Former Lions WR Calvin Johnson: Ailing ankles end speculation of comeback

Former Detroit Lions wide receiver Calvin Johnson ended any speculation about a possible return to the football field.

"I don't [think so], man, 'cause I get up from the bed sometimes in the morning, I'm just like, I shuffle across the ground 'cause I can't bend my ankles," Johnson told the Detroit Free Press when asked about the topic on Saturday. "That was my problem when I played, just ankle is always stuck or swelled up, I can't flex them. If you can't flex your ankles then you're just running flat-footed all the time."

Johnson retired before the 2016 season and told reporters last year that he walked away because the franchise was not close to reaching the Super Bowl.

Now 32, Johnson was in the middle of an eight-year, $132 million deal he signed in March 2012 before he walked away.

"I'll tell you this," Johnson said. "Retirement takes you down a path in life that you have unsurety about how to deal with certain things. It's like you're starting all over on how to be successful.

"You got to go through some bumps and bruises, some learning experiences to kind of work your way to the top. Like going through ["Dancing With the Stars"]. I'm not a dancer. I don't dance. Never did ballroom dancing, but I know this: If I bring my attitude and effort every day, stack good days on top of each other, that kind of, in everything, creates excellence. Makes you greater and greater. I just try to take it like that."

Johnson had 731 receptions for 11,619 yards and 83 touchdowns in nine NFL seasons after being selected with the second overall pick of the 2007 NFL Draft.

The five-time Pro Bowl selection set career highs for receptions (122) and yardage (1,964) in 2012 and made a personal-best 16 touchdown receptions in 2011.