New England Patriots legend Adam Vinatieri finally called it a career on Wednesday after a total of 24 years in the NFL. The first 10 seasons came with the Pats, where he won three Super Bowls with Tom Brady between 2000 and 2005.
Brady, who just won another one last season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, took to Instagram to share a tribute to his former teammate, who will arguably go down as one of the best kickers of all time and the finest one to ever put on a Patriots jersey.
Brady definitely has a point. Adam Vinatieri hit numerous clutch FG’s early in his career with the Patriots. After leaving New England, Vinatieri spent the last 14 years playing for the Indianapolis Colts.
Vinatieri played 365 games in total and converted 83.8% of his Field Goal attempts and an impressive 97.3% of his extra-point tries. Adam Vinatieri also holds NFL records for the most made FGs and career points.
Greatness recognizes greatness. Tom Brady will quite possibly go down as the greatest to ever do it at the quarterback position, while we may never see a kicker with such a thunder foot like his former Patriots teammate.
There aren’t many kickers in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, but it sure feels like Adam Vinatieri should be inducted when it’s time. If so, he would become only the third one ever, joining Jan Stenerud and Morten Andersen.