Adrian Clayborn contemplated retirement

Atlanta Falcons defensive end Adrian Clayborn almost did what?

In Week 10, Atlanta Falcons defensive end Adrian Clayborn had a monster outing in the Falcons 27-7 win against the Dallas Cowboys. He had a total of six sacks in the game. This earned Clayborn the NFC Defensive Player of the Week.

But, Clayborn was close to not even playing in the game. In fact, he was close to not even playing football anymore.

According to Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com, Clayborn contemplated retirement prior to this dominant performance on Sunday. His previous injuries played a major role in the process of him contemplating walking away from the game all together. He has been bothered by injuries since he suffering a torn bicep in the Falcons NFC divisional playoff win vs the Seahawks in January.

Per McClure, Clayborn mulled over retirement and shared his thoughts with a small circle of others, which consisted of Clayborn’s wife and former Bucs teammate Gerald McCoy.

"“I gave it thought for about a month,” Clayborn said. “I shared it with my wife. I told Gerald. I told my agent, Blake Baratz. My wife talked me out of it.” – A. Clayborn"

Clayborn is in the last year of his contract with Atlanta. He has not decided if he will play in 2018 but he made it known that he wants to finish his career with the Falcons. He credits the team with believing in him when he didn’t maximize his full potential while playing in Tampa Bay.

"“I definitely want to finish my career out here in Atlanta with Dan Quinn because they believed in me even when my career wasn’t what it was in Tampa. They signed me here on a one-year deal to give me another chance. So, I definitely want to finish my career here.”"

Clayborn leads the Falcons in sacks with eight in 2017. Will there be more?