Ed Reed officially retiring from NFL with Baltimore Ravens

Ed Reed is officially retiring from the NFL on Thursday afternoon.

He hasn’t played since 2013 but veteran safety, Ed Reed is officially announcing his retirement from the NFL at a 2 p.m. ET press conference with the Baltimore Ravens. You can watch the live stream of his retirement press conference here.

Reed was a mainstay in the Ravens secondary for 12 seasons after they used the No. 24 pick in the 2002 NFL Draft on the safety out of Miami and made nine Pro Bowls and five first-team All-Pro teams during his tenure with the club.

His final game in a Ravens uniform came in Super Bowl XLVII and even had an interception in the game before playing one final year that saw him play seven games with the Houston Texans and seven games with the New York Jets, but he always was a Raven and will go into the Pro Football Hall of Fame as such.

Reed teamed with Ray Lewis to form perhaps the greatest safety-linebacker duo in NFL history and if not for Lewis, who also played his final game in a Ravens uniform in that Super Bowl, he would be the team’s best player in franchise history. But there’s no shame in being second best to Lewis, a fellow Miami Hurricane.

The 5-11, 200-pound Reed was a ball hawk in the middle of the secondary and made quarterbacks always find his No. 20 in the center of the field so they could do their best to avoid the center fielder, but that was easier said than done. Reed’s speed, athleticism and rare instincts made him the premier free safety of his generation and a no-brainer pick as a first ball of Hall of Famer.

In his 12-year career, Reed had 64 career interceptions (61 with the Ravens) and led the NFL in interceptions three separate times, including twice when he had a career-high nine interceptions.

And when he picked you off, the play wasn’t over because his playmaking ability made him a dangerous threat to return it for a touchdown. Reed did just that seven times in his career, including one return of 106 yards and another of 107 yards that was previously the longest play in NFL history.

As great as he was as a safety, his play on special teams was just as remarkable. He had a penchant for blocking kicks at Miami and that followed him to Baltimore where he blocked four punts and ran three of them back for a touchdown, tying an NFL record.

Breaking records was a habit of his as he is the only player in NFL history to score on a punt return, blocked punt, interception and fumble recovery and his nine playoff interceptions are tied for the most in league history.