Top 11 moments of Julian Edelman’s career

On Monday morning, the New England Patriots announced Julian Edelman will be inducted into the team's Hall of Fame. Edelman was voted in by fans as the 37th inductee on his first ballot.

Edelman spent his entire 12-year career with the Patriots and is one of the most accomplished wide receivers in the history of the franchise. His 620 career receptions rank second all-time for the Patriots, his 6,822 yards rank fourth and his 36 touchdowns rank ninth.

While Edelman's entire body of work is impressive, what stood out the most throughout his career was his ability to come up big in the biggest moments. Edelman ranks third in NFL history in both playoff catches (118) and yards (1,442).

With his knack of coming up big in the big game and/or clutch situation, Edelman's career is full of defining moments. It's tough to pick just one, so here are 11 for No. 11...

Right from the beginning, Edelman let us know he was going to be a special player. In his first ever preseason game, he returned a punt 75 yards for a touchdown. This is the play that resulted in the now-famous 'Wally Pipp' conversation between Bill Belichick and Wes Welker.

This play was the highlight from Edelman's then-career-high 151 receiving yards. However, what people probably remember more in the block from Michael Floyd that sprung him loose.

Sitting behind Wes Welker on the slot receiver depth chart early in his career, Edelman had to find other ways to get on the field. That mostly consisted of returning kicks and punts but in 2011 injuries on defense led to Edelman appearing in seven games (including two playoff games) as a slot cornerback. He was able to hold his own, allowing six catches on nine targets over 93 coverage snaps. he recorded 12 tackles and one QB pressure.

Despite missing most of his final season due to a knee injury, Edelman left Patriots fans with one final explosive memory. In a Week 2 Sunday Night Football game against the Seahawks, he caught eight passes from Cam Newton for a career-high 179 yards. The Patriots would lose the game on the final play, 35-30.

Down 24 points at halftime to Peyton Manning and the Broncos, the Patriots came storming back. It also happened to be one of Edelman's first real breakout games. He caught nine passes for 110 yards and two touchdowns, including one in the fourth quarter that put the Patriots ahead.

Edelman would burn the Broncos again in 2014, when he set a new Patriots franchise record with his fourth career punt return TD. This set up what became the defining moment of the Brady/Edelman relationship, with Brady running all the way to the end zone to celebrate the score.

Edelman caught seven passes for 96 yards in this game, and muffed a punt that nearly cost the Patriots a trip to the Super Bowl. Yet what everybody will remember most is his two catches on the game-winning overtime drive, both coming on third and long. That, and him yelling "You're too old!" at Tom Brady on the sideline.

Edelman wasn't about to let the 28-3 comeback slip through his fingers. On the eventual game-tying drive of Super Bowl LI, Edelman caught a deflected pass just inches from the ground, beating three Falcons defenders to the ball. It is arguably the most miraculous catch in Super Bowl history.

With the Patriots facing a must-have 3rd-and-14 down 10 in the fourth quarter of Super Bowl XLIX, Tom Brady found Julian Edelman over the middle beyond the sticks. Despite a massive blow from Kam Chancellor, he held onto the ball for the first down and picked up extra yardage after the catch. He'd torch the Legion of Boom for nine catches and 109 yards in the game, and caught what ended up being the game-winning touchdown - on a play they'd already run earlier in the game

For the first six years of Edelman's Patriots career, fans wondered when the team would let the college quarterback throw a pass. The wait ended up being worth it, as Josh McDaniels finally dialed one up late in the fourth quarter of the 2014 Divisional Round against the Baltimore Ravens. Edelman hit Danny Amendola for a 51-yard game-tying touchdown in what was the signature play of what is arguably the greatest non-Super Bowl game of the Patriots' dynasty era.

While the rest of the Patriots offense (and the entire Rams offense) struggled to get any momentum, Edelman took the fight to the L.A. secondary. He caught 10 passes for 141 yards, and was named Super Bowl MVP - becoming the first wide receiver to win the award since Santonio Holmes in the 2008 season. The Patriots don't win this Super Bowl without him.