This is when you feel the legacy, on the day in which Adrian Wilson officially retires and when he talks about the guys who helped him when he got into the league, Pat Tillman comes up. It's fitting this time of year, when the anniversary of Tillman's death draws near. It's easy to forget how important Tillman was to Wilson that one season they played together, in 2001.

"I didn't know the first thing about the playbook," Wilson said of his rookie season. "(Defensive coordinator) Larry Marmie's playbook was so complicated, I couldn't understand it. Pat sat me down for hours upon hours just going through the playbook just to go to practice the next day. It was that complicated for me. I owe big dividend to Pat."

To think, Wilson was there to essentially replace Tillman.

(Wilson thanked other "old-time" Cardinals Corey Chavous, Kwamie Lassiter, Rob Fredrickson and Ron McKinnon for their help when he was starting out too.)

-- When Wilson was released back in 2013, I covered a lot of the instant emotions and thoughts I had of his career in this post. But his retirement Monday brought some closure and, perhaps sooner rather than later, maybe bring Wilson back into the building on a consistent basis. He shrugged off his future right now, saying he wanted to "take my time on that." He's got four young kids. That's his focus now, although there is little question GM Steve Keim likes having him in the mix. Team president Michael Bidwill noted that before the press conference, Wilson had his mock draft around, drawing a grin from Wilson.

"He's made some improvements from his first mock that he showed me," Keim said. "I think I sent him back to the film room."

-- Not only was Wilson's family there, but his two buddies from North Carolina from when he was 10 years old, Adrian Mack and Anthony Johnson, were there Monday and it took me back to 2010 when Wilson invited me back to High Point to cover his high school retiring his jersey number and I was able to meet Mack and Johnson and do a big story on who Wilson really was as a person. Looking back on that article, through the prism of today, this quote stands out, about Wilson desperately wanting to leave a legacy.

"Nobody in my family has one and I'll be the first," Wilson said. "That's something I think is more important to me than anything — leaving that right mark. I want to lay a foundation down where it doesn't matter what generation you come from, you've got to respect what I did."

-- Bidwill will have Wilson go in the Ring of Honor, but that date is TBD. The schedule comes out tomorrow, and then the team must figure out what home games have which events, like Breast Cancer Awareness or Salute to Service, for example.

-- Wilson admits he thinks about the Hall of Fame. I'll have a separate post on that tomorrow, but it's been tough sledding for safeties in Canton.

-- There was a good group of former teammates on hand for Wilson today: Fitz, Patrick Peterson, Justin Bethel, Rashad Johnson, Calais Campbell, Bertrand Berry, Quentin Harris, Damien Anderson, Rolando Cantu. Peterson even took the mic during the press conference to deliver a statement in front of everyone. Wilson was an important part of this franchise. He still should be.