The Detroit Lions have been thrown into disarray after one of their longest-serving stars made a shock demand to leave the franchise.
Offensive tackle Taylor Decker took to Instagram on Friday to share a lengthy message to the Lions fanbase, revealing that he has ‘decided to request my release’.
The dramatic decision comes just a week after Decker announced on social media that he intended to return to the NFL for an 11th season in the league.
In his post on Friday, Decker wrote: ‘Things change. 145 games started, 3 playoff appearances, 2 division titles, a decade carrying the shield. I fully intended to do it once again, but my time as a Lion is coming to an end.
‘In the weeks since notifying the team of my return there have been numerous discussions. Many of which were a surprise to me, and we could not find common ground. Therefore I decided to request my release.’
‘I am opting for a clean and amicable close to what has been such a beautiful 10 years going to war as a Lion,’ Decker said in his emotional post on Instagram.
Detroit Lions star Taylor Decker stunned fans by requesting his release from the franchise
The 32-year-old took Instagram to share a lengthy message with his followers on Friday
‘It has been the absolute privilege of my life to be your LT for the past 10 years and I am forever grateful for the opportunity the Ford family and Lions organization afforded me.’
‘To the fans, a thank you is simply never enough. You drive the game to be the absolute pinnacle competition in our country. Coming from Ohio to Michigan and being welcomed as a kid, but more importantly being forged into a man in Detroit is a point of pride for me.
‘And we were able to fight, scratch and claw our way out of the depths, and become one of the most feared franchises in the NFL. You were and always have been the most deserving fanbase of all the recent success. All love,’ he finished.
According to the Detroit Free Press, Decker confirmed that his decision to walk away from the Lions was partly due to financial reasons.
The outlet reports that the Lions wanted Decker to take a cut from his $14.9 million base salary which was due this fall. The two sides could not agree on a new deal.
Back in December, Decker revealed, to the same outlet, that he was weighing up retirement for family and health reasons.
However, he appeared to double back on those claims just last week after he shared a picture on Instagram of him running out of the tunnel at Ford Field.
Back in December, Decker revealed he was weighing up retirement for family reasons
He captioned the post: ”Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? And I said, ‘Here am I; SEND ME!’ #Year11′.
Prior to Decker’s social media posts, Lions general manager Brad Holmes admitted that the team wanted ‘clarity’ over the offensive tackle’s future at the franchise.
‘Obviously Taylor, he’s earned the right to have as much space as he needs to reflect on a long season and we respect him, we give him that.
‘But obviously with the start of the new league year coming, that’s obviously you want as much clarity as possible, so within these next couple of weeks we’ll make sure that we have that clarity.’
