Adios To The Other GOAT-Adam Vinatieri-Who Also Should Have Been A Patriot For His Whole Career

 

    I am old enough to remember when the Patriots once employed the greatest player in NFL history at his respective position. Yes of course I could be talking about Tom Brady but in this case, I'm referring to Adam Vinatieri who kind of announced his retirement from the NFL this afternoon on the Pat McAfee Show. There have been plenty of great kickers in the NFL but I am pretty certain that nobody will ever have a resume that matches a guy from South Dakota State that went undrafted and once played in NFL Europe before catching on with the Pats. He won four Super Bowls (3 with New England and 1 with Indianapolis that we won't talk about), was a three-time All-Pro and a three-time Pro Bowler.

    Much like Brady, Vinatieri's longevity and durability-granted kicker isn't the most physically demanding position in football-are legendary. He didn't play in 2020, but even so he played in 24 seasons in the NFL which is insane. He was 47 years old in 2019 when he last appeared in 12 games for the Colts. He also made kicking a little cooler which is hard to do for such a specialized role that is usually so isolated from teammates except for the long snapper and holder. He was tough (check YouTube for his tackle of Herschel Walker on a kickoff in Adam's rookie season) and he could throw the ball on the rare trick play (like the sweet touchdown pass that he threw to Troy Brown in 2004). 

    His records are endless: he's the NFL's all-time leading scorer (2673 points), he made the most field goals (599), had the most postseason points (238) and hit the most overtime field goals (12). More than anything though, he was incredibly clutch. His kicks in the blizzard against the Raiders in the 2001 playoffs are some of the greatest plays in any sport that I've ever seen. He had last second game-winning field goals in New England's Super Bowl upset over St. Louis that season followed by two years later, he did basically the same thing in another Super Bowl victory this time against Carolina. Finally, he capped his Patriots career with a field goal and three extra points in their Super Bowl 39 win vs. Philadelphia. All three of those Super Bowls were three-point wins by the Pats which was not a coincidence. 

    After playing for 10 seasons in New England, Patriots head coach Bill Belichick thought it was time to go with a younger kicker (that sounds loosely familiar) so they drafted Stephen Gostkowski (a fine kicker in his own right who also won 3 Super Bowls with the Pats but no Vinatieri). Adam left in free agency for the Colts where he would play for 14 seasons. In his first season in Indianapolis, they won their lone title under Peyton Manning as they beat the Bears in the Super Bowl (he had 3 field goals and 1 extra point) in the 12-point win. Through it all, Vinatieri never showed any ego and appeared to be the nicest guy in pro sports. He is a lock of the century to reach the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2025-the first year that he's eligible to go in. Not bad for a quiet guy from South Dakota.

The Pats Continue To Shuffle Their Roster As They Release Longtime Kicker Stephen Gostkowski

As our daily lives get stranger by the day due to the coronavirus epidemic, the Patriots are doing their best to become a completely different looking team when (fingers and toes crossed) they have a season this fall. Today, they released kicker Stephen Gostkowski-the franchise's all-time leading scorer-who was the longest-tenured Patriot for a few days since Tom Brady officially signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (puke) on Friday. Now, special teams ace Matthew Slater fittingly has been here longer (2008) than any other player. if you connect the dots, Gostkowski's oft-criticized career here will almost certainly echo whomever has the unenviable task of following Brady's once-in-a-lifetime career arc. Your move, Jarrett Stidham.

Pats fan or not, I think that we can all agree that Adam Vinatieri (much like Brady for quarterbacks) is the greatest in NFL history at his position. Way back in 2006, Bill Belichick thought that it was time to move on from Vinatieri so off he went to Indianapolis (where technically he still plays). After winning another Super Bowl-his fourth-and adding to his unparalleled legacy of clutch field goals, it's safe to say that is one of the most notable whiffs that Belichick has made roster-wise in his life. Think about it though, when he was drafted in the fourth round in 2006 (118th overall), Gostkowski was walking into an impossible situation. No matter what, he'd never live up to Vinatieri who had been at the forefront (which is ultra rare for a kicker-the red-haired stepchild of NFL positions) of New England's first three championships.

