Adam Vinatieri has lost his magic
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by Suckatsports
When he was in New England, he seemingly made every single big kick, no matter the weather or distance. With that kind of magic kicking, the Patriots were able to ride his clutch foot to a pair of Superbowl wins.
As he came to the Colts, he apparently took his magic clutch foot with him. With him at the helm of the kicking game, he injected an aura of confidence that emotionally propelled them to the Superbowl. The magic pills he was taking finally ran out, as Vinatieri missed a chip shot field goal to win an improbable game for the Indianapolis Colts to complete an unimaginable comeback.
When I decided to take a nap, the Chargers were comfortably up 23-0, and through my sleepy haze, Al Michaels told me that Peyton Manning has already thrown four interceptions - and the first half was yet to be over. Antonio Cromartie was filling out his Hall of Fame resume as he picked off Manning three times himself, rounding out a pretty good several weeks for the backup corner filling in for Quentin Jammer.
I wake up with over two minutes to go and needed a double take for the score: 21-23 Chargers, with the Colts on the better 20ish yard line. Peyton Manning had obviously worked some kind of improbable magic to bring his team back, and his team was clearly going to take the lead no matter how inconceivable the outcome seemed just 40 game minutes ago. They ran Joseph Addai to what looked like a first down at the six yard line.
What followed was as amazing chain of events as ever seen in a football game. The spot was reviewed and correctly changed to be inches short of a first down; the Colts lined up to draw the Chargers offsides, or run more time off the clock, or both. They accomplished neither as they were called for a false stat on one of the oddest and worst calls I've ever seen. With that said, they lined up for an extra-point like 29-yard field goal only to have Vinatieri push it right and miss the game winning opportunity. After a few futile attempts to get the ball down field with 20 seconds left: Chargers 23, Colts 21.
With what happened, I'm not sure if this is an indictment on how far the Chargers have fallen under Norv Turner, or how amazing Petyon Manning has become. He brought the Colts back to the brink of winning with 15 healthy bodies on the offensive side of the ball and not one receiver I can name off the top of my head. At the same time, on the opposite sideline, Norv Turner and Philip Rivers are squandering some of the best talent assembled on a football team. These are two teams, two quarterbacks, and two coaches looking in completely opposite directions. Just because the Chargers won, it doesn't make the noose around Norv Turner's neck any more loose.
Can we stop pretending Vinatieri is a good kicker? [AOL Fanhouse]
This post is cross published from We Suck at Sports.
