Los Angeles Chargers outside linebacker Khalil Mack announced after the playoff loss to the Houston Texans on Saturday he is uncertain as to whether or not he will be back for another season. He is going to discuss the issue with his family and make a decision on retirement.
He is scheduled to be an unrestricted free agent this spring.
Chargers OLB Khalil Mack Contemplating Retirement
Mack, who will be an unrestricted free agent when the league year begins, is discussing the issue with his family and will make a decision when the time is right.
He told reporters after the game Saturday he does not like going out on a loss.
“There’s a lot of different thoughts in my head right now. Can’t really speak on a definitive decision in terms of what I’m going to do. I don’t know if I’m going to play football anymore,” Mack told reporters.
“There’s some things I need to talk through with my wife. Spend some time with my kids. Try not make a rash decision after a loss. I think I did that a couple years ago — it didn’t really go too well. Trying not to be emotional through this process, trying to think a little more clearly. That’s going to take time.”
Mack also said he is not going to rush his decision or give himself any artificial deadline.
“Nah, man, I’m not giving myself no timeline,” he said. “I don’t even know what the timeline could be right now to be honest with you. This is my first time in this position. You just got to approach it with a prayer and patience.”
Mack said that when the Chargers lost a playoff game in 2022, he made a quick emotional decision to retire. He obviously changed his mind, but he said he would not make the same mistake twice.
“I think I did that a couple of years ago, it ain’t really go too well,” Mack said. “Trying not to be emotional through this process and try to think a little more clearly. That’s going to take time.”
Mack was a first-round draft choice of the Oakland Raiders in 2014. He was traded to the Chicago Bears in 2018 and then signed with the Chargers as a free agent in 2022.
Mack helped the Chargers finish with the NFL’s best scoring defense (allowing just 17.7 points per game) and the No. 4 defense in PFN’s Defense+ metric.
Chargers OLB Khalil Mack said he is going to take sometime to make a decision on what he will do in 2025. He said he is going to evaluate if he wants to continue to play but said he doesn’t want to go out with an L. He is an unrestricted free agent. pic.twitter.com/lg1CghdeCt
— Fernando Ramirez (@RealFRamirez) January 12, 2025
This is from the final regular season PFN Defense+ metric.
“After some rough games against better competition, the Los Angeles Chargers finished the regular season with a bang in overpowering a pair of weak offenses.
The Las Vegas Raiders and New England Patriots won’t represent the type of competition Los Angeles will see in the postseason (though the Houston Texans have struggled mightily). Still, it’s reassuring to see a once-declining pass defense surge back up.
For the season, the Chargers are seventh in defensive pass success rate and sixth in EPA per dropback. That’s impressive, considering they were 25th in pass defense success rate during a slump from Weeks 10-16.
Paired with a top-10 run defense, Jesse Minter’s unit ended up being one of the most improved in 2024. Purported defensive guru Brandon Staley never got this unit to rank higher than 24th during his three seasons. While the Chargers might not be as great as their No. 1 scoring defense rank indicates, this is unquestionably an elite unit.”
Mack, who will be 34 next month, has 107.5 sacks in his illustrious career. He ranks fifth among active players in career sacks, notching six more sacks in the 2024 regular season (plus, he secured two sacks of C.J. Stroud on Saturday). Mack has 630 career tackles and 185 quarterback hits.