Former Badger retiring after a long and successful NFL career

Former Badger offensive lineman has officially retired from the NFL after a long and successful career. He's been elite for a very long time, playing 11 NFL seasons and starting over 150 games. Havenstein has won a Super Bowl, four NFC West Championships, and two NFC Championships. He's been a major part of the success along the offensive line for Sean McVay and the Los Angeles Rams.

He announced his time to hang up his cleats on Instagram with a long and meaningful message about his love for the game. He throws a shoutout to Wisconsin towards the end when he was thanking his parents, "Mom and Dad, from when I picked up the game freshman year at Linganore, through my time at the University of Wisconsin, and still to this day, you have supported me in every venture of life. I can't thank you enough."

Rob Havenstein is hanging up the cleats and retiring from the NFL after 11 seasons

Related: A former Badger lineman was inexplicably left off the NFL Combine invite list

Havenstein redshirted his first year at Wisconsin but immediately found his way into the starting rotation as a redshirt freshman. He became part of Wisconsin's tradition of producing big/mean offensive linemen. He was named 2nd Team All Big Ten Conference in 2013 and in 2014 he was consensus 1st Team All Big Ten and First Team All American.

Paving the way for him to be drafted in the second round of the 2015 NFL Draft by the St. Louis Rams. The loyalty that he showed at Wisconsin by never even flirting with leaving remained part of his calling card in the NFL. He stuck to the Rams through coaching changes and even a move across the country. He was part of the organization through highs and lows; Havenstein was a constant.

His coach, Sean McVay, said this about him after the retirement announcement: "Rob has helped me grow and evolve in my nine seasons as the head coach of the Rams, and I'm so grateful for the experiences we've shared together."

The Rams posted a tribute to him on social media yesterday, and it came with a ton of fanfare from both Badger fans and Rams fans. You can see that here.

Good for Rob, and good for the Rams, and good for Wisconsin. On Wisconsin!