It's not Gostkowski's fault that while he was in Foxborough, the team became a juggernaut year after year so they weren't in nearly as many tight games, even in the playoffs. By extension, this also meant that he did not make too many notable (ie. game-winning) field goals because who remembers three points when the Patriots were winning by double-digits? The record shows that New England won three more Super Bowls while Gostkowski was here, he went to four Pro Bowls and was named an All-Pro (the highest individual honor) twice. Would having Vinatieri have bought the Pats another title? Probably, you have to think that they could have won at least one of the three (two losses vs. the Giants and another vs. Eagles) since they were all decided by one score (eight points).

I'm not claiming to be the biggest Gostkowski fan and I will admit that particularly over the last few years when he got extra shaky since the league moved PATs back to 33 yards and it was no longer an automatic point, I had lost confidence in him. Like most moves with the Patriots, this was a cost-saving move since he was quite overpaid at this juncture in his career and he's 36 years old coming off a season-ending hip injury so he figures to only have a few decent seasons left at best. However, let's remember what a clownshow it was after he went down as Belichick cycled through three more kickers (Ryan Nugent, Kai Forbath and Nick Folk) before finally finding one to somewhat depend on. At best, New England's ceiling next season is most likely nine or ten wins tops. That means that the kicking game will take on more importance than it has in years since their offense is going to be weak, they'll struggle to score overall, they are sure to be in many close games and playing from behind more than they've been used to.

Gostkowski was a pro and never complained that he was put in such a tough spot from Day 1. You never called him the top kicker in the NFL but he had a great run where he was unquestionably one of the best. We can only hope that Stidham or whatever lucky guy is the long-term solution to "replace" Brady has as much success as Gostkowski did in New England. If we take a realistic look at the totality of Gostkowski's career as a Patriot, we can fully understand how difficult it is to replace a legend and now magnify that times a thousand since a quarterback has way more of a say in almost every final result than a kicker. Ugh, so how is your self-quarantining and social distancing otherwise going?

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What a Turnaround: Pats are the Best Team in the AFC & Maybe the NFL After Pounding Colts 42-20 on Sunday Night Football

Jonas Gray. Who knows where he'll be in a few years but for one night at least, he was the talk of the NFL after an insane performance on Sunday Night Football. In only his fourth career game, he had 38 carries for 199 yards and four touchdowns (setting a new team record) as New England (8-2 overall, 3-2 road) absolutely destroyed Indianapolis (6-4 overall, 3-2 home) 42-20 at Lucas Oil Stadium. The Patriots' sixth win in a row put them firmly in control of the AFC (and two games ahead of the Dolphins in the AFC East) after the Broncos surprisingly fell in St. Louis 22-7 earlier today.

There are many ways to view this victory but for my (lack of) money, the real story for New England is that they can now win on the road against a good (but not great) team even when Tom Brady (19 of 30 for 257 yards, 2 TDs, 2 INTs) is average at best. The Patriots' defense won't put up incredible numbers but the bottom line is that they are getting the job done. Andrew Luck (23 of 39 for 303 yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT) does everything for the Colts so when he's off, like he was tonight, they are going nowhere fast. Did I mention that Indy's defense is an utter disaster?

The first half was misleading in the sense that the Patriots dominated but yet they were only up by four points (14-10). On their opening drive (11 plays, 89 yards, 4:14), Gray finished it with a 4-yard touchdown run. Indianapolis put together a good drive but they got stopped in the red zone and had to settle for a 31-yard field goal by the incomparable Adam Vinatieri.

Both of Brady's ugly interceptions came in the first half but the Patriots still managed to go up 14-3 late in the second quarter on Gray's 2-yard touchdown run. The second pick (both by Mike Adams) happened when Brady apparently audibled on a 3rd and 1 play and was forced to throw the ball up for grabs Eli Manning-style. The Colts took advantage to cash in a 10-yard touchdown catch by Hakeem Nicks (remember him?) to cut it to 14-10.

