30 NFL stars who could retire after the 2024 season

7. Duane Brown, Free agent

Another offensive lineman who might be at the end of his rope, Duane Brown had a pretty unsuccessful two-year run with the New York Jets. After years of success with the Houston Texans and Seattle Seahawks, Brown expected to be a veteran presence on a relatively young line. He was signed in 2022 after Mekhi Beckton got hurt, but Brown also had a hard time staying on the field. He’s played 17 games over two seasons.

Now, he’s still waiting for his next opportunity. Despite being one of the better free agents on the market, or at least one of the bigger names, there are no rumors of his impending signing. It sounds like at this point he will wait for someone to get hurt so he can get another desperation contract. 

Brown turns 39 years old before the start of this next season. He just got inducted into the Virginia Tech Hall of Fame. He is getting to that point in his career. A team might come calling late in camp or even in the middle of the season, but it’s hard to believe he would be willing to keep this going much longer after all the injuries. At this point, we expect him to go for one last payday and then call it a career.