Floyd Mayweather Would Be to Wise Retire After Showtime/CBS Deal Expires

Floyd "Money" Mayweather Jr.'s initial plan to retire after completing his 30-month deal with Showtime/CBS was sound. So he'd be wise to stick to it. In a recent stop to promote he and Saul "Canelo" Alvarez's Sept. 14 clash, Floyd said this, per ESPN's Dan Rafael:

"After my five more fights, guess what? I think after (getting to) 49-0 we may stay in this sport a little longer. This Sept. 14, it's just another walk in the park."

Hopefully, this was just part of the hype and not a serious consideration for Mayweather. By the time this deal is done, Mayweather will be 38-years-old. While fighters have had success into their 40s—most recently Bernard Hopkins—Mayweather is in a different situation than those men.

Hopkins, Archie Moore, George Foreman—who all fought in their 40s—had already tasted defeat in their careers. In a sense, each of them had something to prove.

Mayweather is undefeated at 44-0 and assuming he finishes up the Showtime/CBS deal unscathed, he'll be 49-0. That mark would put a stamp on his legacy and would be an accomplishment that is unmatched in this era.

Money would further validate what most with two working eyes already know, which is that he is greatest fighter in the last 25 years.

A loss—even one that happens well after his prime—would stain that legacy. It wouldn't take away all that he's accomplished in his career, but it would remove Mayweather's ability to say he walked away from the sport unconquered.

He's already done so much, but with his apparent plans to take on the best fighters available to round out his Showtime/CBS deal, Mayweather's legacy stands to grow if he wins his next five fights.

It is hard to imagine Mayweather needing the money after inking a deal that Rafael says "will change the landscape of the boxing business."

The only thing Money would be accomplishing by continuing his career passed the age of 38 is giving his haters something to cheer about. There are fans that would like nothing more than to see the polarizing fighter lying unconscious on a meme.

His devout fans probably cringe at the thought, but no matter who you are, if you fight long enough, someone will get you.

The potential loss could come because of a poor decision, a decline in Mayweather's skills, his opponent's talent, or a combination of the three.

At 36, Mayweather has never taken a beating or significant punishment in the ring. That is something that almost any other fighter who has fought professionally for 17 years wouldn't have endured.

Because of his remarkable reflexes, boxing I.Q. and speed, Mayweather has largely avoided this pitfall in the sport. Father Time will rob any fighter of two of those gifts.

Fighting too long drastically improves the chances that Mayweather will take the punishment lesser fighters—or other greats who stayed in the sport too long—have had to experience.

The risk simply isn't worth the reward.

Follow me for boxing news, rumors and spirited opinions.