Corey Peters announces retirement from NFL after 13-year career

Longtime NFL veteran and former Kentucky football star Corey Peters is finally hanging up the cleats for good. Peters spent 13 seasons in the NFL and was never a star but was always a rock-solid and reliable contributor along the defensive line for three difference teams. But following one final year in Jacksonville this past fall and winter, Peters is finished with pro football once and for all.

He announced the news Thursday afternoon in a post on his Instagram account. In his caption, Peters sends out a list of thank you’s for an incredible career that he says he never dreamed would last so long. In the end, he did confirm that the 2022-23 was it for him in the NFL.

“Sincerely, I never imagined that I would continue playing football professionally for this long,” Peters wrote. “I’ll always be appreciative of the time I’ve had, but now is the time to take on a fresh challenge. I’m not sure what’s coming up, but I’m excited to see where life takes me!”

During his time in Lexington, Peters was one of the primary pieces of a solid mid-2000s run for Kentucky Football. In the fall of ’06, Rich Brooks was heading into year four with zero bowl appearances and nine total wins to show for his time with the ‘Cats. Then, in Peters freshman season, Kentucky broke through and made the Music City Bowl behind a core of Andre Woodson, Keenan Burton and Rafael Little on offense — and then Peters, Wesley Woodyard, Jeremy Jarmon and Trevard Lindley on defense.

Kentucky beat Clemson in that bowl in ’06 then returned everyone and stormed into the top-10 of the AP Poll by midseason after beating No. 9 Louisville and No. 1 LSU both at Commonwealth Stadium in the first half of the season. Ultimately, that team had some tough breaks down the stretch of the year but still finished with another Music City Bowl victory over an ACC powerhouse in Florida State.

The Wildcat teams in ’08 and ’09 weren’t quite as strong as the Wooden-led teams, but were pretty fun once Randall Cobb got on campus. Corey Peters himself was never a dominant force but he was a primary contributor from the day he stepped foot on campus, totaling more than 150 tackles, 27 tackles for loss and 11.5 sacks before graduating and becoming a third round pick in spring of ’09.

Heck of professional and college career for the Wildcat legend.