Bears' John Tait Plans To Retire

Nagging injuries prompt tackle to walk away from game while he still can

By TOM FORNELLI

Updated 1:00 PM CST, Sat, Feb 14, 2009

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The Chicago Bears had gone into this offseason with plans to make improvements to both their offensive and defensive lines. The defensive line needs improvement on the edge as the Bears pass-rush was non-existent in 2008, and on the offensive line, the team is hoping to bring more youth to the roster as the average age of the line keeps growing higher and members near the end of the line.

For one of those senior members of the offensive line, it seems he'll be getting off the train a little earlier than anticipated. According to sources within the team, right tackle John Tait is going to retire even though he still has one year remaining on his contract.

Starting right tackle John Tait has informed the team he is strongly contemplating retirement, and an NFL source said the team expects Tait will walk away from the final year of his contract in 2009.

That decision caught some off guard, but sources said Tait has been considering the move since the completion of his 10th NFL season because of nagging ankle injuries that affected him more than outsiders realized.

It's hard to blame a player for walking away from the game due to injuries, after all, they're the ones who have to spend the rest of their lives living with the repercussions. Still, this isn't good news for the Bears as a team, but it's great news if you're John St. Clair.

St. Clair played left tackle for the Bears last season after first round draft pick Chris Williams' back problems kept him from earning the job in training camp, and is a free agent this offseason. The team had been hoping to re-sign him, but with Tait's retirment, his price just went up.

Along with writing for NBCCHICAGO.com, Tom Fornelli can also be found contributing at FanHouse, SPORTSbyBROOKS, and his own Chicago sports blog Foul Balls. He is writing through the pain of a terrible papercut on his fingertip.