Free agent tight end Julius Thomas announced that he is leaving football to go back to school.
In a retirement letter he wrote for The Players' Tribune, Thomas explained that he decided to end his NFL career to pursue a doctorate in psychology.
"I'm ready to admit that I'm okay with giving up the identity of 'Julius the football player,' " Thomas wrote. "I'm O.K. with not being recognized as an NFL athlete -- because I'm more than that. I have stepped out of my identity before, and I will continue to do it again and again throughout life.