Reggie Wayne Gives Hilarious Response For Why He Chose Patriots Over Lions Before Sudden Retirement

Reggie Wayne had his 1,070 passes with the Indianapolis Colts, but he ended his career with the New England Patriots. He spent two weeks for the team and then asked for a release. This decision was followed with a sudden retirement. New England was the reigning Super Bowl champion, and Wayne choose them over the Detroit Lions.

The Lions wanted him, but they also wanted him to have a pre-signing workout. Wayne saw this as an insult.

“I said, ‘Work out? You the Detroit Lions. Wait. Work out? I’m good,'” Wayne said on NFL Network host Dan Hellie’s Hellipod podcast. “Like, I can give you — I got 14 years of working out that you can see. So I was like, ‘Nah, I’m cool.'”

Wayne had a triceps surgery and he accepted a workout with the Patriots. This was more than enough for him to sign a one-year, $3 million deal with the team. He worked out for the Patriots because they were the Patriots. Of course, he asked to be released two weeks later, and the organization let him keep his $450,000 signing bonus. 

Reggie Wayne respects the Patriots

For Wayne, this was the “best job ever.”

“Bill Belichick told me to keep it. Told me to keep it,” Wayne said. “I’m like, ‘Hey, you ain’t got to bend my arm back twice.’ He told me to keep it. And that was love, man. And I always had respect for him. I’ve heard people and seen stuff that he’s done on camera of his respect for me, and maybe that was just his sign of appreciation. We had a lot of battles against that team, so he told me to keep it. We kept it in the bank. I appreciate it.”

The talented Wayne finished his career with 14,345 yards and 82 touchdowns. He had eight 1,000-yard seasons and led the league with 1,510 receiving yards in 2007. These numbers are quite impressive, and the Patriots could really use his talent. But, he decided to retire, and the Patriots were fine with that.

This season, New England is getting ready for a Tom Brady-less campaign, and they have a few challenges to overcome. The Patriots lost the leader in free agency and he is now playing with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. New England will probably start with Jarrett Stidham as starting quarterback.