Saints' Fairley will not play 2017 season due to heart condition

Nick Fairley's season has come to an early end.

The New Orleans Saints defensive tackle, who had recently been seeking medical opinions regarding a heart condition, was officially placed on the reserve/non-football illness list Monday.

News of Fairley's heart issues first arose in early June, when Jennifer Hale of Fox Sports reported that his NFL career could now be in jeopardy.

While the timeline for a decision on that front remains unclear, he'll now be spending at least a full year on the sidelines.

Fairley's heart condition was first uncovered during a pre-draft physical back in 2011, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. He went on to play the next six seasons before tests uncovered issues that put his football future in question.

A former first-round pick of the Detroit Lions, Fairley enjoyed one of the best seasons of his career after landing in New Orleans as a free agent last offseason.

Racking up 6.5 sacks and 43 tackles while starting all 16 games earned the 29-year-old a four-year, $28-million contract extension with the club in March.