A Baltimore man took off work. His reason? To win a United Football League championship.

Andre Mintze couldn’t help but feel the gravitational pull back to the game that’d given him so much. No matter how hard he tried to avoid thinking about football, the sport took up space in his mind.

For the last two seasons, Mintze had played defensive end for the DC Defenders, the defending UFL champions. Then he retired to pursue a career in healthcare at Brighter Days Recovery Center in Baltimore.

Yet after work he’d turn on a Defenders game and imagine himself in pads. He’d grab his phone and check the team’s Instagram. Then he’d scout the team’s roster. Then he’d text his former teammates and head coach Shannon Harris.

Ahead of the team’s final regular-season game, Harris found Mintze’s old name tag in his locker and sent him a picture.

“‘What do you think, man? You ready to go on this ride with us?,’” Harris said. “He hit me back immediately, like, ‘Heck yeah.’”

There was one hurdle to clear. Mintze called his boss, Dr. Walter Toller, seeking permission to take paid time off to suit up for the Defenders in the playoffs as they attempted to win back-to-back titles. Toller approved.

“Timing is everything,” Mintze said. “If you’re going to spend it, you spend it at the right time.”

Saturday at 3 p.m., Mintze will play his final professional game for the Defenders at Audi Field against the Louisville Kings in the United Bowl with his boss, members of his company and his family in the stands.

“[Toller] was like, ‘Hey, man, like, if it’s still in your heart, go chase it, and we’ll do everything we can to support you.’ ... It’s really cool that he gave me an opportunity that allowed me to do this. I can’t thank him enough.”

“For him to come back out and take some PTO for two weeks, it’s great for him to do that,” Harris said. “Shows a lot about how much he cares about his teammates, his organization, to get one more run at it to try to defend our throne.”

Mintze always wanted to be a professional football player. His first football memory is getting yelled at by his coach as a 10-year-old suiting up for the North Philly Blackhawks, a moment documented in the opening of a YouTube video on the 2009 team.

His football journey wasn’t linear. Mintze tore his ACL twice in high school and a third time before his freshman year at Vanderbilt. Doctors told him he should stop playing, but the injuries didn’t deter him.

As an undrafted free agent, he made the Denver Broncos’ initial 53-man roster in 2021. He was waived after the season, signed with the Minnesota Vikings and was released before training camp.

The Defenders drafted him in 2023, when they were part of a relaunched version of the XFL. The league merged with the USFL to become the United Football League, which began play in 2024. He had a modest 2024 campaign, racking up 0.5 sacks and six tackles. Ahead of his second UFL season, to give himself an extra source of income, Mintze worked as a car salesman.

A customer called about purchasing a car, then arrived and didn’t like how the car looked. Mintze pivoted and showed him another car that he ended up buying.

As they finalized the purchase, the two talked and formed a bond. Toller, the customer, was the medical director of Brighter Days Recovery Center, a faith-based mental health clinic in Baltimore.

Mintze earned a master’s degree at Vanderbilt in medicine, health and society, his curiosity in the subject spurred by the injuries he’d suffered. He became fascinated with understanding the landscape, ethics and decision-making on the business side of healthcare, wanting to make the space more equitable for everyone.

“[Toller’s] like, ‘I really like your personality, man. If it doesn’t work out, football doesn’t work out for you, man, just give me a call,’” Mintze recalled. “And we exchanged information, and I went off into the season.”

Mintze finished the 2025 campaign with 5.5 sacks, tied for third in the UFL, as he helped the Defenders win a title. He entered the offseason wanting to get serious about what was next.

He remembered Toller’s number and shot him a text in September. A week went by with no response. Mintze called him, and he answered.

Toller invited him to watch the Ravens game at his house. He asked Mintze if he was done playing football, and Mintze said yes.

Two weeks later, Mintze was working for his company. Parts of the job were easy, given his football background — handling adversity, adapting to evolving situations and juggling multiple responsibilities.

But his degree couldn’t fully prepare him for the inner workings of an intricate and complex healthcare system. He learned quickly, though.

Now he’s the chief operating officer of the company, managing the day-to-day operations and connecting with anyone from a nurse practitioner to an auditor to the company’s senior leadership team. He’s also participating in MIT’s xPRO COO program.

All along, he has kept working out and training. In Mintze’s words, “You got to stay dangerous, just in case.”

“I kind of had to reevaluate when the season came up,” Mintze said. “I really had to put my love, my heart and my brain in two different buckets, and I had to make a decision.”

The timing never felt right until the Defenders clinched a playoff spot and Harris called. Mintze admits he was nervous about his conversation with Toller. He didn’t want to seem ungrateful or look like he was halfway out the door. Fortunately, Toller was understanding.

Mintze recorded a tackle in the team’s upset win over the top-seeded Orlando Storm on Sunday. He’s hoping to have a bigger impact in the championship. Once it’s all over, win or lose, he’s at peace with giving up football for good.

“This is it,” Mintze said. “I’ve been given an amazing opportunity in the healthcare field. I’ve been around some people that I would have no business being around if it wasn’t for the owner of this company. This company has given me a lot. ... But, if I’m gonna go out, I’m gonna go out making sure DC stays on top.”