Tag: Adam Vinatieri

Four Patriots legends named as Hall of Fame semifinalists

Four former Patriots players made the list of 25 semifinalists for the Pro Football Hall of Fame

Four New England Patriots legends have made it to the semifinal round for the Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2025.

Safety Rodney Harrison, kicker Adam Vinatieri, defensive tackle Vince Wilfork and running back Fred Taylor have all made it to the next round

Harrison was one of the most dominant safeties in the Patriots’ franchise history. He recorded 446 tackles and nine sacks throughout six seasons with New England. He had 125 tackles in his first year with the team in 2003. He followed that up with 141 tackles in 2004.

Vinatieri, who played in the league for 24 years, was one of the greatest kickers in NFL history. He played in 160 games with the Patriots and made 263-of-321 field goals. He also made 367-of-374 extra points.

The game-winning kicks in Super Bowl XXXVI and XXXVIII cemented him as both an NFL and Patriots legend.

Wilfork was a staple of the Patriots’ defensive line for many seasons. He was a playmaker on the interior and amassed 517 tackles and 16 sacks in 11 years with the team. He made the Pro Bowl five times as a member of the organization and was a fan favorite.

Taylor was a part of Patriots history as well. He joined the team for two seasons in 2009-2010. He carried the ball 106 times for 424 yards and four touchdowns during his run in New England.

However, the Florida legend is best known for his time with the Jacksonville Jaguars. He had 11,271 rushing yards and 62 touchdowns in his 11-year run in Jacksonville.

The next step in the Hall of Fame process will be cutting the list of 25 semifinalists down to 15 finalists. We’ll see how many, if any, Patriots players make the cut this time around.

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Adam Vinatieri among 2025 first-year eligible Hall of Fame candidates

Adam Vinatieri is Hall of Fame eligible in 2025.

The Indianapolis Colts will have a former player enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame as a part of the Class of 2024, and several prominent names will headline the Class of 2025.

While former defensive end Dwight Freeney will receive his gold jacket in August during the ceremony in Canton, there are a few notable names on the ballot for the Class of 2025, including a first-year eligible player who has a strong shot to get in at some point.

Wide receiver Reggie Wayne (five-time finalist) and defensive end Robert Mathis (three-time semifinalist) will be looking to further their campaign to get into Canton.

Meanwhile, kicker Adam Vinatieri is among the headlining names on the ballot for the first time in 2025.

Whether Vinatieri is a first-ballot Hall of Famer is up for debate, and it will be a massive topic of discussion when the time comes. His credentials, though, will eventually earn him a gold jacket.

A 24-year veteran, Vinatieri was one of the greatest kickers in NFL history. His 599 field goals made and 715 field goals attempted are the most in NFL history. He also ranks second in extra points made (874) and extra points attempted (898), trailing only Hall of Famer George Blanda.

Vinatieri also holds the NFL record for most points scored in a career during the regular season (2,673) and the playoffs (238). He also holds the record for most career field goals made (56) and field goals attempted (59) in the playoffs.

A split career between the New England Patriots (1996-2005) and the Colts (2006-2019), Vinatieri was a three-time All-Pro First-Team and Pro Bowl selection (2002, 2004, 2014).

It will be interesting to see how close Vinatieri gets in his first year on the ballot, but he certainly will get in eventually.

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Brockton High names former Patriots TE Jermaine Wiggins head coach

Former New England Patriots tight end Jermaine Wiggins has been named the head football coach at Brockton High (Mass.).

Former New England Patriots tight end Jermaine Wiggins has been named the head football coach at Brockton High (Mass.).

Wiggins offers experience at the game’s highest level as well as an East Boston background.

Here’s what Wiggins had to say about the hiring, per WCVB.

“For me, it was simple. I grew up in East Boston and a lot of these kids out here — even though it’s a different element — look like me, sound like me and I want to try to give back and help them… Let them know that there’s more to the community that they’re just seeing and there’s an opportunity to accomplish the goals that they have.”

