Morgan retires
 

LB Dan Morgan Announces Retirement

NewOrleansSaints.com, NewOrleansSaints.com
Monday, May 19, 2008 - 5:00 PM



Linebacker Dan Morgan has decided to retire, it was announced today by the New Orleans Saints. Morgan, who signed with the Saints March 11 as a free agent, played in the NFL for seven seasons, all with the Carolina Panthers.

Morgan missed the final 13 games of 2007 with a partial tear of an Achilles tendon, and had battled through other injuries in recent seasons.

“When we signed Dan, he was committed to making a fresh start, and he was making every effort to rehabilitate the leg injury that he suffered last year,” said Coach Sean Payton. “But it wasn’t responding as well as he had hoped it would. We wish him well in his continued recovery, and he will be remembered for the excellent player he was during his career.”

Morgan played for Carolina since being drafted in the first round in 2001 out of the University of Miami. During his career, he recorded 452 tackles, seven sacks, four forced fumbles and five interceptions. He played in 59 games in his career, all starts, and was voted to the Pro Bowl in 2004.

Re: Morgan retires
 

Well that opens up another spot. Smart move Dan. I like you as a player but I am sure your kids like you more as a father. best of luck.

Re: Morgan retires
 

i agree....looking back at barry sanders retiring while he was healthy....the best thing to do is walk away when u can and not suffer more damage than need be....i know its a different sport but Ali didnt walk away from boxing in time and now he is so mentally out of it that he needs daily help to get around....when a player decides to retire due to injuries its always sad but its usually the smartest, best thing to do...i too wish him the best of luck with his family

Re: Morgan retires
 

Good luck to Dan. sign Tikeo Sipikes

Re: Morgan retires
 

A healthy Morgan was too good to be true. Let's just hope Vilma holds up.

Re: Morgan retires
 

couldnt he have done this before the draft?

Re: Morgan retires
 

LMAO! I have been going crazy, wondering why the Saints didn't hit the market or the draft for another LB, and now this? WTF? I sure hope our front4 is as strong as it is being heralded.

Re: Morgan retires
 

I am kind of disappointed that Dan is retired, and I wish he would have done so sooner. Anyway, that is the football fan talking. On the personal side I think Dan is making a smart decision. The injury bug just couldn't stay away. I am glad Dan is walking away while he still has the chance. No need in him spending the rest of his life crippled or senseless in the mind. Best of luck!

Re: Morgan retires
 

Vilma will shore up the Mike spot, Fujita should remain at Sam. Who will be the Will in this D, Morgan seemed like a good fit.

Wish I knew,

Nolabama

Re: Morgan retires
 

Well it was retirement or injurey.

Re: Morgan retires
 

What might have been

May 19, 2008 9:01 PM


Posted by ESPN.com's Pat Yasinskas.

Just about every story you read about the retirement of Dan Morgan will tell you what the linebacker did not do.

That's understandable, but not totally fair. If you're really going to look at Morgan's star-crossed career, you need to remember what he did do. When he was on the field and fully healthy, there was not a better linebacker around.

Unfortunately, there aren't a lot of games I can point to in support of that statement because Morgan never played a full season for the Carolina Panthers after they drafted him in the first round of 2001.

But there's one game you can look at that shows how great Morgan could have been if he hadn't had a ridiculous amount of injury problems. That's Super Bowl XXXVIII. It's kind of forgotten because the Patriots defeated the Panthers, but Morgan had one of the best games ever by any player at any position.

That night in Houston, he was the true sideline-to-sideline linebacker the Panthers were sure would be a superstar when he came out of the University of Miami. Against Tom Brady and New England's offense, Morgan made 25 tackles.

That's what a healthy Morgan could have been like every game and that's why the Saints were willing to give him a shot after the Panthers finally gave up on him. He could have been a Hall of Famer. Some may look back and consider Morgan a bust. He never was anything close to that.

He was a phenomenal player and a classy guy - with incredibly bad luck.

Re: Morgan retires
 

I'm gonna go ahead and say we get one of the two starting LB's from USC next year. - Cushing or Maualauga.

Re: Morgan retires
 

Does he retire as a Saint having never played a down? I'm assuming he does since he's undercontract.

Re: Morgan retires
 

yep

Re: Morgan retires
 

Just to clear it up, Parkinson's is not caused by head trauma. It's a genetic cindition that Ali, and M.J. Fox for that matter, had and the condition expresses itself after the "mating age."

Re: Morgan retires
 

Well, I predicted in another thread long ago that Morgan would be lost by the 2nd or 3rd game to injuries. So I guess I was only off by 2 games.

Damn that hurts though.

Re: Morgan retires
 

Looks like another year of Shanle.

Re: Morgan retires
 

Damn, there's got to be a better WLB out there somewhere.

Re: Morgan retires
 

... it is also an oxymoron :)

I felt he wasn't going to last 3 games into the season.