Veteran running back Maurice Jones-Drew announced Thursday that he is retiring from football after nine seasons in the NFL.

The 29-year-old Jones-Drew spent the first eight seasons with the Jacksonville Jaguars before playing his final year with the Oakland Raiders in 2014.

“After much discussion with my family and business team during the offseason, I’ve decided to retire from the National Football League,” Jones-Drew said on Twitter. “The past nine years were absolutely amazing! I’ll be forever grateful to the countless people who have asisted me throughout my NFL journey.

“To my fans, and NFL fans worldwide, you are the absolute greatest? But for you, our league does not exist. Football has been a central part of my life for the past 24 years. But, now I’m excited about and looking forward to the next chapter in my life.”

In 12 games for the Raiders last year, Jones-Drew was limited to 96 rushing yards on 43 carries and 11 receptions for 71 yards. But he made his mark with the Jaguars, rushing for more than 1,300 yards in a season three times during his career.

Jones-Drew finished with 8,167 yards rushing on 1,847 carries and 68 touchdowns and added 346 receptions for 2,944 yards and 11 touchdowns through the air.