In the late 2000s, if there was one man quarterbacks had to be on the lookout for in the Dallas Cowboys defense, it was DeMarcus Ware. The defensive end/linebacker remains the team’s leader in quarterback sacks and won a Super Bowl later on in his stint with the Denver Broncos. But just two years later, Ware was forced to hang up his cleats. The decision came when he was getting a lucrative deal from the Rams. But for the sake of his health, Ware had to turn away from it.

“This is a dream come true,” he said of his $20 million-worth offer from the Rams on the Fitz & Whit podcast. “I just blow through the physical, I’m good. I get on the plane, and my back starts hurting. I’m like, ‘S—, what happened?

“I got back home, it took me like three months, and I was like, ‘I think it’s time.’ But, I’m like, ‘You can go get that bread. You can go get like 20 mill straight up.’ I ended up retiring.”

As DeMarcus Ware entered the twilight of his career following his last season at Denver, he’d been in a meeting with Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay and defensive coordinator Wade Phillips. According to Ware, he was obliged to practice just once a week and was getting the same amount that Denver was offering him for two years. But Ware had injured his back in that season in Week 10, for which he had to undergo surgery in December 2016.

And as DeMarcus Ware said, in March 2017, Ware announced his retirement. It must have been a downer for the icon, because he was really excited about playing for the Rams. He would have had yet another opportunity to play in Wade Phillips’ defense, which played a part in him becoming such a great player. When Ware announced his retirement, Phillips congratulated him on his career and called him an “HOF on and off the field.”

Even though the Rams opportunity did not pan out, Ware marked the end of his career with the team that made him a hero. He signed a one-day contract with Dallas, coming full circle in his career.

DeMarcus Ware on his split from the Dallas Cowboys

In March 2014, DeMarcus Ware and the Dallas Cowboys were in a tussle. The franchise was facing salary cap issues, and their all-time sack leader wasn’t ready to take a pay cut. Hence, both parties reached an agreement to part ways, which was based on a special condition set by the Cowboys owner, Jerry Jones.

“I’m not going to be able to pay you. But what I’m going to do, I’m going to release you so you can go see your work,” Ware recalled Jones saying. “If I can try my best to pay you, I am. But if I can’t, can you promise me two things?

“First of all, I don’t want you playing for any NFC East team, because I don’t want to see you, [and] I want for you to come back and retire at Dallas Cowboys because that means so much to me.”

What followed is history. The star defensive end lifted the Lombardi trophy with Denver two years after he was released. And as promised, DeMarcus Ware returned to Dallas for one last time, before going into the sunset.