Mannelly is welcomed back to the Bears whenever he pleases, but joked he didn’t know what he was going to do on Sundays any more.
“I won’t be staring out my window before the game to see how bad the wind’s blowing at Soldier Field,” he said.
He leaves the Bears a legend.
“Although I have deep respect for Pat’s decision, I’m saddened by it because we are going to lose an extremely high-level leader who had an impact on our team,” Bears general manager Phil Emery said in a release.
“Not only from his excellent performance on the field over a very long, sustained and historical amount of time, but in all areas of our team. It starts with his leadership in the locker room and him reaching out to other players who need help, to all the work he has done in the community, and the way he carried the Chicago Bears mantle. Any time he was in the public and represented the Chicago Bears, he did it at the highest level possible. We are losing a great person and a great player, one who will always remain a Bear in our hearts.”