FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- Longtime New England Patriots linebacker Dont'a Hightower, who won three Super Bowl championships over his nine-year career, officially announced his retirement on Tuesday.
"I can't think of a better story than the one I wrote in New England," Hightower said in an essay posted on The Players' Tribune website. "So this is a happy day for me ... Today, I'm totally at peace knowing that I gave this franchise every ounce of sweat I had left."
Nicknamed "Mr. February" by coach Bill Belichick because of his knack for making clutch plays in Super Bowls, the 33-year-old Hightower didn't play in 2020 as a COVID-19 opt-out, and also sat out the 2022 season.