Veteran cornerback Steven Nelson announced his retirement Sunday after nine NFL seasons, as reported by Aaron Wilson of KPRC. Nelson had interest from multiple teams including the Texans, Raiders, Giants, Rams, Commanders, and Dolphins, but ultimately decided to step away from the game to spend more time with his wife, Monica, who is pregnant, and his family while focusing on his various business ventures. He owns a large livestock farm outside of Houston and has a podcast.
“Retirement, after thinking it over and having some talks with my family, I think it’s time for me to take a step back and spend more time with my family,” Nelson, 31, told Wilson. “I’m extremely proud of what I was able to do in the game of football.” Nelson spoke about his journey from a small town with limited resources to playing at Oregon State and overcoming various trials and tribulations to have a successful NFL career. While he is proud of his legacy, he decided it was time to retire.
Drafted by the Chiefs in the third round in 2015, Nelson played four seasons in Kansas City, two in Pittsburgh, one in Philadelphia, and the past two years in Houston. Last season, he intercepted a career-high five passes and returned one for a touchdown in a wild-card playoff win over the Browns. In his 130-game career with 115 starts, Nelson accumulated 13 interceptions, 87 passes defensed, two forced fumbles, four fumble recoveries, one sack, 456 tackles, and 11 tackles for losses. Although he is retiring, Nelson did not completely rule out the possibility of a return to the NFL in the future.