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Health issues force former Ravens LB Zach Orr, 25, to end comeback bid

Related Topics: Zach Orr, Spinal disc herniation

Former Ravens linebacker Zach Orr's comeback attempt has come to an end.

Orr announced Friday via The Players Tribune that he will no longer play in the NFL after flirting this summer with the idea of returning.

He initially retired from football in January 2017 after an MRI that was supposed to look at a herniated disk revealed a congenital spine and neck defect. He was told by a doctor then that he should stop playing immediately because his C-1 vertebra wasn't fully grown, but about 80 percent of its normal size. Orr was told it could "explode," and he'd die on the spot.