Cornerback Charvarius Ward suffered three concussions this season. Kathryn Riley / Associated Press
After a season that included three separate concussions, Indianapolis Colts cornerback Charvarius Ward Sr. revealed Monday that he is considering retirement.
The 29-year-old veteran, whom the Colts signed to a three-year, $60 million deal last offseason in free agency, said that his father has encouraged him to step away from the game.
Charvarius Ward got a $20M signing bonus on his 3 year contract, and also $5M fully guaranteed already next season, with another $8M vesting around St. Patrick’s Day.
It could be an expensive retirement unless the Colts are gracious, but w/concussions, of course understandable.
— Nick Korte (@nickkorte) January 5, 2026
To those who have been following Ward’s tumultuous season, this can come as little surprise. Ward stated in November, following recovering from his second concussion — the result of a nasty pregame collision with Drew Ogletree — that he thought his football career might have been over and that he had contemplated retirement.
“I was throwing up, getting dizzy. I was getting dizzy for like a month,” Ward said in November. “That wasn’t normal, so that was like a real-deal traumatic injury for me. A lot of emotions and everything like that, so it was pretty tough.
“I was kind of doubting if I was gonna play football again because it was that scary. Because I was thinking about my life outside of football, too.”
This story will be updated.
