Former 49ers kicker Gould announces NFL retirement after 18 seasons

Former 49ers kick Robbie Gould's NFL career officially came to an end on Thursday. The 41-year-old announced his retirement from the game after 18 seasons in a post to the Players' Tribune. Gould started his career as an undrafted free agent out of Penn State playing his first 11 seasons with the Chicago Bears after spending a brief stint with the New England Patriots as a rookie. He played his final six seasons with the 49ers as one of the first acquisitions made by general manager John Lynch and coach Kyle Shanahan as they began their roles in Santa Clara. "Kyle is the best head coach in the NFL," Gould told NBC Sports Bay Area at the American Century Championship at Edgewood Tahoe Resort in July. "The guy is an offensive genius. He's an awesome dude. I can't speak highly enough about how great of a dude he is, how awesome he's been to me. I think he's unbelievable as a head coach. "The opportunity to come in and play for him was awesome. He fought for me every single time my deal was up. I tried my best to play as hard as I could and give everything I could to the organization." In that first season with the club, Gould led the league with a career-high 39 field goals made in...