Seattle Seahawks free safety Earl Thomas has been one of, if not the best safety in the NFL since being selected 14th overall by Seattle in the 2010 NFL Draft.

The lanky ball-hawk has been responsible for preventing numerous big plays and played stellar football in a pair of Super Bowls.

After falling hard during the first half of Sunday night’s game with the Carolina Panthers, Thomas headed to the locker room and posted this cryptic tweet.

This game has been so good to me no regrets.. A lot is running through my mind including retirement thanks for all the prayers.

— Earl Thomas (@Earl_Thomas) December 5, 2016

An NFL Media report says that Thomas has a broken bone in his leg and will be out indefinitely.

#Seahawks S Earl Thomas suffered a broken bone in his leg in the first half, sources say. He's out indefinitely. Brutal injury.

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) December 5, 2016

Lots of players contemplate retirement at the end of each season when their bodies are abused and sometimes broken, and it’s not a huge surprise that one would think about hanging up the cleats while dealing with the agony of an injury.

With that said, Thomas is likely blowing off some steam and it’s doubtful that he would walk away from $8.5 million annually, due over the next two seasons.

Let’s assume for a moment that Thomas was caught up in the moment and he hasn’t played his last snap.  What will Seattle be missing for the rest of this season?  

Thomas is the rangiest safety in all of the NFL and he’s just as good of a tackler as he is a ball-hawk. With all due respect and certain apologies to cornerback Richard Sherman, he is the captain of Hawks secondary and he makes the “No Fly Zone” truly an area where teams don’t dare to attack.

You don’t replace a five-time Pro Bowler (in five NFL seasons) and three-time All-Pro at safety.  With the Seahawks likely going to have to go on the road at some point in the postseason, Thomas’ presence will certainly be missed.

Steven Terrell is his immediate replacement, and to be perfectly honest, nobody knows what to expect from the fourth-year pro from Texas A & M.  We do know that he’s nowhere near as talented as the best safety in the NFL.

The Seahawks may have won the battle at the Panthers Sunday night, but they’ve certainly lost plenty without Thomas.