Devonta Freeman may have garnered recent interest from multiple teams on the free agent market, but that doesn't mean he's prepared to play in 2020 at any price. Days after the Seattle Seahawks added fellow RB Carlos Hyde in the wake of Freeman reportedly hesitating on a one-year offer, and days after a report surfaced that Freeman could sit out the entire season, the former Atlanta Falcons standout angrily shot down a report from NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, who said Monday that Freeman could retire if he doesn't get the money he's looking for.
"I got 10 more years in me," Freeman said in a now-deleted tweet. "Kill that fake retirement sh-t!! & Btw F all y'all!!"
Freeman has certainly slowed down over the past couple years. A two-time Pro Bowler with the Falcons, he topped 1,000 rushing yards twice in his first three seasons but hasn't played 16 games in three years and averaged a career-low 3.6 yards per carry in 2019, leading to his release (and replacement by Todd Gurley) this offseason.
Rapoport's original report noted that it is more likely the 28-year-old back will eventually "take what he can get" rather than retire, but this much seems true: Freeman isn't yet ready to budge from his demand for a starting-caliber salary. Cut by the Falcons this offseason three years after landing a five-year, $41.25 million extension that made him the NFL's highest-paid RB, Freeman reportedly got a one-year, $4 million offer from Seattle. He's also been tied to the Philadelphia Eagles, though they've reportedly budgeted barely $1 million for veteran help behind Miles Sanders entering the 2020 season.
