Adam Vinatieri's still kicking. At least, he hopes to still be kicking in the NFL during the 2020 season, his 25th campaign and 48th year of earthly existence.
The free-agent kicker told NFL Network's Tom Pelissero on Tuesday that he wants to return for a 25th season. However, the quarantine brought upon by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has slowed down his rehab following season-ending knee surgery. The future Hall of Famer is not sure he'll be fully healed by the start of the season.
Vinatieri, 47, is currently a free agent. For the last 14 years, he served as the kicker for the Indianapolis Colts. Over that span, he hit 336 of 394 field-goal attempts and 507 of 524 extra-point attempts, made one Pro Bowl (2014) and was named first-team All-Pro once (2014).
A member of the NFL 100 All-Time Team, Vinatieri looked like he was running out of time at points last season. The Colts kicker got off to a rough start in 2019, going 2-of-5 on extra points and 1-of-3 on field goals in the first two weeks. Vinatieri rebounded, but finished with a career-low 68 percent field goal percentage and 78.6 extra point percentage in 12 games played.
The Colts have also seemingly moved on without the greybeard. Indy still employs Chase McLaughlin, who kicked for three franchises last year, and also signed former Georgia kicker Rodrigo Blankenship as a UDFA this weekend.
It's unclear where Vinatieri will be kicking next year or if he will be at all. But after months of silence on the matter, it's now established that the most established placekicker in NFL history isn't ready to hang up his cleats just year.
