“It’s clear that my leadership has become a distraction to the important work the NFLPA advances every day,” Howell said in a statement late on Thursday night.

Howell's tenure had come under scrutiny after several recent reports from ESPN and the "Pablo Torre Finds Out" podcast.

Howell reportedly was asked by a union lawyer to consider resigning for conflict-of-interest reasons, but he remains a consultant to the Carlyle Group.

Jeremy Fowler breaks down what NFLPA executive director Lloyd Howell Jr.'s resignation means for the union.

“It’s clear that my leadership has become a distraction to the important work the NFLPA advances every day.