the 23rd overall pick in the 2008 nfl draft mendenhall spent his first five seasons with the pittsburgh steelers he recorded rashard mendenhall to retire after 6 seasons in nfl ive greatly enjoyed my time but i no longer wish to put my body at risk for the sake of entertainment i think about the rest of my life and i want to live it with much quality and physically i am grateful that i can walk away feeling as good as i did when i stepped into it why i retired at 26 seven overtimes wasnt enough to decide a clear winner in the ohio high school athletic association hockey state final on seven overtimes wasnt enough in ohsaa hockey state final so it ended in a tie video