The Star Tribune reported that right tackle Phil Loadholt plans to retire from the NFL.
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Andre Smith, signed as a free agent in the offseason, will work with the first team when the Vikings report to Mankato to begin training camp this week.
He last played for the Vikings in 2014, starting 11 games. Loadholt, 30, missed the entire 2015 season due to a torn Achilles tendon, which he suffered during the second preseason game.
“When you think of the Vikings you think of players like Phil Loadholt”. Then he experienced another setback this spring, prompting him to make the decision to retire. His 89 career regular-season starts are ninth in Vikings history for an offensive tackle.
Prior to his past two injury-plagued seasons, Loadholt missed just two games in five seasons. He immediately won the right tackle job as a rookie, and from 2009 to 2013 started 78 of 80 possible games at the position.
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Loadholt has also been a respected voice in the Vikings locker room and a strong representative of the organization in the community.
