Lions wide receiver Calvin Johnson released a statement recently that said he is “currently evaluating options for my future” that include walking away from the game.
With a $24 million cap charge and a $16 million base salary, some have wondered how much his contract situation has to do with the options he’s evaluating. Quarterback Matthew Stafford thinks that the possibility that Johnson hangs up the cleats is a real one.
I think anytime Calvin says something it’s not for show, I think it’s something serious,” Stafford said on “The Mitch Albom Show” on WJR, via ESPN.com. “I think you guys have covered him long enough to know he’s a pretty measured person and everything that he says to the public is a thought-out thing. So in that regard, I’m sure it’s thought out. I have had conversations with him and I’m going to keep those between me and him and I respect his privacy and his time to think.”
New Lions General Manager Bob Quinn said he will give Johnson time and space after the end of the season before making any push to get a decision about what the wideout will do in 2016 and beyond.