Ex-Lions Starter Abruptly Retires Right Before Start of OTAs

NFL organized offseason activities (OTAs) start in approximately two weeks, and when they do, there’s one player who won’t be participating.

Cornerback Jerry Jacobs, who started 12 games in 2023 and 29 total over his three-year NFL career with the Detroit Lions, announced his retirement from the NFL at age 28 via his Instagram account.

"Over the past few months my head been everywhere not knowing if I wanna keep playing or what, but I'm deciding to hang the cleats up and start a new journey," Jacobs wrote. "I've been playing this games since I was 6 years old. I always had love for it, Well I fought a good fight an finished my race after 22 years of playing the game to my coaches throughout my whole football career.

"… I can finally feel complete about how my football story even went. Football taught me how to be a man on and off the field and to be a better person. … I always knew it would come to an end one day but never thought I'll be making this post this soon but I know it's time… Retirement is not the end of the road It is the beginning of the open highway."

Why It Matters

Jacobs seemingly ran out of NFL options after parting ways with the Lions in 2023.

He signed with the Los Angeles Rams, a notoriously CB-needy team until trading for Trent McDuffie this offseason, in July 2024 but was released a month later. He then signed with the Saskatchewan Roughriders in the Canadian Football League in February of this year but decided to end his football journey months later.

Jacobs joined the Lions in 2021 as an undrafted free agent out of Arkansas. Jacobs totaled 131 tackles, nine tackles for loss, four interceptions, a forced fumble, and a fumble recovery across 40 games, including 29 starts.

Detroit didn't re-sign Jacobs after the 2023 season as it began revamping its secondary. The Lions drafted Terrion Arnold and Ennis Rakestraw with its first two picks in the 2024 draft, they added former New York Jets CB D.J. Reed last season.

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This story was originally published May 13, 2026 at 2:16 PM.