After 24 seasons, the NFL’s greatest Kicker of all time, Adam Vinatieri decided to hang up the cleats. Vinatieri’s historic career saw him become the NFL’s all-time leading scorer on his way to becoming a 4-time Super Bowl winner. And Bill Belichick spoke highly of his former All-Pro kicker.
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Adam Vinatieri spent the first 10 years with the New England Patriots. The 48-year-old and was an integral part of all 3 Super Bowl wins in 2002, 2004 and 2005 which included a 48-yard Field goal as time expired to win the Patriots first Super Bowl in franchise history.
He then moved on to play 14 years as a member of the Indianapolis Colts and was a part of the 2007 Super Bowl-winning Colts team.
Bill Belichick had high praise for Adam Vinatieri
Wednesday night, Patriots head coach Bill Belichick shared his reaction to the news.
“Adam Vinatieri is the greatest kicker of all-time who made the greatest kick of all-time in the 2001 divisional playoffs. His consistency, mental toughness and performance under pressure was legendary. I am honoured to have coached Adam, going all the way back to his rookie year in 1996. And through some of the most special moments in Patriots and league history. Adam is in the rarest of echelon of athletes whose career accomplishments may never be matched,” the head coach said.
During his storied career, Adam Vinatieri was named a Pro Bowler and an All-Pro 3 times. Nobody in NFL history has as many points (2,673), made field goals (599) or field-goal attempts (715) as Vinatieri. While he made 83.8 per cent of his career field goals and 97.3 per cent of his extra points, it was the clutch kicks that stood out the most.
Adam Vinatieri’s retirement didn’t come as a big surprise considering he played just 12 games in 2019 after which he required knee surgery and then missed the entirety of the 2020 season. But regardless of how it ended, Adam Vinatieri’s career will definitely earn him a spot in the Hall of Fame.
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