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Bradley Bozeman’s NFL career is over. The Los Angeles Chargers’ starting center officially announced his retirement on Instagram on Monday after eight seasons in the league.
“This game has given me so much: lessons, life-long friendships, and memories my family will cherish forever,” Bozeman said in his post. “I put everything I had into this trip, and I leave grateful and proud.”
The Alabama native won a national championship with the Crimson Tide in 2018 before being drafted by the Ravens in the sixth round that same year. He will start over and over again. 110 games Throughout his career – a solid run for a Day 3 pick.
His final two seasons took place in Los Angeles, where things got complicated. Bozeman became one of the team’s most respected voices in the locker room, but his play on the field received much criticism. The Chargers’ interior line struggled badly and he took a lot of heat for it.
The criticism seemed to have taken a toll.
“Obviously there are things we want to get back, but overall I feel like we’ve had a solid year. A lot of people don’t think so, but a lot of people aren’t in our room,” Bozeman said after the season, fighting back tears. “…So I’m proud of this year. I’m proud of myself.”
Chargers linebacker Daiyan Henley took to social media after news of his retirement broke to highlight what is often lost in performance debates.
“The great man fought every season,” Henry told
From a roster standpoint, the timing makes sense for both sides. Bozeman had one year left on the two-year, $6.5 million contract he signed last offseason, but no guaranteed money remained. his $6.935 million The 2026 cap is now completely off the books.
The Chargers will likely contend regardless. Now there’s a big hole in the middle with no one under contract for that position.
Here’s where it gets interesting. LA is expected to have the third-most cap space heading into free agency, and Ravens center Tyler Linderbaum is one of the best players available and could soon hit the market. General manager Joe Hortiz actually helped draft Linderbaum in the first round in 2022 while Linderbaum was still in Baltimore.
The numbers tell the story: Linderbaum ranks second among all centers in the league in pass block win percentage. 97.2% Last season. Bozeman? He ranked 30th with 92.5%. This is not a trivial gap. This is the difference between elite protection and intermediate accountability.
Former Purdue and NFL wide receiver Rondale Moore has died at age 25.
