Chiefs Casey Wiegmann Reportedly Set To Retire From NFL After 16 Year Career

The Kansas City Chiefs offensive line is reportedly ready to take another hit with Patrick Allen reporting at Arrowhead Addict that Casey Wiegmann, the team’s longtime center, is going to call it quits after 16 years in the NFL.

Allen quotes an unnamed source saying, “Arrowhead Addict has learned from a reliable source that Chiefs center Casey Weigmann will not return next season. Wiegmann has pondered retirement before, however he will be 39 in July. While there is always the potential of a player coming back for one more season, as of now Wiegmann has no plans to return.”

Nothing official has been stated on the record on this, but this is not surprising for any Chiefs fan. The team drafted his future replacement last year in the 2011 NFL Draft in the second round with the selection of Rodney Hudson. Hudson had action in all 16 games last season with one start, so this is how many predicted things would play out for the end of one career and the beginning of another.

Wiegmann’s is a storied career who had the ability to play alongside some of the greatest linemen in recent NFL history like Willie Roaf, Will Shields and Brian Waters. Yet those guys could say the same after playing alongside Wiegmann who hasn’t missed a snap since the 2001 NFL season. Even though he has not been as heralded throughout his career, Wiegmann has been the model of a consistently great player in the NFL.

Chiefs Casey Wiegmann Reportedly Taking His Time To Make Retirement Decision

Casey Wiegmann has earned the right to do what he wants, and to take all of the time he needs to do it. But the Kansas City Chiefs might have to move on if they want to be able to know exactly what they are dealing with along the offensive line. Word from Bill Williamson of ESPN is that Wiegmann doesn’t know himself what he will do.

Williamson writes, “Wiegmann, 38, has considered retirement the past few seasons and he has always come back for one more season. It could happen again. The word is, though, Wiegmann may take his time on his decision. He is still playing at a high level and he has played more than 11,000 straight snaps.”

The Chiefs drafted Rodney Hudson out of Florida State in the second round of the 2011 NFL Draft and he played in 16 games last season to one degree or another. He’s versatile enough to step in at guard, but most believe he’s the center of the future for the Chiefs. That said, they could possibly use an upgrade at guard as well, so Wiegmann could still have a home here.

However, any word of official retirement or return for Wiegmann might not come for some time. If the Chiefs are willing to wait, his experience and talent along the line would certainly be a help to the Chiefs, but the way they handled the Brian Waters episode last season might lead some to believe the team will just want to turn the page and go with youth.

Casey Wiegmann Considers Retirement, Says 'Football Has Been Good To Me'

Kent Babb believes he was picking up a vibe when he spoke with Casey Wiegmann after the Kansas City Chiefs win over the Denver Broncos. That vibe displayed an arrow toward retirement, it seems, as Babb reported, "Casey Wiegmann wouldn't say what he's decided, but his decision appears made. "Football has been good to me," he told me." The longtime Chiefs center would be the last vestige from a Chiefs offensive line gone by.

Wiegmann flirted with retiring last year before signing up for one more season, so the possibility of the same this year cannot surprise anyone. Scott Pioli, the Chiefs' general manager, has already planned for this possibility with the second round choice of Rodney Hudson from Florida State in this last year's NFL Draft. Hudson is versatile enough to spell at guard or center, but it's likely the long-term vision for him is to take over for Wiegmann once he's finished.

For a player like Wiegmann, he should be celebrated at Arrowhead once he does make the announcement. Wiegmann started 175 consecutive games at center and has been a model for the position for as long as most Chiefs fans can remember. Whether or not he's Hall of Fame worthy, at the very least he's been among the underrated greats who likely would warrant Hall consideration if he'd been blessed to play in front of a Peyton Manning type in his career.

Casey Wiegmann Talks About Retirement After 175 Consecutive Starts

After 18 seasons in the NFL, Kansas City Chiefs center Casey Wiegmann is contemplating retirement. The Chiefs game Sunday will be his 175th consecutive start, a streak that goes all the way back to 2001:

"That’s a lot of snaps, and consecutive snaps. That’s pretty good," Kansas City interim coach Romeo Crennel told the Associated Press. "You get banged every down, and to be able to take that many snaps and still be out there playing, that’s an accomplishment. I don’t know who else can say that, but that’s an accomplishment."

Wiegmann, a 6'2 285 offensive lineman, has been a stalwart on the Kansas City offensive line for most of the last decade.

He came to the Chiefs in 2001 after playing for three teams in seven seasons since being undrafted out of Iowa in 1996.

Beside leaving for a two-year stint in Denver in 2008 and 2009, where he made his only Pro Bowl, Wiegmann has been a constant for a Kansas City franchise that has undergone a lot of turmoil in the last decade.

And while he has not yet made his mind up about retirement, he told the AP that he is planning on starting a farming company back in his native Iowa when his career is over.