Carolina Panthers' offensive tackle Jonathan Martin is reportedly going to retire from the sport after only three seasons because of his persistent back problems, as per SB Nation.

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The former Miami Dolphin and San Francisco 49er was scheduled to have surgery on his back soon and so instead of just missing the entire 2015 season, he decided to just call it a career.

The 6-foot-5, 312-pound Pittsburgh native was drafted by the Dolphins 42nd overall in the second round of the 2012 NFL Draft. He played all the 16 games of Miami during his rookie season and was effective in alternating between the right tackle and left tackle positions.

The next season, he started the team's first seven games before being involved in a nationally followed bullying scandal that went beyond the confines of the league, as reported by Yahoo Sports.

Martin is mostly remembered as being the victim of that bullying scandal, which involved then teammate Richie Incognito as the main antagonist during his second year with the Dolphins.

After an investigation handled by the NFL with regards to Martin's claim of "emotional distress" because of the behavior of his teammates toward him, it was proven in February 2014 that Incognito, together with fellow defensive linemen John Jerry and Mike Pouncey, had "engaged in a pattern of harassment" on the then 24-year-old since the 2012 season.

Martin, who did not play for the Dolphins' remaining games in 2013 even if he physically can, was then traded to the 49ers in March 2014 but was eventually waived by San Francisco a year later.

On March 27 this year, the Panthers snatched Martin one day after he was released by the Niners. The former Stanford Cardinal participated in the team's OTA's and minicamp but because of a back injury, he chose to retire from the game altogether.

ESPN indicated that Martin did not want to undergo the needed back operation and so the only option for him was to give up playing football professionally.

Martin was being groomed by Carolina coaches as a backup for starting left tackle Michael Oher in the upcoming season. He was efficient in offseason practices until the back injury emerged. The Panthers are now planning to utilize Nate Chandler as his replacement behind Oher. 

TagsNFL, NFL 2015, NFL news, NFL News 2015, NFL rumors, NFL Rumors 2015, Jonathan Martin, Carolina Panthers