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Rashaad Penny Retiring at Age 28
Published:
End of an era:
Panthers placed veteran RB Rashaad Penny on the reserve/retired list Tuesday. The 28-year-old Penny played five years for the Seahawks and spent last season with the Eagles. pic.twitter.com/1Aebe9VPuU
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) July 30, 2024
Penny ran the ball 11 times in 2023 for 33 yards. He caught one pass on one target that went for 5 yards. He got 31 offensive snaps and 7 on special teams.
There was never any definitive reporting on why Penny barely played. It was always assumed that he either 1) wasn’t that good, and/or 2) limited by past injuries. There was some more esoteric film guy chatter about a shortcoming in pass protection. As far as we know, it wasn’t any more complicated than that. A reclamation project with tough injury history failed to break into a group that included D’Andre Swift, Kenny Gainwell, and Boston Scott. And then on top of that, you had Jalen Hurts running the ball a ton, so if people are talking about RB1 not getting enough carries, then RB4 barely even exists on the space/time continuum.
Penny was a beast when healthy. 749 yards for the Seahawks in just 119 attempts back in 2021. He had a career-high 6.3 yards per attempt number that year. Also had a couple of good seasons behind Chris Carson and Mike Davis back in 2018 and 2019. NFL running back has to be one of the least-rewarding athletic pursuits these days. The money isn’t there, the shelf life is short, and injuries pile up quickly. Retiring at 28 has to blow.
Kevin has been writing about Philadelphia sports since 2009. He spent seven years in the CBS 3 sports department and started with the Union during the team's 2010 inaugural season. He went to the academic powerhouses of Boyertown High School and West Virginia University. email - k.kinkead@sportradar.com