Isaac Rochell Announces It's Time To 'Hang Up The Cleats' After 7 Seasons In The NFL

Former NFL defensive end Isaac Rochell is ready to "hang up the cleats" and start a new chapter as a retired NFL player.

The popular TikTok influencer, who is known for viral videos alongside his wife Allison Kuch, recently announced his life alerting news on Instagram.

Known for his versatility on the field and strong presence off of it through his social media pages, Rochell expressed his gratitude for his time as an NFL player. As he takes steps away from the field, he shares what lies ahead for him, and spoiler alert - it includes football!

Rochell, who has been between teams for some time with no answers about if and when a team would pick him up, recently shared on Instagram that the time has come to close that chapter.

"After 19 years, it’s time to hang up the cleats. Football has shaped my life in ways I could never have imagined, and I’ll forever be indebted to the game and the NFL," he wrote in his heartfelt Instagram caption.

"A degree from Notre Dame, lifelong friendships, a platform to share my voice, and countless memories—these are just a few of the gifts football has given me. I started playing in 6th grade, and I still remember crying before every practice—crazy how things change. My journey ended with moments I’ll never forget, surrounded by teammates who became family."

His post continued to explain that he was a "7th-round pick who defied the odds." He shared that he will "always love the game" but the time has come to "step into a new chapter - one where I take everything I've learned and apply it to what comes next."

He concluded his caption by saying, "I can't wait to see where this next phase leads. Let's get to work."

In just one hour of Rochell sharing the Instagram post that included a carousel of photos from his football career, more than 41,000 people have liked it, and hundreds have dropped into the comment section to share their support and love.

The NFL commented with three clapping hand emojis.

"Congrats on a successful career bro. Big things ahead!" one person wrote. Another added, "Congrats on everything you’ve accomplished!! Enjoy this beautiful new chapter of life."

Many others also shared their supportive words for Rochell.

Not long after sharing the news of his NFL retirement, Rochell posted a video explaining a little more of the story.

"I'm retiring from the NFL. After 19 years of playing football since sixth grade, it is time for me to hang up the cleats," he said. "I've had an incredible career. I played seven years. As a seventh rounder, playing seven years is super rare."

He continued to explain how he's defied the odds in his career and that he owes "so much to this game."

"I owe everything to this game. It's completely changed my life," he said. "I'm not done with football. I'm gonna stay around football, whether it's broadcasting, coaching, whatever it may be."

Rochell said he's able to speak "more openly" about the game now that he's officially retired, so fans can ask him questions on IG.

Rochell recently shared his retirement announcement on his wife's "Sunday Sports Club" podcast.

"Today is a very, very exciting episode because we get to deep dive into what my husband, Isaac Rochell's, entire NFL career because he has a special announcement," Kuch said, before Rochell chimed in to say, "I'm retiring!"

He continued, "I'm super happy to be done. I had a great career; it was actually really fun. I feel like we maximized it in every single way. I personally maximized it in every single way on the field, and I just feel really accomplished when it comes to football."

Kuch started to get emotional and shared that they tried to film this episode before but emotions took over. She shared that she's "so incredibly proud" of her husband for being in the NFL for seven years.

"All of our memories over the past 10 years of our entire relationship, football has been at the heart of," she said. "There's been so many ups, so many downs, and our life has truly revolved around the sport of football."

The couple continued to talk about Rochell's amazing NFL career and how it's helped them to do other things, such as social media.

"And the crazy thing to me is that I didn't really have a social media platform in the heart of your career," Kuch said. Rochell chimed in to share, "You had less than 1,000 followers in the heart of my career."

She then said that she's excited to talk about Rochell's NFL career now. They also talked about how great it's been for Rochell being home during their daughter, Scottie's, first year of life.

The rest of the episode talked more about Rochell's career, the things they couldn't talk about before, what's next, and how Rochell came to the decision to officially retire from the NFL.