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Bruce Arians ready for his 'second act' after announcing retirement from NFL

"The sun definitely hasn't gone down on my career. This cowboy still plans to be riding," Arians wrote

A teary-eyed Bruce Arians announced Monday he'd no longer be leading the Arizona Cardinals out onto the field on Sundays.

"The tears you see are really tears of joy and peace," he said during a news conference. "I'll miss the players. Ill miss coming out of the locker room, hearing the national anthem, because it still gets me."

In a story he penned with Lars Anderson for The Athletic, Arians said he's "ready for my second act."

"Something just changed for me this year—it's difficult to pinpoint exactly what that was, hard to put into words—and I wasn't enjoying the game as much as I had in the past," he wrote. "This wasn't fair to my players, my coaches or the fans."

In the story, Arians took a look back at a coaching career that spanned nearly four decades. And, as he said in his news conference, family was at the top of the list of reasons for his decision.

He wants to be active in his baby grandson's life, he said -- something he feels he didn't get a real chance to do for his kids or even his granddaughter.

He wrote:

We've moved 17 times in my career—that's 17 times Chris has had to pack up our house and figure out where our next home would be. When our kids were at home, she had to determine where they would go to school. She basically raised our kids by herself. I can never repay her for all she's done, but I'm sure going to try.

Arians called becoming the Cardinals coach a "minor miracle," and said he and his wife planned to live full-time at their lake house in Georgia. But, he said he'd never be too far from the game he loves.

"The sun definitely hasn't gone down on my career. This cowboy still plans to be riding," Arians wrote. "Football is the air I breathe, and I'm hoping to share all the secrets I've learned over the years."

He called the "Birdgang" the best fans in the NFL saying he'd never leave their side.

READ: Cardinals fans react to Bruce Arians' retirement

"The Red Sea always was behind me, so thunderous in your support, and I'll continue to be active in the Phoenix community and support the Cardinals," Arians wrote.

He finished the story saying he was just starting the "second half of my football life."

"In the years ahead, I'll be involved with the fans and the game I love so much," he wrote before ending with his famous saying: "No risk it, no biscuit."

Bruce Arians retires as the winningest coach in Arizona Cardinals history.

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