CHARLOTTE, NC – Thomas Davis, three-time Pro Bowl linebacker, will end his NFL career where it began in 2005.
Davis, 37, announced on Instagram on Wednesday that he will sign a one-day contract with the Carolina Panthers on March 11 so he can retire from the club. He was released by the Washington Football Team earlier in the day.
“I will officially return to where my heart has always been,” Davis wrote on Instagram.[Panthers] thank you from the bottom of my heart for this opportunity. “
Davis played his first 14 seasons with Carolina after being selected with the 14th pick of the 2005 NFL draft from Georgia. He was released after the 2018 season and then spent 2019 with the Los Angeles Chargers and 2020 with former Panthers coach Ron Rivera in Washington.
At Carolina, Davis became the first player in NFL history to overcome ACL surgery on the same knee (right) three times. All three of his Pro Bowl appearances came after the third surgery. He also won the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award in 2014.
Davis, who was considered the heart and soul of the defense during Carolina’s run to Super Bowl 50 in 2015, played the title game two weeks after breaking his arm in the NFC Championship Game. He had seven tackles in a 24-10 loss to the Denver Broncos.
He remains Carolina’s all-time leader in tackles with 789, ahead of former teammate Luke Kuechly with 690.