NFL rookie quits sport and announces abrupt retirement decision after just 23 days in league

A worrying trend is beginning to form as Alex Bullock becomes the latest rookie to retire from the NFL.

The former Nebraska and San Diego State wide receiver signed a rookie minicamp deal with the Jacksonville Jaguars on April 26.

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There, he was expected to compete for a spot on the active roster, along with 18 other undrafted free agents that the Jags signed.

Just 23 days later, though, and the 23-year-old has hung up his cleats, calling time on his professional football career before it even began.

This was marked officially by the Jags when they placed Bullock on the team’s reserve retire list – a designation given to a player who retires while under contract, meaning that the Floridian outfit would retain his rights should he decide to return.

With this move, he no longer counts against the Jags’ salary cap or roster space.

Bullock spent the first three seasons of his collegiate career as a member of the Nebraska Cornhuskers, where he played sparingly.

In fact, the majority of his production coming in the 2023 campaign, where he caught 15 passes for 221 yards and a touchdown in 12 games.

With dreams of making it to the professional level, the 6-foot-2, 205 pound receiver entered the transfer portal, and signed with South Dakota Stake.

In 2025, he had somewhat of a breakout season as a member of the JackRabbits, in which he caught 70 passes for 941 receiving yards and five scores.

Why are so many rookies retiring?

Following his decision to retire, Bullock became the third rookie to do so from the NFL in a week.

He follows the abrupt retirement of former Tennessee Volunteers and Florida State Seminoles receiver Squirrel White on May 11, a speedster who recorded a top speed faster than Tyreek Hill did in 2023.

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Undrafted running back Le’Veon Moss out of Texas A&M was the second, retiring just four days after he officially signed for the Miami Dolphins.

Bullock faced a tough uphill battle from the jump with the Jaguars loaded at the wide receiver position.

In 2025, quarterback Trevor Lawrence had Brian Thomas Jr., Jakobi Meyers, Parker Washington and Travis Hunter to throw to.

In the 2026 NFL Draft, the team opted to select Josh Cameron out of Baylor and CJ Williams out of Stanford with their sixth-round picks.

Perhaps seeing the sheer amount of depth at the wide receiver position in front of him that he needed to compete against to earn that coveted roster spot was enough to deter him from pursuing a career in pro football.

But there are a myriad of other reasons why he may have chosen to walk away that we are not privy to.

Nonetheless, the rate at which undrafted rookies are retiring in 2026 is certainly unprecedented.

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