Steelers CB Bryant retires

Sports Network | June 23, 2009

Pittsburgh, PA (Sports Network) - Pittsburgh Steelers cornerback Fernando Bryant announced his retirement from the NFL on Tuesday after a 10-year career.

The 32-year-old signed with the Steelers in November after being let go by New England on August 30. He appeared in two regular season games with Pittsburgh and had three tackles, but was inactive for the team's three postseason games, including the Steelers' win over Arizona in Super Bowl XLIII.

Bryant was originally selected by Jacksonville with the 26th overall pick in the 1999 NFL Draft, after earning first-team All-SEC honors as a senior at Alabama. He played five years with the Jaguars before signing with Detroit as an unrestricted free agent in 2004. He signed with the Patriots in March 2008 after four seasons with the Lions.

He started 109 of the 112 games he played during his NFL career and finished with 512 tackles, 89 defensed passes, seven interceptions, three forced fumbles and nine recovered fumbles.