Patriots
Pro Bowl left tackle Matt Light formally announced his retirement May 7
in a ceremony inside The Hall at Patriot Place next door to Gillette
Stadium. New England had actually placed the 11-year veteran and former
2001 second-round pick on the reserve/retired list the week leading up
the draft.
The announcement included fond tales of
Light's impressive career told by New England owner Robert Kraft and
head coach Bill Belichick. The bulk of New England's current offensive
line, coaching staff and even former teammates like Russ Hochstein and
Sammy Morris were also in attendance.
"He's been a
tremendous player for us, a tremendous resource for our team,"
Belichick said to a packed house of media and fans. "He's given great
leadership as well as great performance. A lot of levity that we
probably need around here. Most of which I'll miss, but not all of it.
Matt, congratulations on a tremendous career. You and your family have
meant a lot to this team and the community up here. Nobody was more
consistent, more dependable, to count on, to coach than this guy has
been the last 11 years."
Light retires as a
three-time Pro Bowler and the only primary left tackle that Tom Brady
has ever known as a starting quarterback in the NFL. He was a
first-team All-Pro on New England's record-setting offense in 2007.
He's also one of just five players in NFL history to have
started
in five Super Bowls, joining Brady in that group along with winning
three Super Bowl rings in his time in New England.
Light walks away after arguably his best season in 2011, when he dealt
with elite pass rushers on seemingly a weekly basis and met the
challenge on almost every snap for a Patriots passing offense that
ranked No. 2 in the NFL.
So why would he be leaving
the game at the relatively young age of 33, healthy and seemingly in
the prime of his career?
"You know, I've got a
daughter that's 10 (years old), I've got two boys who are knuckleheads
and they need a lot of guidance a lot more time. I think that one of
things that was ever apparent over the last couple seasons, it takes a
lot longer to recover the older you get. Really during that six, seven,
eight months of that football season, it really becomes very difficult
to give much outside of a 'hi' or 'goodnight' or 'good morning.' That's
always been really important," Light said.
"Also
health reasons, just wanting to leave this game upright and feeling
good. To be quite honest with you, I really had this sense of being
grateful for the experience. I remember 2011, this past season there
was a different mindset, maybe that's why I enjoyed some success out
there. I really just felt like I am blessed to be a part of this. It
made this season so memorable, so fun, for me, when I finally closed
this chapter, I am truly grateful. Especially this young talent, I saw
how talented they were and how they were in good hands. With (offensive
line coach) Dante (Scarnecchia) in the room, there's going to be high
expectations.
"When you know it's your time, you just know."
Light also used his retirment to talk candidly about his battle over
the years with Crohn's disease, something he did his best to keep under
wraps throughout his career. He looked back on a time in the summer of
2004 when he was quite ill and actually had to have 13 inches of his
intestine removed.
"It was one of the darkest periods of my life,"
Light told ESPNBoston.com
Not only did he make it on the field in 2004 after the illness, Light
won his third Super Bowl with the team later that season. This past
week he put the caps on an impressive career in New England as one of
the better offensive linemen the team has ever fielded.
He walks away from the game on his terms, just the way he wanted to.
But he expects to remain in New England, raising his family in a region
that he couldn't even locate on a map when he was drafted out of Purdue
in the second round back in 2001.
Longtime New
England offensive line coach Dante Scarnecchia said the greatest praise
that can be given is that Light will be greatly missed, maybe most by
his quarterback.
"An exceptional player and an
exceptional person and teammate," Brady said in a special video
commemorating Light's career. "He played on our left side for 11 great
seasons, in the biggest games on the biggest stages. He's a really
unique player and a unique person. He really allowed offensively to be
very versatile in the things we did because of his versatility. Every
week the left tackle goes up against the best the other team has to
offer, whether it's Jason Taylor or Dwight Freeney or Aaron Schobel --
and these are guys Matt faced week in and week out -- we never gave
Matt help over there, he was on his own. He was a fun player to be
around, he was tough, he was physical, he was a great example. He
certainly brought some levity to the room. He has a great sense of
humor. He did a lot of great things in the community and he's still
doing those things. He's one of my favorite teammates I've ever had.
I'm certainly going to miss him and I'm still going to try to talk him
out of retirement because I still want him back here for a few more
years."
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