At only age 18, Chicago Bears cornerback Jerry Azumah has decided to call it a career due to injuries. He announced his retirement because of the neck and hip pain that he has had the past two seasons. He lost his starting job to Nathan Vasher this past season after having hip surgery during the preseason.

"This has been a great ride," said Azumah. "It's nothing to cry about or hold my head down to. Just looking at everything I accomplished and achieved, being here with the Bears and how they've embraced me, has been tremendous."

Azumah's pain simply was too much, and he even injured his neck during the Bears' playoff game against the Carolina Panthers.

"I knew I'd be playing in pain," Azumah said. "That was what was understood. I'd be playing with some pain, they'd go in and clean it out and would get me better so I wouldn't miss the season. ... I decided to play until, basically, the wheels fell off."

Azumah believes that he still has the potential to be an NFL player, but it's simply not worth it to take the risk as well as suffering through pain.

"My body was talking to me," Azumah said. "I feel like I could go out there and perform at a high level -- not the Pro Bowl level I was at. I need to take a different road in life."