JASON FERGUSON RETIRES

In an unexpected move on Thursday, Dolphins' nose tackle Jason Ferguson announced his retirement from the NFL.

Ferguson was traded from the Dallas Cowboys to the Dolphins in March 2008 and was the team's starting nose tackle the past two seasons. Ferguson ended the season on IR after suffering a quadriceps injury last November in a win against the Carolina Panthers. Even while recovering from his offseason surgery, Ferguson was set to miss the first 8 games of the regular season after being suspended for PED violation.

The retirement does come as a surpise since the Dolphins re-signed Ferguson in March to a one year deal. Speculation already is running that perhaps the 35 year old was facing an additional suspension on top of the 8 games he already had, or that perhaps the injury was not healing as well as he had hoped. The loss of Ferguson is not a major blow to the Dolphins, as they had already moved on by naming Randy Starks the nose tackle for the 2010 season. Paul Soliai returns and the staff is converting former defensive end Ryan Baker to a nose tackle.

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