After 12 years in the league, longtime Patriots safety Patrick Chung is retiring from the NFL.
Chung, 33, announced his retirement in an Instagram post on Thursday morning.
"I want to say thank you to the Patriots organization, my family, my fans, coaches, just everyone. I'm in tears writing this but I've decided to hang up the cleats," Chung wrote. "Bill, Mr. Kraft (mean mug) thank you for giving me the opportunity to play for your team for 11 years. I love you."
Chung spent 11 of his 12 NFL seasons with the Patriots organization after the team selected him in the second round of the 2009 NFL draft.