Vontae Davis was so sick of being on the Bills that he retired at halftime
Vontae Davis would rather quit than play one more half as a Buffalo Bill.
The Buffalo Bills are so bad that apparently Vontae Davis decided he couldn’t stand playing another half for the team.
Davis, 30, was mysteriously absent for the second half of Buffalo’s 31-20 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers. According to Bills linebacker Lorenzo Alexander, that’s because Davis was so fed up that he retired at halftime.
Buffalo CB Vontae Davis apparently retired at halftime during the Chargers-Bills game Sunday.
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) September 16, 2018
"He said he's not coming out. He retired..."
—Bills LB Lorenzo Alexander pic.twitter.com/ab7wJoyc7f
The story was confirmed by Bills head coach Sean McDermott who said Davis pulled himself from the game at halftime, although the Buffalo coach chose not to go into any further detail.
#Bills HC Sean McDermott said Vontae Davis pulled himself out of the game.
— Joe Buscaglia (@JoeBuscaglia) September 16, 2018
According to ESPN’s Chris Mortensen, Davis changed into his street clothes and left.
Word is Vontae Davis put on his street clothes at half, said he was quitting and left the stadium, per another source https://t.co/spdxMWrNSd
— Chris Mortensen (@mortreport) September 16, 2018
It was a loss that a depleted Bills secondary really couldn’t afford and it certainly didn’t help Buffalo’s attempts to slow down Philip Rivers who finished with 23 completions on 27 attempts for 256 yards, three touchdowns, and no interceptions.
Presumably, leaving in the middle of the game is a breach of contract that could void part of the guarantees in the one-year, $5 million deal Davis signed with the Bills in February. Also, retiring Sunday doesn’t mean that Davis is going to be free to return in 2019 with a different team.
If this really is the end for Davis, it’s unlike the close of any other NFL career. And for the Bills, it’s more bad news during a horrible start to the year.