Wiggins #85 of the New England Patriots runs against the Oakland Raiders during the AFC playoff game at Foxboro Stadium in Foxboro, Massachusetts, in 2002. The Patriots came from behind to win 16-13 in overtime. (Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

After splitting his college career between Marshall and Georgia, Wiggins went undrafted and got his start with the Patriots. He couldn’t have come at a better time. Wiggins was part of their 2001 championship team – the first of six rings Tom Brady won in New England. For his part, Wiggins caught 14 passes and four touchdowns during the regular season. He also made a clutch catch against the Rams in the Super Bowl, setting up Adam Vinatieri’s famous game-winning field goal.

Wiggins went on to play a total of 107 games in the NFL, the last of them coming in 2006 with the Minnesota Vikings. He’ll be inheriting a good squad. Brockton’s varsity team went 9-2 last season.

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Patriots’ history with the franchise tag under Bill Belichick

Here’s a look at the Patriots’ franchise tag history under Bill Belichick.

New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick rarely leans on the franchise tag in present-day negotiations with pending free agents. There was a time when he used it frequently as a negotiating tactic, but in the last eight years, only one player has been franchise tagged by the Patriots.

That run of not tagging players will likely continue in 2023 with wide receiver Jakobi Meyers and cornerback Jonathan Jones being the only legitimate tag candidates on the roster.

That isn’t to suggest both players don’t deserve pay raises. But it’s hard envisioning Belichick and the Patriots footing the bill for a rising price tag at positions they can address through free agency and the draft.

Still, for fun, let’s take a look at all of the Patriots players that have been franchise tagged over the years by Belichick.

Former Patriots K Adam Vinatieri’s son commits to Ball State

Adam Vinatieri’s son has found a place to continue his college football career

A.J. Vinatieri has decided where he will continue his collegiate football career. The son of New England Patriots kicker Adam Vinatieri announced that he will play for Ball State in 2022.

The younger Vinatieri de-committed from UMass on July 1. The kicker and punter has a good chance at early playing time for Ball State. The Cardinals lost a good portion of their special teams unit following the 2021 season. Their kicker was a redshirt senior, while the punter committed to Minnesota following the 2021 season.

He was a three-star kicker as a recruit, and kicked a game-winning field goal for Zionsville High School last season, giving them a regional championship. It wouldn’t be a stretch to say that clutch genes run in the family.

Now, he will get a chance to follow in his father’s footsteps, and make a name for himself with a real shot at playing time.

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Colts stockpile talent in ESPN’s 7-round mock draft

Here’s a look at the 7-round mock draft for the Colts from ESPN.

The 2022 NFL draft is just around the corner and analysts across the league are putting in work trying to figure out which players are the best fits for every team in the NFL.

The Indianapolis Colts have made it clear what types of players they like at certain positions. Whether it comes down to a certain physical build, skill set or athletic mold, the last five drafts have given us plenty of insight as to how Chris Ballard targets players.

Over at ESPN, draft analyst Jordan Reid conducted a seven-round mock draft for every pick.

Here we are going to take a look at the Colts’ haul in his mock draft:

Adam Vinatieri: Mike Vrabel was “the king” of trash talk with Patriots

It was commonplace for Patriots players to trash talk one another, but apparently Mike Vrabel was “the king” of it.

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According to former New England Patriots kicker Adam Vinatieri, Tennessee Titans head coach Mike Vrabel was quite the trash talker when the two played together years ago.

Vrabel and Vinatieri were teammates with the Patriots from 2001 through 2005 and won three Super Bowls together — and it was apparently commonplace for players in that locker room to trade barbs.

In an interview on “The Pat McAfee Show,” Vinatieri called Vrabel “the king” of trash talking his own teammates.

“The amount of verbal jousting in that locker room was absolutely ridiculous… Vrabel was the king of it, but we had Rodney Harrison and a bunch of those guys,” Vinatieri said. “That locker room was something special. Willie McGinest and some of those guys. I mean to tell you what, if you had thin skin, you’d get run right out of the building there. So, it was crazy.”

