NFL teams
Paul Kuharsky, ESPN Staff Writer 9y

Bernard Pollard to be released

NFL, Tennessee Titans

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Big-hitting safety Bernard Pollard has been informed by the Tennessee Titans that he will be released Tuesday.

Pollard tweeted a thanks and goodbye to Nashville:

Pollard told The Tennessean after the season that he wanted to be released, and he is getting what he asked for, though it's likely the team would have moved forward without him, no matter his desire.

He is 30 and coming off a ruptured Achilles tendon.

"I am a little ticked off to be honest because we didn't do as well as anyone wanted," Pollard told the newspaper. "I wish we could have won more games and made the playoffs. When I came here, I wanted to be a part of a turnaround, so it is a letdown. But I don't have that much time left, and for the time I do have left, I want to go out with a bang."

The outspoken Pollard gave the team a jolt when he signed as a free agent in 2013, after he played for the Super Bowl champion Ravens.

Fans in Nashville embraced his no-nonsense, outspoken style, and his play on a one-year deal earned him a two-year contract in March 2014. That came with a $850,000 signing bonus and a $500,000 roster bonus in 2014. He was due to earn a $3.2 million base salary in 2015, all of which will now be salary-cap savings.

He has a history of drawing fines from the league for his hits and has been critical of commissioner Roger Goodell on a number of matters, including the severity of punishment handed out in the Saints' bounty scandal and mixed messages the league sends in issuing fines for big hits while including them in marketing practices. 

Pollard suffered the Achilles injury last season at the end of the Titans' fifth game, a 29-28 loss to the Browns in which Tennessee gave up a 25-point advantage -- the worst blown lead by a home team in a loss in NFL history.

Tennessee could turn to one of two youngsters to replace Pollard. Daimion Stafford was a seventh-round pick in 2013, and Marqueston Huff was a fourth-rounder in 2014.

Another veteran safety, George Wilson, has an expiring contract and is not expected back.

^ Back to Top ^