What it was like for Luke Kuechly to say goodbye

He’s probably the one non-Kuechly human being that had spent the most time with him since he arrived here in 2012, one of the first players Luke gravitated to.

And he could sense something brewing as well, from all the hours they spent, having fellowship, going on vacations together, playing football, working out.

“I remember the first time he told me,” Olsen said. “Luke and I were training partners, both during the season and then the offseason, in six of the seven years we played together. Obviously, we spent a lot of time. And I’ll never forget we came in for a post-practice workout that last season in 2019. It was a tough year for everyone; Ron had been let go. I had missed the last couple of games because I got knocked out against Washington, and you knew Luke was dealing with stuff. It was just one of those years that it felt like they had pressed pause, and it just could not get over fast enough. And the energy in the building was tough, and we knew the inevitability of what was coming at the end of the season and whatnot.

“And I remember, me and Luke are in there like a normal Wednesday after practice, and it’s probably the second or third to last week of the season. It’s late in the year, and everyone’s banged up and tired, and you’re just kind of getting in there to get your work done.

“And I remember Luke just saying to me in between a set, he’s like, ‘Hey man, I’m done.’ And at the time, I just thought he meant like for this year. And I remember just saying to him, ‘Dude, I feel you, man. I’m struggling. My body hurts. I can’t do it anymore the way I want to. Everything’s hard.’

“He’s like, ‘No, man. I’m like, done, done.’ And I was like, ‘What do you mean?’ And he said, ‘I just can’t.'”