Indianapolis Colts might make a change at the kicker position after all, although it won’t be because they’ve finally lost confidence in struggling Adam Vinatieri. The veteran kicker was in limited practice this week due to a knee injury which might prevent him to play again this season.
Vinatieri told reporters on Thursday that he currently doesn’t know when he might be back on the field, or whether he’ll return at all in 2019.
“I don’t have an answer,” – said Vinatieri. “I don’t know. We’ll see how it feels tomorrow and the next day and the next day.”
“Felt [pain] a little bit last week and through the game [against Tennessee on Sunday],.” – he explained. “Just a little more sharp than what it was before.”
Vinatieri is currently awaiting MRI results, after which he will have a meeting with Indianapolis’ general manager Chris Ballard and the team’s medical staff in order to see whether he’ll be placed on the injured reserve list.
Indianapolis already started preparing for life after Vinatieri, claiming Chase McLaughlin off waivers on Thursday. McLaughlin split the time between Los Angeles Chargers and San Francisco 49ers this season.
Adam Vinatieri has been a reliable solution at kicker position for Indianapolis Colts in more than a decade, but his performance took a significant hit in 2019. This season, Vinatieri converted just 17-of-25 field goals, while making only five FGs out of 12 attempts that were 40+ yards long. He was also inconsistent on extra points, making 22 out of 28 attempted.
