Rob Ninkovich will retire from the NFL.

Ninkovich has been considering retirement in recent seasons. He entered the NFL as a fifth-round draft choice of the New Orleans Saints in 2006. A Purdue alum, Ninkovich didn't see his NFL career take off until he joined the Patriots as a free agent on Aug. 2, 2009.

Ninkovich was credited with 423 tackles and 46 sacks with the Patriots.