A FORMER Pro Bowl defender has made his official return to the NFL just weeks before the start of the playoffs – but there is a catch.

The two-time Super Bowl champion had retired in the offseason and stunningly changed his mind last month.

GettyFormer Tampa Bay Buccaneers linebacker Shaq Barrett stands on the sidelines before an NFL football game against the Jacksonville Jaguars last December[/caption]

GettyBarrett last played in the 2023 season, recording 4.5 sacks and 52 total tackles in 15 games[/caption]

The Miami Dolphins have waived Shaq Barrett from their reserve/retired list.

The move will allow Barrett to return to the NFL before the playoffs begin.

If Barrett clears waivers on Friday, he can play again this season.

However, if a team claims him before that day, he won’t be eligible to appear in a contest.

“We appreciate the Dolphins giving Shaq this opportunity to continue his career in the NFL,” Barrett’s agent Drew Rosenhaus said in a quote, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

“Hopefully he will pass through waivers and become a free agent so he can play again this season.

“He is in great shape and would be ready to play immediately.”

At the time of his retirement U-turn announcement last month, the Dolphins didn’t activate him off the reserve/retired list or release him to join an NFL team, which left the 32-year-old’s status uncertain.

He will now have the chance to play for a team competing for the Super Bowl.

Barrett entered the NFL as an undrafted free agent with the Denver Broncos in 2014.

In his second team with the team, Barrett won his first Super Bowl title.

Barrett joined the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2019 and led the NFL with a franchise-record 19.5 sacks in that same year.

The next season, he won a Super Bowl with Tom Brady and the Bucs.

Barrett also recorded another double-digit season in 2021, with 10.

Unfortunately, Barrett and his family suffered tragedy in 2023 when his two-year-old daughter, Arrayah, drowned in the family’s pool.

He played in the 2023 campaign and posted 4.5 sacks and 52 total tackles.

Barrett was released by the Buccaneers in February and then signed with the Dolphins.

In July, Barrett announced his retirement and said he was “ready to shift my full focus to my wife and kids and helping them realize [their] dreams.”

GettyBarrett walks to the locker room before a 2022 game[/caption]

https://www.the-sun.com/sport/13164702/shaq-barrett-unretiring-nfl-playoffs-return/