Eric Decker Is ‘Medically Withdrawn’ From ‘Special Forces’

Eric Decker never turns down a challenge, but his body didn’t get the memo.

In the Thursday, Oct. 30 episodes of Special Forces: World’s Toughest Test, the former NFL player, 38, struggled to keep up in the military-style competition, causing wife Jessie James Decker to worry. During a check-in with the staff, he admitted that he had been pushing himself “as hard as I can,” but was reaching a point of exhaustion in “my soul.”

“I’m scared of failure,” he said, going on to reflect on the way his pro football career ended. “It’s one of the disappointments I have, just the way I went out. I was fearful to fail being cut later in my career, and it was easier to retire than push.”

Eric played eight seasons in the NFL as a wide receiver, most recently for the Tennessee Titans in 2017. He was drafted in 2010 by the Denver Broncos, playing four seasons with the team before signing with the New York Jets in 2014. He retired from the NFL in 2018.

The experience caused him “depression, anxiety,” and he saw Special Forces as a way to prove himself, along with his “second career” as a father and husband.

Determined to continue in the competition, he went back to his bunk. The next day, however, a football-style tussle left him injured.

“Eric hasn’t had this kind of physical challenge since he’s played football,” Jessie, 37, noted. “I want him to have that time again.”

Despite his efforts to stand up and carry his bags back to the car, Eric quickly noticed severe spasms in his back.

“I’m gonna push myself to exhaustion,” he said in his confessional. “My attitude and determination, I feel like, will push me through. I know it’s gonna be difficult. I’m just gonna go until my body says no.”

When he went to visit the doctor at base camp, a few tests showed it wasn’t safe for him to stay in the game.

“I’m concerned that we can’t inflict any more punishment on that hip,” the doctor revealed. “I don’t think we can really safely let it carry on.”

While Eric declared, “I don’t consider myself a quitter,” he accepted that he needed to prioritize his health.

“I’m gone,” he told Jessie when he returned to the bunks. “Medically withdrawn.”

She immediately stood up and started packing to leave with him.

“You sure you don’t want to stay?” Eric asked Jessie, who promptly responded: “Yeah, we’re going together.”

“Let’s go home,” she added on their way out, arm-in-arm. “We ride together. We fly together.”

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

Special Forces: World’s Toughest Test airs Thursdays at 9 pm ET/PT on Fox.