Former Broncos and CSU edge rusher Shaquil Barrett announces retirement

Shaquil Barrett was one of the Denver Broncos’ undrafted success stories. He then moved to Tampa Bay in free agency and became one of the NFL’s best pass rushers, a two-time Pro Bowler who led the league in sacks in 2019 and helped dismantle the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LV.

And just days before he was set to begin training camp with the Miami Dolphins, the 31-year-old veteran hung up his boots. Barrett announced his retirement on Instagram on Saturday, citing a desire to spend more time with his family.

“I am ready to shift my full focus to my wife and children and helping them achieve and catch their dreams,” Barrett said in his Instagram statement. “Anyone who has caught their dreams before knows how much work, time, and consistency it takes to achieve them.

“I am ready to develop my children’s skills. That requires 100% commitment.”

For Shaquil Barrett, nine seasons in the NFL were a dream come true — and an unlikely one at that. His first college program, Nebraska-Omaha, shut down football after his freshman season in 2010. Barrett then transferred to Colorado State and had 18 sacks in three seasons, winning the Mountain West Conference’s defensive-player-of-the-year award.

But Barrett wasn’t drafted. The Broncos signed him but kept him on the practice squad as a rookie. He made his debut in 2015, starting six games while Demarcus Ware dealt with a balky back. Barrett had a habit of making big plays, recording 5.5 sacks and four forced fumbles in 2015 as the Broncos sprinted to Super Bowl 50.

But despite Barrett’s skills in high-leverage situations, the Broncos were reluctant to give him a regular starting spot. When Ware retired after the 2015 season, the Broncos drafted 2015 first-round pick Shane Ray as the starter opposite Von Miller. Only an injury to Ray in camp kept Barrett on the first team, where he lasted six games until Ray returned.

The following offseason, the Broncos selected Bradley Chubb with the 5th overall pick. Chubb’s selection effectively created a permanent block for Barrett to ever become a full-time starter in Denver, with Chubb joining Miller, who was in the middle third of the six-year contract he signed five months after winning Super Bowl 50.

What Denver couldn’t offer Shaquil Barrett, Tampa Bay did. His game really took off in 2019 after signing with the Bucs in free agency, and Barrett responded with that breakout 19.5-sack season in 2019.

Barrett never matched that total in subsequent years, but he was a crucial part of the Bucs’ run to Super Bowl LV. After sacking Aaron Rodgers three times in the NFC Championship Game, he made the Super Bowl miserable for Kansas City’s Patrick Mahomes, recording four hits, a sack, and six total pressures as the Buccaneers won Super Bowl LV 31-9.

It was the kind of playoff period that reminded me of Ware and Miller, two players who guided Barrett during his five seasons with the Broncos.

Barrett and his family were struck by tragedy during his five-season career in Tampa Bay when his daughter, Arrayah, died in an accidental drowning in the pool at Barrett’s Tampa home in April 2023. He returned to play the following season, but the Buccaneers released him on March 13 after a season ended early due to a torn Achilles tendon.

Miami signed Barrett five days after the Buccaneers parted ways with him, but he doesn’t want to sit still with the Dolphins and has opted to retire and focus on his children.