Tedy Bruschi celebrates his fourth-quarter interception against the Eagles in Super Bowl XXXIX.

AP photo / Julie Jacobson

Beloved Patriots linebacker Tedy Bruschi will announce his retirement Monday morning during a 10:45 a.m. press conference, ending his against-all-odds career after 13 NFL seasons.

The development is not entirely unexpected – when he missed over a week’s worth of training camp with no apparent injury, it seemed possible that he was being given time to assess whether he wanted to continue his pursuit of a 14th pro season.

It is also probable that Bill Belichick informed Bruschi that he would not be in New England’s plans this season, leading to his decision to call it a career.

A third-round draft pick out of Arizona in 1996, where he became the NCAA’s all-time sacks leader as an undersized defensive end, Bruschi made his bones in New England initially as a special-teams player – his 17 tackles for that unit as a rookie was third on the club.

It took him a couple of years to earn a starting spot, but once he did, in 1999, Bruschi held onto that spot for the next 10 years.

He was the heart of New England’s defenses during their run of success this decade, from recording eight tackles and a forced fumble against the high-powered Colts in the 2004 AFC Divisional round to his interception return of a Jay Fiedler pass in 2003 to clinch the AFC East title against Miami to his interception of the Eagles’ Donovan McNabb in Super Bowl XXXIX.

But what truly endeared Bruschi to the fans was his comeback from a stroke in 2005. Just days after returning from what would be his only Pro Bowl appearance, Bruschi suffered a stroke that left him hospitalized for several days and seemed to mark a cruel end to his career. Doctors gave him the green light to return, however, and after convincing wife Heidi to give her consent as well, Bruschi rehabbed with a vengeance and was on the field against Buffalo on Oct. 30, 2005, recording 10 tackles.