Who Should I Start? Matthew Slater or John Metchie III

Tuesday, February 20, 12:01 PM

New England Patriots wide receiver and special teams ace Matthew Slater announced on Tuesday that he is officially retiring from professional football. Slater holds the record for most special teams Pro Bowl appearances with 10. "I have given all that I possibly can to respect and honor the game," Slater wrote. "Though it is time for my relationship with the game to evolve, the love I have for it will last a lifetime." The former fifth-round pick by the Patriots in 2008 out of UCLA spent his entire 16-year career in New England and won three Super Bowls with the team and is the franchise's all-time leader in special teams tackles. Slater played in 239 games with the Patriots, second in team history behind only Tom Brady (285). Slater's 25 career postseason games rank ninth-most in NFL history. The 38-year-old was a team captain for 13 straight seasons.

Tuesday, January 16, 7:58 PM

Houston Texans wide receivers Robert Woods (hip) and John Metchie III (foot) were both listed as limited participants for Tuesday's practice session. Woods has been rested early during the week for most of the year and is expected to be available to play this Saturday against the Baltimore Ravens in the Divisional Round. He missed the Week 18 regular season finale and returned in the wild-card win over the Cleveland Browns, only to catch one of his two targets for 11 yards. The 31-year-old could have a bigger role in a tough matchup against Baltimore this weekend now that Noah Brown (shoulder) is on Injured Reserve. Still, both Woods and Metchie will be low-cost dart throws in DFS against the Ravens, with most of quarterback C.J. Stroud's targets going to Nico Collins and tight end Dalton Schultz. Woods had only 40 catches for 426 yards and one score in 2023.