Adam Vinatieri is 45 years old, but there are records in sight and the hopes of winning a fifth Super Bowl. For either or both of those things to come to pass, he'll need to keep playing a few more seasons. The kicker tells Colts.com he'll be doing just that.
“Obviously this all-time leading scorer thing I knew was out there and I thought, ‘Man, if I stay healthy, I would like to reach that goal,’” Vinatieri says. “But more importantly if our team is a contender to have a chance to play in another Super Bowl, that is a huge driving factor.”
Oldest player in NFL history was George Blanda, who played at age 48 back in 1976. That's within reach for Vinatieri, since he's still kicking at high level.
Last year he converted 0ver 85 percent of his field goals (29 of 34), and consider that two of those misses were in a blizzard in Buffalo, while another was just short from 60 yards. Still one of the league's best kickers.
Among all active kickers with at least 100 attempts, only eight have made a higher percentage of their field goals than Vinatieri.
| FIELD GOAL ACCURACY, ACTIVE (100-PLUS ATTEMPTS) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Plsyer | FG | FGA | Pct |
| Justin Tucker | 202 | 224 | 90.2 |
| Dan Bailey | 186 | 211 | 88.2 |
| Stephen Gostkowski | 340 | 388 | 87.6 |
| Stephen Hauschka | 220 | 252 | 87.3 |
| Robbie Gould | 325 | 374 | 86.9 |
| Kai Forbath | 116 | 135 | 85.9 |
| Matt Bryant | 368 | 429 | 85.8 |
| Chandler Catanzaro | 103 | 122 | 84.4 |
| Adam Vinatieri | 559 | 663 | 84.3 |
| Phil Dawson | 436 | 518 | 84.2 |
| Cairo Santos | 90 | 107 | 84.1 |
| Matt Prater | 246 | 295 | 83.4 |
| Ryan Succop | 209 | 251 | 83.3 |
| Greg Zuerlein | 150 | 181 | 82.9 |
| Randy Bullock | 101 | 122 | 82.8 |
| Connor Barth | 168 | 203 | 82.8 |
| Blair Walsh | 154 | 187 | 82.4 |
| Nick Novak | 182 | 222 | 82.0 |
| Graham Gano | 210 | 257 | 81.7 |
| Caleb Sturgis | 111 | 137 | 81.0 |
| Mike Nugent | 247 | 305 | 81.0 |
| Brandon McManus | 92 | 114 | 80.7 |
| Sebastian Janikowski | 414 | 515 | 80.4 |
| Nick Folk | 245 | 305 | 80.3 |
| Mason Crosby | 277 | 345 | 80.3 |
It's not quite as dramatic, perhaps, as Tom Brady maybe playing until he's 45, or the seasons turned in by Brady, Favre and Manning at advanced ages. But Vinatieri has long been one of the best at his position. In 2018, he'll likely set a number of NFL records: with 7 field goals and 58 points, both of which he'll surely get, he'll pass Morten Andersen for the all-time lead in both categories.
Fantasy-wise, he'll need Andrew Luck to get back on the field, and for the Colts to start winning some games. But if those things happen, he could finish as an above-average kicker. While setting some records along the way.
--Andy Richardson