Adam Vinatieri among 3 finalists for Patriots Hall of Fame

The New England Patriots have announced the three finalists for induction into their team Hall of Fame.

Kicker Adam Vinatieri and wide receiver Julian Edelman headline the 2025 list of nominees. Guard Logan Mankins, who is a finalist for the third time, rounds out the three. Fans can vote at Patriots.com to decide which player is inducted, until midnight on April 30.

Vinatieri played the first 10 seasons of his career with the Patriots, and had a major role in three Super Bowl championship runs (2001, 2003-04). He left the Pats after the 2005 season and played the next 14 seasons with the Indianapolis Colts, one of their chief rivals at the time, which garnered a modicum of local controversy for him among fans. But Vinatieri is ultimately best known for his clutch kicks in the 2001 season, including the game-tying and game-winning kicks in a heavy snowstorm in the divisional playoff against the Raiders, and the Super Bowl-winning kick against the Rams in New Orleans.

Also a finalist for the Pro Football Hall of Fame for the first time in 2025, Vinatieri came up short of induction in Canton in year one on the ballot.

^{Adam Vinatieri kicks the game-winning field goal for the Patriots in Super Bowl XXXVI.}

Edelman is also a three-time Super Bowl champion for the Patriots (2014, 2016, 2018), establishing himself as one of Tom Brady's most reliable big-game receivers. He earned Super Bowl MVP honors with a 10-catch performance against the Rams in Super Bowl LIII, and ranks third all-time in playoff receptions, behind only Travis Kelce and Jerry Rice.

Mankins never won a championship for the Patriots, but did start 130 games at left guard, plus 17 playoff contests with two Super Bowl appearances. The 32nd pick in the 2005 draft, Mankins quickly established himself as one of the best guards in football, earning first team All-Pro honors in 2010 and second-team All-Pro five other times.

Among the three finalists, Edelman boasts the best combination of accomplishments and recency bias for voters. Vinatieri hasn't donned a Patriots uniform in 20 years, but his role in the early stages of the Patriots dynasty under Brady and Bill Belichick make him a no-brainer to eventually be enshrined in both the team Hall of Fame and the Pro Football Hall of Fame. For both Vinatieri and Edelman, it's only a matter of when they get inducted, and the order in which it happens.

The winner will be inducted along with former Patriots head coach Bill Parcells, who will get in as a contributor, as recently announced by Robert Kraft.