There was a lot of talk last year about whether the 2018 season would be Andrew Whitworth’s last. That speculation ramped up in the postseason and eventually after Super Bowl when Whitworth was non-committal about returning for another year in 2019.
Many thought that if the Rams had beaten the Patriots, Whitworth would ride off into the sunset, so to speak, and retire on top. That wasn’t necessarily true because the big left tackle had a strong desire to return regardless.
“It was one of those things where I felt like win or lose, it seemed like it was in people’s heads that if I won, that was it,” Whitworth said, via Ryan Kartje of the Los Angeles Daily News. “Where in my mind, I’m thinking, if we win, that would only inspire me to go play another one. I really had a desire to finish my contract and finish what I signed up to do.”
Andrew’s wife Melissa wasn’t convinced he’d be back for another season in 2019. She told Kartje that Andrew has told her “every year since we got married” that he was going to retire. Whitworth is still kicking as he heads into Year 14, but she thought last season would be his last.
Now, she feels that way about this upcoming season, believing this will truly be Whitworth’s last ride in the NFL.
“I think it’s more likely than not that this (season) will be it,” Melissa added. “But if you would’ve asked me last December what I thought, I would’ve told you it’s 100 percent he’s retiring. I was wrong then. So who knows?”
Whitworth has been a leader dating back to his days with the Bengals and more so with the Rams as the elder statesman, of sorts. He’s accustomed to helping younger players develop into quality starters, which will certainly be the case in 2019.
Joseph Noteboom is taking over at left guard with Brian Allen stepping in at center. Whitworth is excited to help both second-year linemen as they become starters.
“There’s a lot of fun and a lot of challenges in raising the next guys,” Whitworth said. “I’ve done that a bunch of times, too. There’s fun in that. Seeing the excitement in them trying to figure it out, to find themselves, to see them become football players. So, there’s enjoyment, to me, in being in that room and watching those guys grow.”
Whitworth is going to try his hand at snowboarding when he does call it a career. His wife bought him his own custom Rams-themed board, which is blue and yellow with Whitworth’s No. 77 on the bottom. A 6-foot-7, 335-pound offensive lineman doesn’t exactly come across as the snowboarding type, but he’s defied the odds of playing into his late 30’s, so why doubt him now?
