Dwight Freeney to Retire After 16 NFL Seasons

SYRACUSE, N.Y. – After 16 seasons, former Syracuse defensive end Dwight Freeney is ending his professional football career in the same place he started it.

Freeney is signing a one-day contract to retire with the Indianapolis Colts, the team announced yesterday. A press conference is scheduled for 3 p.m. Monday.

A seven-time Pro Bowl selection and three-time All-Pro, Freeney spent his first 11 seasons (2002-12) with Colts. He also played for the San Diego Chargers (2013-14), Arizona Cardinals (2015), Atlanta Falcons (2016), Seattle Seahawks (2017) and Detroit Lions (2017) during his career.

One of the most feared pass rushers in the league, Freeney leaves the game tied with Baltimore's Terrell Suggs for 17th on the all-time sacks list with 125.5. He recorded 107.5 sacks during his time in Indianapolis and helped the team to a victory in Super Bowl XLI.

"He was a great player in every phase of the game," former Colts general manager Bill Polian told ESPN.com. "He was known as a great sacker, but he could play the pass and the run as well. Terrific run player. He gave you everything you had every week. And what made him even more special is that he did it while knowing teams were aiming to try to slow him down every week."

Freeney made an instant impact for the Colts after Polian selected him with the 11th overall pick in 2002. Freeney recorded 13 sacks as rookie, the first of four straight seasons with at least 11 quarterback takedowns. In 2004, he led the NFL with 16 sacks. The next season, Freeney totaled 11 more sacks and six forced fumbles on his way to AFC Defensive Player of the Year honors.

In 2006, Freeney helped the franchise capture its second Super Bowl title, beating the Chicago Bears 29-17 in Super Bowl XLI. He appeared in two more Super Bowls during his career, one with the Colts after the 2009 season, and another with the Atlanta Falcons.

At Syracuse, Freeney was just as dominant as he was in the pros. The Bloomfield, Conn. native racked up 34 career sacks from 1998-2001 and set the Orange single-game record by sacking Virginia Tech's Michael Vick 4.5 times in 2000.

As a senior in 2001, Freeney turned in one of the finest campaigns by a defensive player in program history. He led the nation with a school-record 17.5 sacks. He also forced eight fumbles. For his efforts, Freeney was named a consensus All-American and the BIG EAST co-Defensive Player of the Year. He was also a finalist for the Lombardi, Nagurski and Bednarik Awards.

Of the 17 players ahead of or tied with Freeney on the NFL career sacks list, 11 have been inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Four others are either still playing or not yet eligible.

Freeney would become eligible for in 2023.

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