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Groton Daily Independent
Friday, Oct. 27, 2017 ~ Vol. 25 - No. 110 ~ 17 of 48
your mind.”
Milestones have become the de ning feature of Vinatieri’s career.
He’s played in ve Super Bowls, won four and delivered the winning kicks in two. He also missed tackles
on Desmond Howard and Devin Hester, who returned his kickoffs for scores in the big game.
But the more memorable kicks may have been the two he made to beat Oakland in the AFC champion-
ship game, the “Tuck Rule Game,” just before New England’s rst Super Bowl win.
And it’s not easy keeping track of the scoring charts.
Already this season, Vinatieri has passed Andersen for most eld goals from 20 to 29 yards (176); Ander-
son for second in career regular-season wins (203); George Blanda for No. 3 in eld goal attempts (642); Jason Hanson for No. 5 in games played (328); and three weeks ago, Vinatieri made his 10th winning kick in overtime, a league record.
He’s also closing in on others.
Vinatieri needs 24 eld goals to pass Andersen (565) for No. 1 all-time, and seven more regular-season wins would break Blanda’s record (209).
Not bad for the great, great grandson of Gen. George Custer’s bandmaster.
Vinatieri attended South Dakota State, got his rst taste of pro football in Amsterdam, and made enough of an impression on Hall of Fame coach Bill Parcells to land an NFL job.
It didn’t take him long to prove why he’s the best clutch kicker in league history.
“You put your hands up, it’s going in,” receiver T.Y. Hilton said after Vinatieri’s 51-yard eld goal beat San Francisco. “Our job once we got the ball back was to get him in range. We got him in his sweet spot and he nailed it.”
Just like he’s done for more than two decades.
And if Vinatieri gets his way, he’s not going to stop until he nishes with the most unimaginable record of all: top scorer in NFL history.
“I’ve met both of them, I’ve spent a little time with them but not a lot,” Vinatieri said, in reference to Anderson and Andersen. “I always looked up to them as a kicker. I mean how can they not be your he- roes? I remember Morten and Gary retired after something like 24 or 25 years, and just thinking I couldn’t believe it.”
Notes: Center Ryan Kelly (knee/pelvis), safety Darius Butler (ankle) and nose tackle Al Woods (knee) were limited in practice Thursday. All three are starters. ... Backup safety T.J. Green (hamstring) also did limited work. ... Linebacker John Simon (stinger) and cornerback Rashaan Melvin (concussion) missed their second straight practice Thursday. ... Quarterback Jacoby Brissett (right thumb) and linebacker Anthony Walker (hamstring) were full participants at practice. ... Indy has claimed center Dillon Day off waivers from Denver, giving it depth after Kelly couldn’t nish Sunday’s game.
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For more NFL coverage: http://www.pro32.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP_NFL .
Wind Cave park workers thin bison herd
HOT SPRINGS, S.D. (AP) — Workers at South Dakota’s Wind Cave National Park are rounding up bison to thin the herd, give inoculations and pull tail hairs for genetic analysis.
Wind Cave bison genes have been handed down undiluted since a handful of diverse ancestors from the Bronx Zoo arrived at the park in 1913, the Rapid City Journal reported.
Today, Wind Cave bison have 10 genetic variations that experts haven’t seen anywhere else. The park is sending some younger bison to parks in other states to spread them out.
Trucks will carry 2-year-olds and yearlings to Arizona, Washington, Indiana and Kansas later this week. Bison too old or too young will return to the park’s prairie.
The bison’s lineage will remain intact even for the descendants of those traveling to Arizona’s Raymond Wildlife Area or Kansas’ Smokey Valley Ranch. Should disease wipe out the bison, a genetically identical herd could be quickly repopulated, said Greg Schroeder, the park’s chief of resource management.