After earning a special place in the hearts of NFL fans over the course of nearly two decades, Ryan Fitzpatrick quietly announced Thursday the clock has officially struck midnight on “FitzMagic.”
The veteran quarterback revealed he plans to retire from the NFL after an eventful 17 seasons in a text message shared by former Bills running back Fred Jackson on social media. Jackson, who teamed with Fitzpatrick from 2009–12, let the proverbial cat out of the bag in a tweet accompanied by a picture of the message which read, “Forever grateful for the magical ride.”
Fitzpatrick, 39, has spent the offseason as a free agent following a one-year stint in Washington; the club elected not to re-sign him after bringing him in as their starter last spring, only for him to suffer a season-ending hip injury in Week 1.
Famously drafted in the seventh round out of Harvard in 2005, Fitzpatrick shared the news of his pending retirement with the help of a graphic paying homage to each of the nine teams he played for. The journeyman QB highlighted teammates from his early days with the Rams in St. Louis on through his subsequent stints with the Bengals, Bills, Titans, Texans, Jets, Buccaneers, Dolphins and the Football Team/Commanders.
Of Fitzpatrick’s nine NFL stops, only Buffalo has the distinction of being the franchise he spent more than two seasons with (4). In addition to holding records with four different clubs (Bills, Texans, Jets, Bucs), Fitzpatrick also holds a number of NFL records, including the most consecutive games of 400 yards passing (3) and most career touchdown passes by an Ivy League graduate (223).
If this is indeed the end of his career, Fitzpatrick’s unique announcement feels like a fitting send-off for a player beloved by teammates, coaches and fans alike for his personality and charisma. Not to mention, his rise from an unheralded prospect to a legitimate NFL starter earned him respect amongst his peers and endeared him to fanbases all across the country in the process.
Fitzpatrick departs the NFL with career totals of 34,990 passing yards, 223 TDs and 169 interceptions in 166 games played, with an all-time record of 59–87–1 as a starter.
