MINNEAPOLIS -- After 11 seasons with the Minnesota Vikings, linebacker Chad Greenway is calling it a career.
The Vikings said Monday that Greenway will formally announce his retirement in a news conference Tuesday, finishing a run that saw the former first-round pick play his entire career with the Vikings, reach two Pro Bowls and establish himself as a fixture in the community.
Greenway, whom the Vikings selected 17th overall in 2006 with the first pick by the Wilf family and ownership group, was named to the Pro Bowl in 2011 and 2012, earning second-team All-Pro honors in 2012. He tied linebacker Scott Studwell for the most consecutive seasons leading the team in tackles, pacing the Vikings every year from 2008 to 2013.
The Mount Vernon, South Dakota, native and University of Iowa product endeared himself to the Twin Cities through his work in the community. The Vikings named Greenway their Community Man of the Year four times for his work through his Lead the Way Foundation, and the NFLPA gave Greenway the Byron "Whizzer" White Award in 2015 for his philanthropic work.
Vikings teammate Kyle Rudolph honored Greenway in a tweet Monday, saying the linebacker "defined what it means to be a professional."
#Farewell52 🐐 pic.twitter.com/zbHq8JtH0f
— Kyle Rudolph (@KyleRudolph82) March 6, 2017
Greenway, 34, re-signed with the Vikings on a one-year, $2.75 million deal last spring and said he planned to retire after 2016, but he indicated he would take some time to consider his decision after the season. He had played a part-time role the past two seasons, starting at weakside linebacker in the Vikings' base defense but coming off the field in the nickel package for the first time in his career.
Greenway had a career-low 41 combined tackles last season.
Teams schemed to take advantage of Greenway in pass coverage at times, such as when the Indianapolis Colts frequently threw out of multiple-tight-end sets in a 34-6 win Dec. 18 that effectively ended the Vikings' playoff chances. During that game, Andrew Luck found Erik Swoope for a 27-yard touchdown with Greenway trailing the tight end in coverage.
Greenway missed his rookie season because of a torn ACL. He went on to miss only four games the rest of his career, and he started 144 of his 156 career games.
Information from The Associated Press contributed to this report.