After 11 seasons in the CFL, Darian Durant has decided to hang up his cleats.

Durant, 35, announced his retirement from football Friday on his wesbsite. He finishes his career a two-time Grey Cup champion with the Saskatchewan Roughriders and a two-time West All-Star.

He spent last season with the Montreal Alouettes after 10 seasons with Roughriders to start his career. He was signed to a one-year deal by the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in January, but never played for the team.

"To CFL, my former teammates, coaches, and to all the guys I’ve battled against over the past 12 years: I just want to say thank you," Durant wrote in a statement. "Thank you for helping me develop into the man I am today. So many life lessons have been learnt throughout this football journey. With that being said, I have decided to retire from football.

"I have some opportunities away from the field that will allow me to transition smoothly into the next stage of my life.  I also became a father earlier this year and I being able to see my daughter grow up day-by-day has played a big part in this decision."

The Blue Bombers said Friday they found out about Durant's decision on his website.

"We were informed prior to the start of our mini-camp that Darian Durant, along with his family, was reconsidering continuing his career," general manager Kyle Walters said in a statement. "Given the magnitude of this decision, we asked him to take the time to thoroughly consider his options and inform us of his decision.

"Ultimately, Darian has not informed the team of his decision, but we were notified through social media this morning that he has decided to retire from professional football. While we respect his decision, we are of course are extremely disappointed. Until recently, Darian had given us every indication that he was accepting of his role as a backup and prepared to help our offense in any capacity possible. We recognize this has been a challenging and difficult process for Darian, and the uncertainty has been challenging from our perspective as well. We will move forward with the quarterbacks we currently have on our roster."

According to Jeff Hamilton of the Winnipeg Free Press, the Blue Bombers asked Durant to return his $70,000 signing bonus to the team, but he has said no.

Durant threw for 3,233 yards and 15 touchdowns to 16 interceptions in 15 games in Montreal last season, adding another 182 yards and one touchdown on the ground.

On Friday, he expressed his love for Saskatchewan and the Roughriders.

"If you cut me open, I am sure that I would bleed green. Saskatchewan and Regina will always be home," Durant wrote. "I always strived to be a Rider legend, and I am honoured to be spoken of in the company of George, Ron, Roger & Gene!   I named my daughter Amayah Taylor, after Taylor Field. It meant so much to me to be able to play in the last game at “old” Mosaic Stadium. It’s also very fitting to me that I played the last game of career in Regina last fall, and was able to see and hear the fans one last time from the playing field. I look forward to one day showing my family around Regina, and showing my daughter where her father won a championship in front of Ridernation on 'Taylor' Field."

For his career, the North Carolina product has 31,740 passing yards and 167 touchdowns to 115 interceptions, with another 3,104 yards and 24 touchdowns on the ground.