Jame Collins, a former Super Bowl champion who spent a decade in the NFL, told ESPN on Friday that he has decided to retire. The 33-year-old's career in the NFL included stops with the New England Patriots, Cleveland Browns, and Detroit Lions. Collins last played in 2022 as a member of the Patriots.
"It hasn't hit me yet, but I'm officially retired," Collins told ESPN. "It was wonderful and something I never thought I'd be a part of. Made a lot of great relationships. Had a ton of fun. Now it's time to relax and be with my family."
Collins entered the NFL as a second-round draft choice of the Patriots in 2013 out of Southern Miss and is most known for his contributions to the franchise, whom he had three different tenures with.
Early on, the 6-foot-3, 255-pounder became a key piece of Bill Belichick's defense and helped the club to its first Super Bowl title in a decade when it defeated the Seattle Seahawks during Super Bowl XLIX to wrap up the 2014 campaign. The following season, Collins had arguably the best year of his career after being named to the Pro Bowl for the first time and earning a second-team All-Pro nod.
In what was one of the more surprising moves of Belichick's tenure in Foxborough, the Patriots traded Collins on Halloween in 2016 to the Browns. Later that season, Collins' former New England squad would go on to win Super Bowl LI against Atlanta. That offseason, Collins inked a four-year, $50 million contract with the Browns.
After being released by Cleveland in 2019, Collins found his way back to the Patriots for the 2019 season. He then played for the Lions from 2020-21 before his final stint with New England that stretched from October of 2021 to the end of last season.
For his career, Collins totaled 708 tackles, 26.5 sacks, 19 forced fumbles and 12 interceptions in 125 regular season games. He added 55 tackles, three sacks and two interceptions in nine playoff games.
