This announcement came as a surprise to many as there were never any signs of him getting released or losing his starting job, but the Ohio native did suffer a knee injury in week 15, which may have been more serious than originally expected.

That move combines with the latest Tee Higgins franchise tag and the cut of Alex Cappa (who already signed with a new team) to put the Bengals at roughly $51.7 million in free cap space, per Over the Cap.

A former playoff hero for the Cincinnati Bengals has officially announced his retirement from the NFL this week.