Patriots captain putting off retirement to return for 16th season

The Patriots’ special teams legend is coming back for a 16th season.

Hold off on the retirement balloons and confetti because the New England Patriots have announced Matthew Slater is returning in 2023.

The 37-year-old future Hall of Famer was contemplating retirement, but he’ll now look to help boost a Patriots special teams unit that struggled in 2022.

Slater, a three-time Super Bowl champion, has been awarded five All-Pro awards and 10 Pro Bowl invitations.

He has long been one of the best special-teamers in the NFL, and his presence, along with promising rookie Brenden Schooler, could set the Patriots up for a major bounce-back season.

This is the first domino to fall for New England with legendary safety Devin McCourty also contemplating his football career. The return of both would do wonders for a Patriots team that finally appears to be moving in the right direction.

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