Former Riders’ defensive end Jonathan Woodard retires from pro football

Photo courtesy: Saskatchewan Roughriders

Former Saskatchewan Roughriders’ defensive end Jonathan Woodard has announced that he is retiring from professional football, posting the following message on Twitter on Friday morning.

On to the next chapter! I’m officially retiring from football. I started playing the game of football 17 years ago and it’s provided me a numerous amount of lessons, unforgettable experiences, and relationships that will last a lifetime.

To all of my family, friends, supporters, teammates, coaches and trainers: I’m truly grateful for you and I wouldn’t have made it here without you!!

It’s been one hell of a journey, and I can’t wait to see what the future holds!

The 29-year-old played in the CFL in 2021 and had a great year, recording 22 total tackles, 10 sacks, and two forced fumbles over 14 regular season games. He signed with the Kansas City Chiefs in February 2022 but was waived three months later and, though he had discussions regarding a potential return to Saskatchewan, remained a free agent this past season.

The University of Central Arkansas product was selected in the seventh round of the 2016 NFL Draft by the Jacksonville Jaguars. He played with the team for one season before stints with the Atlanta Falcons (2017), Miami Dolphins (2017-2019), and Buffalo Bills (2019-2020).

Woodard dressed for six career regular season NFL games and made 10 total tackles, two tackles for loss, and one sack. He earned over $1.6 million playing pro football south of the border.