New England Patriots special teams ace and icon Matthew Slater didn't explicitly say if Sunday's loss to the Buffalo Bills was his final NFL game, but he heavily implied it was when speaking moments after the game.

Slater fought back tears as he acknowledged that his playing days were likely at an end. He thanked his father, NFL Hall of Famer Jackie Slater, for being an inspiration, saying he was just trying to follow his footsteps as a player.

ā€œI've given it everything that I have,ā€ Slater said while wiping tears away. ā€œMy dad told me when I was young that if I was going play the game, there was a certain way to play it, a certain way to go about it. I tried to make him proud and represent his name the right way ā€“ because that's how he did it. That's what it's always been about for me.ā€

New England is and will likely be Slater's only home as a professional player. The Patriots drafted him in the fifth round of the 2008 NFL Draft and while he was a wide receiver at UCLA, he immediately became a special teams player in New England. Not many special teams players have a career as accomplished as Slater's, who five-time All-Pro and 10-time Pro Bowler. Slater, who is the longest-tenured Patriots player, helped the team win three Super Bowls and helped them get two others.

He was very thankful that Bill Belichick and Robert Kraft just gave him a chance 15 years ago.

ā€œThey gave a kid an opportunity that not a lot of people would've given an opportunity to,ā€ Slater said. ā€œThey give me a chance to pursue my childhood dream. I'll always be indebted to them for that. I'm just very thankful for the experience that they've given myself and my family. I can't thank them enough. It's been the experience of a lifetime.ā€

Sunday's loss to the Bills brought a pair of unusual special teams miscues by New England, and it became from the jump. Nyheim Hines returned the opening kickoff 96 yards for a touchdown to give the Bills an immediate 7-0 lead. It happened again in the second half after the Patriots took a 17-14 lead, their first of the day, when Hines returned a kick 101 yards for a touchdown to put the Bills up 21-17.

Slater said he was ā€œshellshockedā€ and took ownership of the plays.

ā€œIt's hard for us,ā€ Slater said. ā€œI've been playing this game for a long time and I've never been a part of anything like that. It was obviously very disappointing. As the captain of that unit, I believe we cost the team the game. It was very difficult.ā€

In the penultimate play of Slater's career, he was able to get one back when he pushed Taiwan Jones into the ball while it was bouncing, forcing a muff to help give the Patriots the ball back following a punt. It wasn't enough to help change the tide.

Plays like that were just one of the many things Slater enjoyed about playing football.

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ā€œI love everything about it: The competition, the brotherhood, the struggle, the ups and downs,ā€ Slater said. ā€œFor me, at heart, I'm just a kid that was following his dad's footsteps. That's been the most special thing for me, to do what the most important person in my life as a young person did. That's the biggest honor.ā€

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As Slater's press conference came to an end, safety Devin McCourty (who's the second-longest tenured Patriots player) made his way into the room and sat next to the podium. Slater was asked about the impact McCourty had on him as it was likely the safety's final game, too.

ā€œI don't have enough time to answer that,ā€ Slater said, holding back tears. ā€œHe's going to make fun of me later for being up here crying. No one I've ever played with has impacted my life more ā€“ as simple as that.ā€