INGLEWOOD, Calif. -- Eric Weddle returned after two seasons in retirement to chase a Super Bowl ring.
Mission accomplished.
With the Los Angeles Rams defeating the Cincinnati Bengals, 23-20, at SoFi Stadium, Weddle heads back to retirement a champion.
"Yes, I'm re-retiring," said Weddle of a decision which was expected. "I'll go back to my daily life. Pretty banged up right now, but hey, it's well worth it. Well worth the moment."
Weddle added that he suffered a torn pectoral that would require surgery. But that pain was worth it.
"I have a lot of time to recover. World champs, man," he said.
Weddle became a star in San Diego before a bitter end left a rift between him and the Chargers. After nine seasons with the Chargers, he spent three in Baltimore before landing with the Rams in 2019.
Weddle retired after the 2019 season, believing his shot at that elusive Super Bowl title was out the window after 13 seasons coming up short.
But when the Rams became woefully thin at safety, they put a call in to the veteran to see if he'd consider coming back to help patch the hole.
The 37-year-old was more than a patch. He was Flex Seal for the Rams secondary.
He began his return with just 19 snaps in Los Angeles' Wild Card Round win over the Arizona Cardinals. Then his play time boosted to 60 in the Divisional Round win over Tampa Bay. In the NFC Championship Game victory over San Francisco, Weddle played all 50 snaps, leading the Rams with nine tackles and a tackle for loss.
Again on Super Bowl Sunday, Weddle was credited with playing all 61 snaps, per Next Gen Stats, despite being banged up. He finished the win with five tackles.
Weddle earned two All-Pro nods and six Pro Bowls in his career. Now he finally has that Super Bowl ring to go with it.