New England had 501 total yards and 33 first downs so when they received the opening kickoff of the second half, they went right back to work. That goal-line machine Tim Wright caught a 2-yard touchdown from Brady after another long drive (8 plays, 80 yards, 3:50). Vinatieri rescued Indy on the next stalled drive with a 53-yard kick (that would have been good from 63) but Gray's 2-yard touchdown run late in the third quarter put the Pats up two touchdowns (28-13).

The Colts cut it to 28-20 on a clever 1-yard touchdown pass to former BC offensive lineman Anthony Costanzo. Gray answered with his last score, a 1-yard touchdown, then Rob Gronkowski (4 catches, 71 yards) took time away from his unstoppable run blocking to catch a 26-yard touchdown where he basically broke Indy's will. Seriously, what an incredible catch and run complete with the dive into the end zone through two guys. If you didn't know before, now it's official: the real Gronk is back and more dangerous than ever.

It didn't help Indianapolis when Dwayne Allen or Ahmad Bradshaw went down with injuries and never returned. Only Coby Fleener (7 catches, 144 yards) really showed up for them. Reggie Wayne (5 catches, 91 yards) got most of his yardage on a one busted coverage that resulted in a 46-yard catch while T.Y. Hilton (3 catches, 24 yards) was completely shut down by a combination of Kyle Arrington and Darrelle Revis. Speaking of Revis, he helped Devin McCourty secure an interception by tipping the ball up the air. Jamie Collins (8 tackles, 5 solo, 2 tackles for loss) and Rob Ninkovich (5 tackles, 4 solo, 1 sack) were also stellar as they helped hold the Colts to 19 rushing yards on 17 carries, haha how is that possible?

New England returns to Gillette Stadium next Sunday (1, Fox) as they host the Lions (7-3, 1st in NFC North) who lost 14-6 this afternoon at Arizona. The Patriots are 6-0 at home this season and the way things are rolling, it's hard to see Detroit winning that game because they typically are mediocre outside of Ford Field.

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Blowing Out Indy Comes At A Huge Cost: Gronkowski Breaks Forearm, Expected Out 4-6 Weeks

A few measly hours, that's all the time Patriots fans got to bask in the glow of a resounding 59-24 blowout victory against the Colts this afternoon at Gillette Stadium. 59 points ties a Patriots team record set in 2009 vs. Tennessee (that crazy snow game).

Reality came calling way too soon as we all (7-3, 4-1 home) found out that Rob Gronkowski (7 catches, 137 yards, 2 TDs) broke his forearm and is expected to miss somewhere in the 4-6 weeks range. The worst part (well besides the injury) is that it happened in garbage time, on the final extra point with 3:55 left in the fourth quarter. Rightfully, that opens up Patriots head coach Bill Belichick to a deserved cacophony of criticism asking why the best tight end in the NFL was still out there. Ugh!

Before I go to sleep depressed, let's remember that this was a very nice win. Indianapolis (6-4, 2-3 away) might have beaten up on some bad teams and taken advantage of a weak schedule but they are a good squad. Also, let's hold off the NFL Hall of Fame induction for Colts rookie quarterback Andrew Luck (27 of 50, 334 yards, 2 TDs, 3 INTs). After getting touchdowns on their first two drives of the game, Indy was outscored 52-10 the rest of the way. He looked rattled and made a couple terrible decisions/throws. What's more, he easily could have had a few more interceptions.

The Patriots scored touchdowns thanks to all three phases: offense, defense and special teams. Cornerback Aqib Talib's (7 tackles, 5 solo) debut for New England included a 59-yard interception return for a touchdown. Rookie Alfonzo Dennard (4 tackles) topped that with an 87-yard interception return for a score. Julian Edelman had the best game of anyone (and his anonymous career) since he scored on a 68-yard punt return, caught a 2-yard touchdown and also had an end around for 47 yards. Incredible.

Tom Brady (24 of 35, 331 yards, 3 TDs, 0 INTs) has put himself right in the thick of the MVP discussion (assuming people talk about that in mid-November) with another excellent performance. Wes Welker added seven catches for 80 yards.

