NFL News

Home

Teams

Quizzes

Watch

Newsletter

Power Rankings

Former New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski. Christopher Hanewinckel-Imagn Images

Five retired NFL players we want back in 2025

By Bruce Ewing | Last updated Jul 5, 2025 9:02 AM ET

In case you missed it, former New York Giants’ tight end Darren Waller announced he’s coming out of retirement to play for the Miami Dolphins next season. That’s great, but the NFL can do better.

Here are five players we want back in 2025.

OT Terron Armstead

Armstead was a third-round pick of the New Orleans Saints in 2013 and spent nine years with the team before joining Miami in 2022. He earned five Pro Bowl nominations along the way. His last came in 2023, despite missing seven games, which speaks to the talent he possessed.

After signing a five-year, $75M contract with the team in 2022, most thought the three-time team captain would return in 2025. Instead, he walked away, leaving 2024 second-round pick Patrick Paul to take his place.

DT Aaron Donald

After 10 seasons with the Rams, Donald announced his retirement from the NFL following an All-Pro 2023 season in which he had 53 tackles and eight sacks. In 10 years with the team, Donald had 542 tackles, 111 sacks and forced 24 fumbles. He earned a Super Bowl ring in 2022 and was named AP Defensive Player of the Year three times.

The 34-year-old game-wrecker would still look great in a Rams uniform, but said he was "leaving at peace" and on his terms during an interview with his wife Erica last offseason. A trip to the NFL Hall of Fame in 2029 will have to do.

TE Rob Gronkowski

Why not? The 36-year-old tight end finished his career with 802 yards and six scores in 12 games as a Buccaneer in 2021. Gronk retired in 2019, only to return and help lead Tampa Bay to a Super Bowl LV victory alongside quarterback Tom Brady. Maybe he can do it again.

BRADY TO GRONK IN THE #SUPERBOWL

: #SBLV on CBS
: NFL app // Yahoo Sports app: https://t.co/HJtQf5igun pic.twitter.com/hjKIHWaYmE
— NFL (@NFL) February 8, 2021

LB Luke Kuechly

Seven Pro Bowls and five All-Pro nominations weren’t enough to keep the Panthers linebacker from retiring in 2020. Kuechly joined Carolina as the ninth overall pick in the 2012 NFL Draft and finished the season as the AP Defensive Rookie of the Year.

Kuechly posted just 12.5 sacks in eight years but registered 1,052 tackles with league-best marks in 2012 (164) and 2014 (153). Although he missed only 10 games in his career, Kuechly retired at the age of 28, citing concerns about his long-term health.

Before retiring, Kuechly averaged 136.5 tackles per season, a number that would have ranked him 15th in 2024 and well ahead of safety Xavier Woods, who led Carolina with 119 take-downs.

C Frank Ragnow

Ragnow played left guard for the Lions as a first-round pick in 2018 but spent the next six years at center, where he’d earn four Pro Bowl nominations. He shocked everyone by announcing his retirement on July 2, although considering what he’s been through, it’s not much of a surprise.

"These past couple of months have been very trying as I've come to the realization that my football journey is ending and I'm officially retiring from the NFL," Ragnow posted to Instagram. "I've tried to convince myself that I'm feeling good, but I'm not, and it's time to prioritize my health and my family’s future."

Few players were as tough as Ragnow, who played with a fractured throat in 2020. The 29-year-old played 16 games last season, missing a Week 4 matchup against the Seahawks with a partially torn pectoral muscle.

The Lions will certainly miss him with Graham Glasgow, the team’s third-round pick in 2016, taking over at center. Expect Lions general manager Brad Holmes to check in with Ragnow frequently.

Bruce Ewing

Bruce Ewing is 183 pounds of twisted steel and Happy Meals. His work has appeared on Yardbarker, 5th Down Fantasy, Inside the Iggles and MSN. Give a Philly fan a break and follow him on Twitter/X at @fantasybruce.

More must-reads: