Giants former first-round pick Justin Pugh retiring from NFL
After 11 seasons, former first-round pick Justin Pugh announced his retirement from the NFL on Friday as a member of the Giants.
Pugh, who'll turn 35 next in August, was drafted by the Giants with the No. 19 pick in the 2013 NFL Draft out of Syracuse and played the first five seasons of his career in New York. He then went out west to Arizona and played five seasons with the Cardinals before returning to Big Blue (straight off the couch) for 12 games in the 2023 season. Overall, Pugh played 132 games in the NFL, starting all but one contest.
"Not many players get to go out on their terms, and after 11 years playing in the NFL, I am officially retiring from the league," Pugh told reporters at training camp.
The offensive lineman joked about dreaming of playing hockey as a kid and never envisioned himself "making a block so Eli [Manning] could throw the ball down the field or Kyler [Murray] could make something happen."
"I never dreamed of being an offensive lineman," Pugh said. "I don't think any little boys are out there right now being like, 'Oh, let me pass set and block in the playoffs to make something happen.'
"But what I realized [is the] offensive line was for me. I was built perfectly for it. It's something that you don't choose, everyone wants to be that star position, but it's something that really defined me as a man, as a father, and as a teammate."
Despite being an Eagles fan growing up in Bucks County, Pa., Pugh went on to call getting drafted and playing for the Giants "a dream come true."
"I remember when I got drafted, we just kept saying -- and this is not just because I grew up an Eagles fan -- 'the f--king New York Giants.' And then I got here and got a chance to see what it's like to play for the New York f--king Giants. It was a dream come true. I still get goosebumps talking about it."
"Not many players get to go out on their terms, and after 11 years playing in the NFL, I am officially retiring from the league."
- Giants Videos (@SNYGiants) July 25, 2025
- Justin Pugh pic.twitter.com/IZR0CVR9WJ