Four turnovers by Indianapolis were way too much to overcome, especially since New England took care of the ball and never coughed it up. Rookie wide receiver T.Y. Hilton had six catches for 100 yards and two TDs while Reggie Wayne notched seven catches for 72 yards. Patriots icon Adam Vinatieri (47-yard field goal, 3 PATs) was repeatedly booed by the brain dead crowd at Gillette, those people can't be serious. Who does that to him?

Rob Ninkovich had a very solid game with eight tackles (four assists), a sack, two tackles for losses and two quarterback hits along with a forced fumble that he recovered. Stevan Ridley (3-yard) and Shane Vereen (4-yard) had touchdown runs in the fourth quarter when it spun way out of control for the Colts.

He didn't play today but Aaron Hernandez is expected back on Thursday night (8:30 p.m., NBC) as the Patriots visit the Jets (4-6) at MetLife Stadium. New York won 27-13 this afternoon in St. Louis and you'll remember that they choked against New England on October 21 in a game the Pats ended up winning 29-26 in overtime.

Ironically, that gift has propelled to New England to their current four-game win streak. The Jets are not a good team and they won't go to the playoffs this season but they usually play the Patriots tough and anything can happen in a short week, especially against a divisional rival and without one of your best players.

UPDATE 11/19: Deion Branch cleared waivers so he's a free agent. The Patriots signed wide receiver Kamar Aiken to the practice squad, he's previously been on the Bills and Bears after entering the NFL as a rookie free agent in 2011.

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Hated Villain Adam Vinatieri Returns to Foxborough, Gets Booed. Wait What?

There are plenty of things to talk about after the Patriots defeated Dan Orlovsky's Colts yesterday, but the one thing that is going to stay with me for a while is the home crowd's treatment of one of the greatest players to ever don a Patriots uniform, Indy kicker Adam Vinatieri.

In the first quarter of a meaningless game, Vinatieri was lustily booed when attempting a field goal. Needless to say, I was angry, embarrassed, but not at all surprised. Gillette Stadium has sucked for the last few seasons, as the expectations for the Patriots has risen. We have all heard the stories.

Overpriced parking, endless traffic, silence when the Patriots are on defense, being told to sit down, the lack of fights, walking past a Victoria's Secret to get into the stadium. We can go on and on about all the reasons why this stadium blows. But yesterday takes the cake.

Booing Vinatieri for going to the Colts is beyond asinine, classless and unbelievably out of touch. The guy was a Patriot from the start and gave everything to this franchise, including several of the most clutch kicks in NFL history (not to mention three Super Bowls). Maybe it was the mix of the fans in the stands yesterday, as it was clearly one of those games where season ticket-holders sell their tickets. That doesn't excuse the behavior however.

The natural comparison to make is when Johnny Damon was booed at Fenway during his first game as a Yankee. While similar in nature, Vinatieri was clearly more of a true Patriot than Damon was a true Red Sox. What could you be mad about? The fact that he left for a monster pay raise or the fact that Vinatieri went to the Colts?

Either way, for a town that prides itself on its passion and knowledge of their sports, yesterday was a black eye on the Patriots fan base. This wasn't Dennis Wideman coming back to the Garden. This was a future NFL Hall of Famer who had as big a role as anyone in building this dynasty.

And Patriot Place, Pink Hat Patriots fans, Davio's and Toby Keith's bar wouldn't be there without Vinatieri, if that changes your mind at all you assholes.

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We All Witnessed The Most Misleading One-Score Game In NFL History Today

Since simply watching today's Patriots-Colts game was the NFL equivalent of staring into the sun for almost three hours, I'll keep this briefer than usual.

We knew this wouldn't be a game and despite the final score: Patriots 31, Colts 24 at Gillette Stadium, don't think for a second that the outcome was ever in doubt.

New England (9-3) built up a 31-3 lead in the third quarter and then they shifted to cruise control in the fourth as Indianapolis (0-12) pretended to care.

