Richie James, a former Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver who won the Super Bowl alongside Travis Kelce and Patrick Mahomes in 2024, has retired.
James has been a free agent since that victory in Las Vegas and posted on X late on Friday night that, due to a knee injury, he will never be returning to football.
The 29-year-old wrote: ‘It took time but I have come to realize I am retired from the NFL. 7th round out of MTSU. I feel like I was just a ball player to last that long.
‘Unfortunately my knee never healed properly. I was playing hurt since 22’. Oh well. I gave everything I got to the game of Football.’
As he mentioned in his statement, James was picked in the seventh round of the 2018 NFL Draft by the San Francisco 49ers after playing college for Middle Tennessee.
He was waived in 2021 due to knee surgery after 40 games and 38 receptions for 689 yards and three touchdowns.
Richie James, a Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl winner, has retired from the NFL at age 29
In 2022, he signed with the New York Giants and recorded 57 receptions for 569 yards, helping the Giants reach the playoffs for the first time since 2016 – they haven’t made the postseason since, either.
The following year, he was signed to the Chiefs by Andy Reid and played six snaps as Kansas City beat his former team, the 49ers, to record Super Bowl glory.
The Chiefs beat the 49ers 25-22 in overtime at Allegiant Stadium, their second straight Super Bowl title.
That day would prove to be the last time James set foot on the field, and that Super Bowl win set the Chiefs on the way to nearly achieveing a three-peat.
But their hopes fell short in February when they were blown away 40-22 by the Philadelphia Eagles in New Orleans.
The Chiefs begin the 2025 campaign in Brazil on September 5 against the Los Angeles Chargers.
They follow that in Week 2 with a rematch against the Eagles at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City before facing another of James’ old teams, the Giants, in Week 3 at MetLife.
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