Colts re-sign kicker Adam Vinatieri

(AP) — Adam Vinatieri had two wishes in free agency.
He wanted to win one more Super Bowl ring for his thumb, and he wanted to do it with the Colts.
Indianapolis refused to let the 41-year-old kicker slip away Wednesday, re-signing Vinatieri just hours before he was to become an unrestricted free agent.
“I’d like to be here if the cards fall right,” Vinatieri said in January, after the Colts were eliminated with a playoff loss at New England, where he won three Super Bowls. “Obviously this locker room’s awesome. I’ve got a lot of friends in this locker room and I’ve got the most admiration for the ownership here and coaches and staff and everything. So if it’s up to me, I’d love to be here.”
Terms of the deal were not announced by the team.
But the signing was well-received by Vinatieri’s current and future teammates, especially those on a kicking unit that has developed a tight bond over the past two seasons. Indy kept punter and kickoff specialist Pat McAfee last week, agreeing to a five-year deal. Long snapper Matt Overton, who went to the Pro Bowl last season, is already under contract.
Not surprisingly, Overton and McAfee, two avid fans of Twitter, didn’t take long to respond to the news Vinatieri would return to Indy for his 19th NFL season.
Overton wrote: “The #4thDownPlayers are back! Congrats to @adamvinatieri & @PatMcAfeeShow on signing new deals!”
Later, McAfee, added this: “The Kick attack is back Jack.”
Vinatieri is widely considered the best clutch kicker in league history. He made two Super Bowl-winning kicks with New England, where he won three Super Bowl rings. He might be best known, however, for making the tying kick to force overtime and the winning kick in overtime in a driving snowstorm to beat Oakland in the “Tuck Rule” playoff game. That win helped propel the Patriots to their first Super Bowl title.