New England Patriots: Matt Light May Plan on Retiring This Offseason

The New England Patriots' second-round pick in the 2001 NFL draft was well worth the selection, as Matt Light emerged as one of the elite left tackles in all of football throughout the past 11 seasons.

Light, who's turning 34 this summer, could end up retiring this offseason as he has one year remaining one his contract that's worth about $3.4 million. 

The Boston Herald's Ian R. Rapoport believes that Light will not be back in 2012 and that retirement is "definitely possible."

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 [Marcus] Cannon will be in the mix with Nate Solder, Sebastian Vollmer and practice squader Matt Kopa, who is promising. While it hasn’t been said officially, the expectation is that Matt Light will not be back next year (with retirement definitely possible).

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Light has spent his entire 11-year career with the Patriots, and he's one of three players on New England's roster that played in all three of the team's Super Bowl championships. 

It appears that New England will move forward with their first-round pick from a year ago, Nate Solder, as the team's starting left tackle while Sebastian Vollmer will remain on the right side. 

Light played in 15 games this past season as New England's left tackle and allowed just three sacks, while Solder spent time rotating in and out as a right tackle, left tackle and even a tight end, playing in 16 games and allowing just four sacks. 

With Light turning 34 and the Patriots having a definite capable starter on the roster, it would make no sense to bring back Light for another stint with the Patriots. 

Three Super Bowl rings and one All-Pro nod (2007) later, I would definitely label his career with the Patriots as a major success.

Be sure to check out Tony Santorsa's blog: PatriotsPlus