The Pats picked up their fourth straight win thanks to Tom Brady (29 of 38, 289 yards, 2 TD, O INT) and Rob Gronkowski (5 catches, 64 yards, 2 TDs; 1 rush, 2 yards, 1 TD).

It might be December but this game had preseason written all over it. Don't believe me, well explain how Colts quarterback Dan Orlovsky (30 of 37, 353 yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT) piled up the yardage? This is the same former UConn star (haha) who has yet to win an NFL game.

Also, after Vince Wilfork (10 tackles, 5 solo, sack) who had his best statistical performance of the season, the Patriots next three highest tacklers were Nate Jones (9 total), Matthew Slater (7 total, 6 solo, forced fumble) and Niko Koutouvides (7 total, 3 solo). Those three bums actually started today, at safety, safety and linebacker respectively. Oh and something named Nick McDonald (moved up from the practice squad on Saturday) became the fourth player to start at center this season for the Pats. Fake life indeed.

Basically all that mattered for New England was that nobody important got hurt. Well mission accomplished even though Brady and Co. were out there until the last series of the game after the Pats recovered an onside kick to end it.

Wes Welker (11 catches, 110 yards) had a big game as apparently the Colts have yet to figure out that he's the key to New England's offense. Pierre Garcon (9 catches, 150 yards, 2 TDs) made the four people that stuck with him in Fantasy Football happy as he racked up two garbage time touchdowns.

I'll quickly run through the highlights since after writing this, I will undergo a "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" type procedure to rid this mindless contest out of my memory bank.

CBS sent one of its better announcing duos in Marv Albert and Rich Gannon to this drivel so you know they had to do the old sell job as the Pats got off to a slow start and only led 3-0 (Stephen Gostkowski hit a 39-yard kick) after the first quarter.

We were treated to some wonderful Orlovsky anecdotes: multiple references to him being from beautiful Shelton, CT and the fact that all his friends are Patriots fans (lol). Oh and his wife is expecting triplets, how fascinating.

As soon as Marv made a not so subtle reference to the 20-point spread, Bill Belichick's spider sense went into full gear and the Patriots woke up. Former Patriots legend Adam Vinatieri tied it with a 31-yard field goal early in the second quarter after the Colts failed to score a TD with first and goal from the 1. Shoot me now.

The worst part of the entire day was that so called Patriots fans booed Vinatieri. I wouldn't have believed it but I heard it with my own ears. Just a pathetic and completely misplaced reaction by a bunch of Pats pink hats. I give up.

Gronk caught his first TD of the game in the second quarter, making it 10-3 Patriots. It was an 11-yard catch from Brady. BenJarvus Green-Ellis added a 1-yard run with 13 seconds left in the half, the first time in NFL history a 14-point lead (in the second quarter) automatically signaled defeat.

Gronk added a 21-yard touchdown grab in the third quarter and at first, it appeared that he broke the NFL tight end record for touchdowns in a season with a two-yard catch later in the third. Unfortunately, since it was a lateral it went down as a rush. No biggie, I'm sure he'll get No. 14 next week (this was his fifth consecutive game with a TD). He broke Antonio Gates and Vernon Davis' record and frankly, he could come close to 20 which is absurd in his second pro season.

Another UConn product, Donald Brown, got the Colts' ill-fated comeback started with a 10-yard touchdown run. Garcon went to work with a 33-yard touchdown and a 12-yard touchdown. Too bad, it didn't mean one thing (other than killing gamblers hopes).

The only other notable play from the game was a nice diving interception by Jerod Mayo. It was the first of his career believe it or not, a sign that he might finally be healthy from that pesky knee injury that has slowed his development.

New England faces another tomato can next week as they travel to Washington (4-8) on Sunday to take on the Redskins, who lost 34-19 to the Jets today. It's clear that other than at the Broncos in two weeks the Patriots won't be pushed during the rest of the regular season. Unless you consider the typical good effort but poor result that will inevitably happen to Miami on Christmas Eve when they visit Foxborough.

