Michael Bennett has announced his retirement from the NFL after 11 seasons.
The defensive end was a key part of the Seattle Seahawks team that won Super Bowl XLVIII six years ago and was named to three Pro Bowls.
The 34-year-old spent last season with the New England Patriots and Dallas Cowboys, his four sacks with the latter taking him to 69.5 for his career.
"Retiring feels a little like death of self, but I'm looking forward to the rebirth - the opportunity to reimagine my purpose," Bennett wrote in an Instagram post.
"I would like to thank my wife and children, who have sacrificed so much for me to succeed. I'm looking forward to supporting them the same way they have me these past 11 years. I have never been more at peace in my life.
"As the great Toni Morrison said: 'Freeing yourself was one thing, claiming ownership of that freed self was another.'"
Bennett, who went to college at Texas A&M, went undrafted in 2009 and though he made the Seahawks roster that season, he ended the campaign with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
He returned to Seattle in 2013 and led the team in sacks in his first season, which culminated in a 43-8 Super Bowl victory over the Denver Broncos in MetLife Stadium.
Bennett, whose younger brother Martellus played tight end for 10 years in the NFL, spent five seasons with the Seahawks in his second spell in Seattle before joining the Eagles for one year in 2018.
His time in New England last season was short-lived following a row with a coach and he was not kept on by the Cowboys following his mid-season trade.
