Dont’a Hightower announced his retirement Tuesday, ending a decorated career with multiple championships.
The linebacker won two national titles at Alabama before playing pivotal roles in three Super Bowl championships with the New England Patriots. Hightower played all nine NFL seasons for the Pats, who drafted him in 2012.
“It’s been a hell of a ride & a career beyond my wildest dreams,” Hightower wrote on Twitter. “It’s time to hang em up, from the bottom of my heart – thank you to everyone who played a part.”
NFL followers congratulated Hightower on ending a superb career.
“An all-time great Patriot officially announces his retirement,” NESN’s Zack Cox said. “Hightower won three Super Bowls with New England and made game-changing plays in all three.”
An all-time great Patriot officially announces his retirement.
Hightower won three Super Bowls with New England and made game-changing plays in all three. https://t.co/IQFabobcjN
— Zack Cox (@ZackCoxNESN) March 21, 2023
“Always at his best in the biggest games. Clutch play after clutch play on his resume. They don’t win Super Bowl XLIX, LI or LIII without him,” NBC Sports Boston’s Phil Perry wrote.
Dont’a Hightower officially calling it a career. Always at his best in the biggest games. Clutch play after clutch play on his resume. They don’t win Super Bowl XLIX, LI or LIII without him. https://t.co/MO1Ia3watF
— Phil Perry (@PhilAPerry) March 21, 2023
“His tackle of [Marshawn] Lynch just before the [Malcolm] Butler interception – with a torn labrum in his shoulder – remains one of the more incredible things I’ve ever seen,” SB Nation’s Mark Schofield noted.
His tackle of Lynch just before the Butler interception – with a torn labrum in his shoulder – remains one of the more incredible things I’ve ever seen. https://t.co/R9czO7uY15
— Mark Schofield (@MarkSchofield) March 21, 2023
“One of the best and coolest LBs of a generation, and one of the last of a dying breed of LB,” Bleacher Report’s Derrik Klassen said. “Fearless between the tackles. They don’t make em like that anymore.”
one of the best and coolest LBs of a generation, and one of the last of a dying breed of LB. fearless between the tackles. they don’t make em like that anymore.
— Derrik Klassen (@QBKlass) March 21, 2023
“One hell of a career,” photographer Jorge Torres wrote. “Enjoy retirement.”
One hell of a career. Enjoy retirement https://t.co/po2DlFcYX3
— Jorge Torres 🇨🇴📸🎥 (@JorgeTPhotoVid) March 21, 2023
Hightower recorded 569 tackles, 67 quarterback hits, and 27 sacks in 117 career regular-season games. He also made his presence felt with three sacks, an interception, and a fumble recovery in 17 postseason contests.
The two-time Pro Bowler opted out of the 2020 season and didn’t play in 2022, but he started 15 games for New England in 2021.
“I know these announcements always feel bittersweet, but I can’t think of a better story than the one I wrote in New England,” Hightower said on The Players’ Tribune. “A decade, three Super Bowls, two Pro Bowls, and the birth of my son — all playing for one franchise. How many guys have a story like that?”