Cardinals' John Carlson announces retirement after 7 seasons

Arizona Cardinals tight end John Carlson announced his retirement from the NFL on Tuesday, bringing an end to his pro career after seven seasons.

Carlson released a statement through the Cardinals' official website:

After much thought and consideration, my wife Danielle and I know that this is best decision for us. I was blessed to play seven seasons in the NFL for three tremendous organizations - the Cardinals, Vikings and Seahawks. I will always treasure the experiences and relationships made during that time but I'm also very excited about the next phase of my life and what's ahead.

Carlson's career got off to a fast start after joining the Seattle Seahawks as a second-round draft selection in 2008, emerging as one of the league's best young tight ends before struggling with concussions over the next few seasons.

He later moved on to spend two years with the Minnesota Vikings from 2012-2013 prior to landing with the Cardinals last season, where he started 12 of 16 games, recording 33 receptions for 350 yards and one touchdown.

Having been projected to earn the starting job once again in 2015, Carlson's sudden retirement could see the Cardinals turn to the free-agent market to address the tight end position at some point before training camp gets underway this summer.