football takes on my life, my beautiful daughters Jayda, Marley and my family!” Maurkice Pouncey stated in a statement provided by Foster.
An extremely loyal teammate, Maurkice Pouncey, also missed two games in 2019 after being suspended for his role in the fight with the Cleveland Browns while defending Mason Rudolph against Myles Garrett.
“You have a feeling for people,” said Foster, a former offensive line officer a year ago. “You know if someone isn’t for you. His thing is, if you’re one of his teammates, he loves and respects the heck out of you.”
Pouncey’s departure creates a leadership gap on the Steelers offense. The All-Pro’s two-time center was part of the group that gave a heated break at the Steelers’ Week 16 victory over the Indianapolis Colts, which helped change in the second half.
“As I write this farewell speech, I cry and laugh that the Lakeland FL twin boys, who grew up in poverty, have come so far in life, living the NFL dreams,” Maurkice wrote.