Jared Veldheer’s time in New England didn’t surpass ten days.

The 32-year-old left tackle signed with the Patriots this offseason after spending last season with the Denver Broncos. He’s spent nine seasons in the NFL and has been the starter for every team that he’s played for. New England lost Trent Brown in free agency, and Isaiah Wynn is still recovering from an achilles injury — so Veldheer was the perfect security plan.

Although he was excited to play in New England, his decision to retire made perfect sense. Veldheer elaborated on his reasonings in an interview on Tuesday with MichiganLive Media Group.

“It was easy (decision) because of knowing what my body was telling me, but it was hard because I was leaving a very good situation being with the Patriots,” Veldheer said. “(Belichick) understood, and everyone in the NFL building understands that the sport can do a number on your body and different guys have different timelines on how long they can make it through.”

Veldheer is a 6-foot-8, 321 pound offensive tackle that’s spent his entire football career in the trenches.

“My hips, particularly my left one, was in pretty bad shape (after the season),” he said. “But I got some stem cell therapy, some other treatments and started to feel better and I thought the things I was doing were going to help.

“When March rolled around I thought I could give it a go, but once I went out there to do actual football stuff, the hip felt exactly how it did at the end of the season. There was just no way I was going to put my body through that. I couldn’t conceive even trying to make my body do that.”

The Patriots should have Wynn back in the lineup by opening day – so they’ll hope to move on from this without worrying about covering Tom Brady’s blindside.