Vrabel began his career with the Pittsburgh Steelers after being drafted by the team in the third round of the 1997 NFL draft, and after moving on from the Patriots he spent the final two seasons of his career with the Kansas City Chiefs.

Since taking over as head coach of the Titans in 2018, Vrabel has led the franchise to four straight winning seasons, three straight playoff appearances, two division titles, and a trip to the AFC Championship Game in 2019.

The expectation is that Vrabel will receive an extension at some point. His current contract runs through the 2022 campaign.

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Adam Vinatieri to bang the anvil ahead of Colts vs. Patriots

The Colts will have a special guest bang the anvil on Saturday night.

The NFL’s all-time leading scorer, kicker Adam Vinatieri, will bang the anvil ahead of the Week 15 matchup between the Indianapolis Colts and New England Patriots on Saturday at Lucas Oil Stadium.

A pre-game tradition that started just a few years ago, Vinatieri’s presence on Saturday night is a significant one. Given that his career is split between the Patriots and Colts over two-plus decades, it makes sense to have Vinny bang the anvil.

Vinatieri spent the first 10 seasons of his career with the Patriots, helping them win three Super Bowls while cementing his status as a legend in Foxboro. He spent the next 14 seasons with the Colts before announcing his retirement in May.

The three-time First-Team All-Pro and three-time Pro Bowler holds several NFL records as of his retirement including:

  • Most consecutive field goals made (44)
  • Most combined regular season and postseason games played (397)
  • Most career field goals made (599)
  • Most career field goals attempted (715)
  • Most career points (2,673)

There is certainly some significance to Vinatieri banging the anvil on Saturday night as the Colts are hoping it will give them a little extra juice in a must-win game.

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Packers almost signed K Adam Vinatieri in 2006

The Packers nearly signed Adam Vinatieri in 2006, but the Colts stole him away at the last minute.

The last decade and a half for the Green Bay Packers at the kicker position could have played out much differently.

Following the recent retirement of future Hall of Fame kicker Adam Vinatieri, former Packers executive Andrew Brandt shared a story of how he almost lured Vinatieri to Green Bay as a free agent in 2006.

Brandt, who writes now for Sports Illustrated, was optimistic that Vinatieri would sign with the Packers after visiting Green Bay that spring, but the Indianapolis Colts came in at the last minute and offered a chance to kick in a dome, ruining the potential pairing.

In fact, Brandt said he was “convinced” Vinatieri would sign with the Packers following the visit, but the Colts’ offer to play indoors was too much for the veteran kicker to pass up.

Good decision. Vinatieri went on to play another 14 years with the Colts, cementing his legacy as one of the greatest kickers of all time.

The Packers, meanwhile, got a poor season from Dave Rayner in 2006 (74.3 percent on field goal attempts) and a year later drafted Mason Crosby in the sixth round of the 2007 draft.

Crosby, now 36, remains the Packers kicker and is going into his 15th season in Green Bay. He is the franchise’s all-time leader in points scored, field goals made and extra points made. He has also appeared in 224 straight games, second only in franchise history to Brett Favre.

Who knows how long Vinatieri would have lasted in Green Bay. And signing him in 2006 would have meant losing out on Crosby a year later. In the long run, it looks like everything turned out right for both Vinatieri and the Packers.

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Tom Brady posts epic tribute to Adam Vinatieri on Instagram

Tom Brady posted a tribute to Adam Vinatieri on Instagram Thursday.

Kicker Adam Vinatieri announced his retirement from the NFL on Wednesday. The NFL’s all-time scoring leader and four-time Super Bowl champion hung up his cleats after 24 seasons in the league. Players around the league posted on social media in tribute to Vinatieri. One of those players was Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady.

Vinatieri and Brady were teammates on three of New England’s Super Bowl teams. With clutch kicks at the end of those Super Bowls, he established himself as a key figure in Patriots folklore.

Thursday, Brady took to Instagram to post a tribute to his former teammate.

With Vinatieri now officially retired, it’ll be worth watching to see if a trip to Canton is the next big milestone in his future.

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