New England Patriots special teams star Matthew Slater has announced his retirement after 16 seasons in the NFL.
Slater hangs up his cleats after a stellar career which saw him win three Super Bowl rings, earn five first-team All-Pro honours and he was voted to the Pro Bowl ten times.
A fifth-round draft pick by the Patriots in the 2008 NFL Draft, Slater came into the league as a wide receiver, but he made his name as a special teams standout, making 191 total tackles and earning the ultimate praise from former New England head coach Bill Belichick.
“As a core special teams player, Slater really is, I'd say, been the best of all time,” Belichick said last year. “I hope he gets recognized for that."
In a statement on the Patriots website Slater said: "For the last 25 years of my life, 16 of them as a New England Patriot, I have been incredibly blessed to be able to emulate the man I saw on those fields in Meridian by playing the game that I love so much.
“I have given all that I possibly can to respect and honor the game. Though it is time for my relationship with the game to evolve, the love I have for it will last a lifetime.
"As a player, God used the game of football to instruct, discipline, encourage, and develop me as a person.
"In 2008, I came here as a young man with hopes and dreams. In 2024, I can retire knowing this experience has exceeded any hope or dream I ever had."
Slater’s father, Jackie, was a former LA and St Louis Rams great and Matthew will be hoping to emulate him and end up in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
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