Who Should I Start? Matthew Slater or Mike Williams

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.

Monday, March 25, 4:40 PM

New York Jets wide receiver Mike Williams (knee) is unlikely to take part in training camp, according to general manager Joe Douglas. "Mike's rehabbing the knee injury. I would say he's not gonna be ready for the start of training camp, but again, there's a lot of time, so we'll see how the rehab progresses, Douglas said. "There's a lot of checkpoints to hit, but we do feel confident that he's gonna be ready for the year." The 29-year-old is coming off an ACL tear he suffered in Week 3 of last season, so the injury update is not much of a surprise. The longtime Los Angeles Charger is expected to fill the WR2 role behind Garrett Wilson this season. Although he has durability concerns, the contested-catch specialist could do serious damage with Aaron Rodgers at the helm, making him an intriguing best ball target in 2024.