Chiefs DE Mike DeVito says farewell to football in heartfelt letter
Mike DeVito didn’t put up monster numbers in his nine NFL seasons, the first six spent with the New York Jets and the last three with the Kansas City Chiefs, but not every player can be judged by statistics. Though he had just 5.5 career sacks, DeVito was a valuable member of the defensive line in both New York and Kansas City, a run-stuffer who rose from undrafted small-school prospect (the Univeristy of Maine) to a key contributor who played 110 games with 57 starts.
On Monday, at 31 years old and still playing at a high level, at least according to Pro Football Focus, DeVito announced his retirement on his Twitter page and gave more detail in a letter posted on the Bangor (Maine) Daily News website.
He begins:
“9 years ago I was sitting in a locker at the New York Jets training facility at Hofstra University waiting to hear the words “DeVito grab your playbook the general manager wants to see you.” I had already seen a dozen players more talented than I was get released and figured I had to be next. That never came…until now. But it didn’t come from a guy in personnel or a coach, it was my wife. “It’s over, baby. Time to hang up the cleats.” She was voicing what I already knew in my heart; it was time to move on from football.”
DeVito goes on to explain that it was his grandather, Ralph Consiglio, a longtime high school football coach at Suffern High School in New York, who introduced him to the game and he quickly fell in love, though he thought about quitting after a memorable first day as a freshman with his high school team, Nauset Regional. His father told him simply, “No,” and DeVito became a starter the next year.
DeVito continued playing at Maine. He thanked two people he met there for having a tremendous impact on him: Black Bears defensive line coach Jeff Comissiong (now at Old Dominion) and his best friend, tight end Matthew Mulligan.
Mulligan’s farewell is like a love letter to the sport, outlining all of the lessons football taught him over the years. He concludes, however, that his last lesson came not from the game but from his wife and young son.
The last lesson I learned on this journey didn’t come from football but instead from my wife Jessie and my son Rocco. The last lesson is vitally important but its application is very difficult. This last lesson is the reason why I have made the decision to move on from football. It is this; there are more important things in life than football. As hard as it is to say goodbye to the game that has made me the man I am, I cannot wait for the second half of this journey through life, loving Jessie more and more every day and watching my son Rocco start a journey of his own.
I want to thank the New York Jets, the Kansas City Chiefs and all the amazing people I have met throughout my career. To all my family, friends, and fans, thank you for making an average player feel like a hall of famer. And to the game of football, thank you for the past 18 years, all the memories, and the lessons that will continue to serve me for the rest of my life.
DeVito does not say what his next act will be, beyond spending more time with his family.
