CHARLOTTE – Linebacker Thomas Davis said it with a smile, but he admitted he gets annoyed by the continuous questions about his eventual retirement.
"I'm still under contract (through 2017), and my plan is to finish out my contractual obligations," said Davis. "Not 89 percent like Smitty."
Wide receiver Steve Smith, Sr. – Davis' good friend and former Carolina teammate – recently told the Baltimore media that he's 89 percent sure Sunday will be his last game after 16 years in the league.
"When you think about Steve's career and what he's been able to do in this league, you can't help but be proud of him," said Davis, who added he'd like to see Smith retire a Panther. "At the end of the day, he's faced with the same thing that I got hit with from my daughter. They want daddy home."
Davis acknowledged how tough that question is to answer, but he told his daughter, "Daddy has to work."
Still, no matter how many times Davis says he intends to keep playing, he keeps getting asked about hanging it up.
"When you hit 12 years, been playing this game for that long and you're 33 years old, people start to wonder," said Davis, a Pro Bowler for two consecutive years. "But I still have a passion for this game. I still have a desire to play. I'm just going to leave it at that."
