Former Ohio State defensive end Sam Hubbard announced his retirement from the NFL on social media on Wednesday to end a 7-year career.
“In my heart, I know that I gave this game, this team, and this city everything that I had,” Hubbard wrote in a statement released to his twitter account. “That is why today, with great pride, I am announcing that I am moving on from my playing career in the NFL and entering the next chapter of my life.”
Hubbard played with Ohio State from 2014-17 and recorded 116 total tackles and 17 sacks during his three-year playing career. Hubbard’s best season with the Buckeyes came in his redshirt junior year when he totaled seven sacks in 14 games and was named to the second-team All-Big Ten.
Hubbard, who grew up in Cincinnati and attended Archbishop Moeller in high school was drafted in the third round by the Cincinnati Bengals. Hubbard played all seven years of his NFL career with the Bengals, where he had 349 total tackles and 35.5 sacks, and was ultimately a 4-time captain.
“As a kid growing up in Southwest Ohio, Cincinnati has always been, and always will be, home to my family and me, I bled orange and black before I ever put on a Bengals jersey,” Hubbard wrote. “The journey took me from a high school lacrosse player up I-71 North to become a defensive end at The Ohio State University and back home again as a Bengals third-round pick in 2018, is something for which I am grateful for every day.”
At only 29 years old, Hubbard, a former Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year nominee in 2021 and 2022, is looking forward to his post-playing career.
“What’s next? Although it is the end of my playing career, I view this as a new beginning. A new chapter to explore other business opportunities, further the mission of The Sam Hubbard Foundation, focus on my health and family and also take on new challenges.”
