Linebacker Tavares Gooden has spent five years in the NFL with the Ravens and 49ers and it seemed Friday afternoon that the free agent wasn’t interested in playing a sixth season.
Gooden visited with the Cardinals and Steelers in recent days, but went on Twitter Friday to announce that he thinks “it’s time for me to retire and move on to the next chapter in life.” Gooden went on to retweet those wishing him the best in luck in retirement, but his agent was quick to try to pump the brakes on his client’s announcement.
Cam Inman of the Bay Area News Group reports that agent Sean Kiernan told him that Gooden’s tweet was not an official retirement and that Gooden still has another visit with a team lined up for next week. Kiernan also told Inman that the 49ers haven’t shown any interest in bringing Gooden back for another year, so that door appears to be closed.
If Gooden does wind up continuing his career, it will likely be in the special teams role that he filled for the Niners the last two years. Gooden had 13 tackles on special teams last year and played sparingly on defense.