The next two games are New England's final two road games of the regular season (last two are at home) and possibly the rest of the year if they secure the top spot in the AFC. Expect the game with the Broncos to be flexed tomorrow to a Sunday Night game (for now it's 4:15 p.m.). The world needs Brady vs. Tim Tebow in primetime.

New England is still tied with Houston, Baltimore and Pittsburgh for the top spot in the AFC but the Pats currently own the tiebreaker (7-2 vs. AFC opponents).

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Mental mistakes by players and coaches cost Patriots a win

With the Indianapolis Colts fighting for their playoff lives (in Week 9), the New England Patriots let them off the hook and let Indy walk away with an 18-15 win last night at Lucas Oil Field.

Down by three (18-15) and driving late in the fourth quarter, the Pats (5-3) made a costly mistake. Tight end David Thomas committed a stupid personal foul penalty which moved his team back 15 yards (and out of field goal range). After failing to make any headway on third down, New England made a curious move by going for it on fourth-and-16. The Colts (4-4) blitzed, hit quarterback Matt Cassel (25 of 34, 204 yards; 20 yards rushing), who threw up a duck that was intercepted.

The Patriots got the ball back with 20 seconds left but with no timeouts and deep in their own territory, the win was virtually impossible. The fact that the Pats didn't have any timeouts remaining was another fatal error. In the third quarter, Bill Belichick had challenged that the Colts had 12 men on defense. It failed and the Pats lost a key timeout.

While we're on the subject of plays that would have changed the game in New England's favor, receiver Jabar Gaffney was wide open and would have had a sure touchdown in the third quarter but he dropped the ball.

It was that kind of night for New England. This is the type of game that we've grown accustomed to seeing them win over the last seven years but not anymore. Not with so many injuries to our running backs (LaMont Jordan and Sammy Morris were both out again) and our secondary.

Peyton Manning (21 of 29, 254 yards, 2 touchdowns) wasn't as great as his numbers would make you believe. Maybe, I'm just jealous because I know anybody could tear apart the Patriots' cornerbacks.

Anthony Gonzalez (4 catches, 55 yards) began the scoring with a 12-yard TD catch in the first quarter.

Two Stephen Gostowski field goals (29 yards and 35 yards) in the second quarter cut the Colts' lead to 7-6. Clearly, the Patriots wanted to play keepaway from the Colts offense. This made for a fast-moving game, that was dominated by long drives for both sides.

BenJarvus Green-Ellis (15 carries, 57 yards; 1 catch, 8 yards) scored from six yards out, to put New England up 12-7 in the third. Kevin Faulk (10 carries for 60 yards; 5 catches, 38 yards) tried to run the two-point conversion in but he was stuffed right before crossing the goalline.

Gonzalez caught the other TD pass from Manning, this one from nine yards away to put Indy up 13-12. The Colts went for two and were successful as Reggie Wayne (5 catches, 65 yards) caught the ball between two defenders and held on despite a big hit by Pats cornerback/safety Brandon Meriweather.

Gostowski added another 25-yard kick to tie it at 15 early in the fourth but the Pats could have had more. They had fourth-and-short inside the Colts 10-yard line when Cassel snuck for the first down. Unfortunately, Belichick had called timeout before the play started.

In a game so influenced by kickers, good ol' Adam Vinatieri somehow hit a kick from 52-yards to give the Colts the lead for good. Mr. Clutch has never been known for his big leg but it figures that he would step as usual.

Randy Moss had six catches for 65 yards and Wes Welker had seven catches for 37 yards.

The Patriots will have to turn the page quickly as they have three supremely important AFC East games coming up in a row. If New England could have pulled out a win last night, they would have held a one-game lead on the Bills (5-3) and Jets (5-3). As it stands now, the Patriots, Jets and Bills are in a three-way tie. The Bills come to Gillette Stadium next Sunday afternoon (in a game I will be attending) and then the Jets come to town on the following Thursday night.

The division is much improved as even the Dolphins (4-4) are playing consistent ball. It would have been beautiful to put Peyton and the Colts out of the playoffs last night but failure to execute killed the Patriots.