martin g

[smazza]

fighting for a job

Enlarge By Chitose Suzuki, AP

Either Stephen Gostkowski (3) or Martin Gramatica will kick for the Patriots this season. But trying to replace Adam Vinatieri could prove to be a thankless job.

By Tom Pedulla, USA TODAY

FOXBORO, Mass.  Martin Gramatica and rookie Stephen Gostkowski are vying to succeed Super Bowl hero Adam Vinatieri as the New England Patriots' kicker. Pity the winner.

Gramatica knows it will be virtually impossible to make fans forget someone he describes as the greatest clutch kicker in NFL history. The cool Vinatieri booted 18 game-winning kicks in the final minute or overtime during his 10-year New England career  with two of those splitting the uprights to win Super Bowls  before he joined the AFC rival Indianapolis Colts as a free agent.

"Nobody can be Adam," Gramatica says, "and he can't be us. Everybody is his own person. As long as I can do my best, hopefully it's good enough to be on this team."

No one may be good enough to convince fans the Patriots made a wise football or business decision in not doing whatever it took to retain Vinatieri, who received a five-year contract worth $10 million from the Colts. Someone will have to try.

"You can't go in there expecting to do something somebody else did," says Gostkowski, a fourth-round draft choice. "You just have to go in there and bring what you can bring to the table, and hopefully you can win over the fans and win over your coaches and teammates by making a big kick."

Vinatieri, of course, nailed one big kick after another after another. There was a perfect 48-yarder as time expired to down the St. Louis Rams 20-17 in Super Bowl XXXVI. There was a never-in-doubt 41-yard boot to beat the Carolina Panthers 32-29 in Super Bowl XXXVIII. There was a legendary 45-yarder in swirling wind and snow to force overtime in a 2001 AFC divisional playoff vs. the Oakland Raiders, followed by a 23-yarder to end OT.

There were so many kicks and so many memories. For a team accustomed to playing taut games and trusting Vinatieri to deliver at the end, it cannot be a good feeling to know such a reliable performer is no longer in its midst.

"Adam was a great contributor to our championship seasons," quarterback Tom Brady says. "He's going to be well-remembered by the team, by the fans, by the coaches. We all wish him well in Indianapolis  except when they play us."

While no one approaches Vinatieri's credentials, Gramatica and Gostkowski both carry resumes to suggest they can get the job done.

Gramatica's career field goal percentage stands at 76.5 (137 of 179). And it is dramatically better than that in postseason. He hit 11 of 12 field goals in eight playoff games, or 91.7%, highest in NFL history for those with at least 10 attempts.

Still, Gramatica has much to prove after a sudden and steep drop in production led the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to release the Buenos Aires native Nov. 30, 2004. Indianapolis picked him up to handle kickoffs the rest of that season, but he was out of the league last year amid reports he had an abdominal injury.

Gramatica, 30, declines to discuss any aspect of his past and emphasizes his desire to focus only on the future. "I still feel like I have some years left," he says. "As long as I can kick the way I want to kick, I'm fine."

Gostkowski connected on all but three of his 25 field goal attempts as a Memphis senior. He works to concentrate solely on the mental and physical elements that allowed him to accomplish that.

"I'm not trying to replace anybody," he says. "I'm just trying to do what I can do."

Coach Bill Belichick will allow the competition to play out during preseason with an emphasis on game action. He insists he will not allow Vinatieri's departure to influence late-game strategy and says he will continue to have faith in his kicker.

"Anytime you have a player on your team, you have to have confidence in that player to do his job," he says. "Otherwise, you shouldn't have him."

fighting for a job

Enlarge By Chitose Suzuki, AP

Either Stephen Gostkowski (3) or Martin Gramatica will kick for the Patriots this season. But trying to replace Adam Vinatieri could prove to be a thankless job.

By Tom Pedulla, USA TODAY

FOXBORO, Mass.  Martin Gramatica and rookie Stephen Gostkowski are vying to succeed Super Bowl hero Adam Vinatieri as the New England Patriots' kicker. Pity the winner.

Gramatica knows it will be virtually impossible to make fans forget someone he describes as the greatest clutch kicker in NFL history. The cool Vinatieri booted 18 game-winning kicks in the final minute or overtime during his 10-year New England career  with two of those splitting the uprights to win Super Bowls  before he joined the AFC rival Indianapolis Colts as a free agent.

"Nobody can be Adam," Gramatica says, "and he can't be us. Everybody is his own person. As long as I can do my best, hopefully it's good enough to be on this team."

No one may be good enough to convince fans the Patriots made a wise football or business decision in not doing whatever it took to retain Vinatieri, who received a five-year contract worth $10 million from the Colts. Someone will have to try.

"You can't go in there expecting to do something somebody else did," says Gostkowski, a fourth-round draft choice. "You just have to go in there and bring what you can bring to the table, and hopefully you can win over the fans and win over your coaches and teammates by making a big kick."

Vinatieri, of course, nailed one big kick after another after another. There was a perfect 48-yarder as time expired to down the St. Louis Rams 20-17 in Super Bowl XXXVI. There was a never-in-doubt 41-yard boot to beat the Carolina Panthers 32-29 in Super Bowl XXXVIII. There was a legendary 45-yarder in swirling wind and snow to force overtime in a 2001 AFC divisional playoff vs. the Oakland Raiders, followed by a 23-yarder to end OT.

There were so many kicks and so many memories. For a team accustomed to playing taut games and trusting Vinatieri to deliver at the end, it cannot be a good feeling to know such a reliable performer is no longer in its midst.

"Adam was a great contributor to our championship seasons," quarterback Tom Brady says. "He's going to be well-remembered by the team, by the fans, by the coaches. We all wish him well in Indianapolis  except when they play us."

While no one approaches Vinatieri's credentials, Gramatica and Gostkowski both carry resumes to suggest they can get the job done.

Gramatica's career field goal percentage stands at 76.5 (137 of 179). And it is dramatically better than that in postseason. He hit 11 of 12 field goals in eight playoff games, or 91.7%, highest in NFL history for those with at least 10 attempts.

Still, Gramatica has much to prove after a sudden and steep drop in production led the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to release the Buenos Aires native Nov. 30, 2004. Indianapolis picked him up to handle kickoffs the rest of that season, but he was out of the league last year amid reports he had an abdominal injury.

Gramatica, 30, declines to discuss any aspect of his past and emphasizes his desire to focus only on the future. "I still feel like I have some years left," he says. "As long as I can kick the way I want to kick, I'm fine."

Gostkowski connected on all but three of his 25 field goal attempts as a Memphis senior. He works to concentrate solely on the mental and physical elements that allowed him to accomplish that.

"I'm not trying to replace anybody," he says. "I'm just trying to do what I can do."

Coach Bill Belichick will allow the competition to play out during preseason with an emphasis on game action. He insists he will not allow Vinatieri's departure to influence late-game strategy and says he will continue to have faith in his kicker.

"Anytime you have a player on your team, you have to have confidence in that player to do his job," he says. "Otherwise, you shouldn't have him."

 

[Herman_Momart]

I heard his abdominal injury came when he jumped in the air to high five Bill after he made an extra point attempt on the practice fields.

[smazza]

hahahaha