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Jamaal Jackson, former Philadelphia Eagles center, might retire

After participating in just one day of a tryout with the New York Giants, former Philadelphia Eagles center Jamaal Jackson told The News Journal of Wilmington on Saturday he's thinking about retiring but hasn't made a decision just yet.

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"I'm contemplating it, basically," Jackson said. "I need to weight my options basically. I respect the Giants for giving me an opportunity, but at the end of the day, I want to go home and think about the decision I want to make moving forward -- if a decision is there to make."

Jackson added: "My biggest thing, I always wanted to be able to walk away, not crawl away."

His comments to the newspaper came after Giants coach Tom Coughlin revealed, apparently prematurely, that Jackson had decided to call it quits.

"He came in and he was very nice. He just said, 'Coach, I just don't feel like my heart's in it,' " Coughlin told reporters after morning practice at rookie minicamp on Saturday.

Jackson told The Star-Ledger on Friday that he just wanted to see how much he had left to give the game before deciding if it was time to hang up his cleats.

"Just trying to feel around and see what I got left, if anything, and just try to run around with the kids basically," Jackson said.

Jackson entered the NFL in 2003 with the Philadelphia Eagles as an undrafted college free agent out of Delaware State. He spent nine seasons with the Eagles and served as Philadelphia's starting center from 2006 to 2009.

He suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury in 2009, which ended his streak of starts. He returned in 2010, but then tore his triceps during the season-opener against the Green Bay Packers.

He was placed on injured reserve, ending his 2010 campaign. Jackson appeared in all 16 games for the Eagles last season.

"I don't really see myself audition for too many teams," Jackson said Friday. "That's how I look at it. It's a last stop. Yeah, definitely."

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