Warren Sapp Officially Retires After 13-Year Hall of Fame Bound Career

Defensive tackle Warren Sapp has officially filed his retirement paperwork with the NFL, more than two months after he told teammates he would retire following the close of the season. The move will free up about $4 million in salary cap space for the Raiders.

Sapp played the last 4 seasons with the Oakland Raiders, after spending the previous 9 with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, including a Super Bowl win against the Oakland Raiders in Super Bowl XXXVII. He will be remembered as one of, if not the premier "three technique" defensive tackle in NFL history.

Originally one of the top prospects in the 1995 NFL Draft, Sapp slid on draft day amid concerns he had smoked pot in college, and that infatuation with Mary Jane use might affect his future NFL performance. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers nabbed him with the 12th overall pick in the 1st round, and he went on to be a 7-time Pro Bowl selection, and 6-time NFL All-Pro selection, and was awarded the 1999 NFL Defensive Player of the Year. Sapp will leave the game with 573 tackles and 96.5 sacks, good for second most in NFL history by a defensive tackle, only behind John Randle.