Former New England Patriots DT Vince Wilfork announces his NFL retirement

Former New England Patriots defensive tackle Vince Wilfork has announced his retirement from the NFL after 13 successful seasons.

With a simple tweet former New England Patriots star Vince Wilfork announced his retirement from the NFL. The news is not a huge surprise, seeing as he was still an NFL free agent, but now it’s time to look back and remember his time with New England.

Wilfork spent 11 seasons with the Patriots, and he will certainly be in the Patriots Hall of Fame one day.

Here is the tweet where Wilfork announced his departure from the NFL.

Apparently, it’s “no more cleats” and “moving on to smoked meats” for Vince, who seems to be keeping his Kingsford charcoal sponsorship. The video depicts Wilfork in a Patriots uniform, not his more recent Houston Texans attire. The video also adds that there will be a farewell tailgate for Wilfork in New England on September 7th, the same day the New England Patriots take on the Kansas City Chiefs to begin the season.

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Wilfork was a legend in New England, and fans were sad to see him go, so it’s nice to see him returning. Vince has always said New England will be home, so maybe he will officially settle down here and work into a role with the Patriots.

Over his 11 seasons here, Wilfork had 355 tackles, 5 forced fumbles, 12 fumble recoveries, 16 sacks, and 3 memorable interceptions. He helped the team win the Super Bowl in 2004 and 2014 as well.

While his numbers don’t really jump out and scream spectacular, he truly was. Wilfork was a leader for the New England Patriots both on and off the field. He was a mentor to numerous players as they entered the league, and having him back in New England could benefit this young Patriots defense.

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Vince, we salute you on a stellar NFL career, and we wish you the best of luck in whatever you choose to do! We hope to see you around Foxboro, and maybe even in a role with the Patriots to help mentor this young squad.

If you’d like to, share your Vince Wilfork memories with us here in the comments or on Twitter @CandCFansided!