Former Patriots head coach Bill Belichick has nothing but love and respect for veteran special teams ace Matthew Slater.
On Tuesday morning, Slater announced his retirement from football. He’ll leave the NFL behind as a 10-time Pro Bowler and three-time Super Bowl champion.
“I have given all that I possibly can to respect and honor the game,” Slater said. “Though it is time for my relationship with the game to evolve, the love I have for it will last a lifetime.”
Shortly after Slater announced his retirement, a video of Belichick referring to him as the “best special teams player of all-time” surfaced on social media.
“I feel like I’ve coached the best offensive player in football in Tom [Brady], the best defensive player in football in L.T. [Lawrence Taylor] and the best special teams player in Matt Slater,” Belichick said. “… As a core special-teamer, Slater is the best of all time. I hope he gets recognized for that.”
To be in the same sentence as Tom Brady and Lawrence Taylor speaks volumes about the type of player Slater was for the Patriots.
Slater showed tremendous respect for Belichick in his retirement letter. He wrote, “It is a great honor to know that I played for the best coach in the history of our league.”
Maybe, just maybe, Slater’s contributions on special teams will be recognized by the Pro Football Hall of Fame someday.