Top 10 NFL Players Teams Gave Up On Too Soon

1 of 10

Nov 22, 2015; Atlanta, GA, USA; Indianapolis Colts place kicker Adam Vinatieri (4) kicks the game winning field goal from the hold of punter Pat McAfee (1) against the Atlanta Falcons during the fourth quarter at the Georgia Dome. The Colts defeated the Falcons 24-21. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports /

One thing is clear. By the time September arrives, many NFL players will have been cut from their current rosters. Sometimes that isn’t always a good thing.

There have been many instances throughout the history of this game where players, either due to age or injury or even personality problems during a one or two-year stretch convinced their original teams to move on. Thing is there have been instances where those decisions were wrong, and have even come back to haunt the teams that made them. Here are 10 of the most famous such instances in NFL history.

#10: Adam Vinatieri

Arguably the greatest kicker in NFL history. Adam Vinatieri was considered the man who literally kicked a team to two Super Bowl titles. By 2001 he was a solid, if unremarkable name with the New England Patriots but that changed on a snowy night in the divisional playoffs when he hit two incredibly clutch kicks in a snowstorm to win the game for the Patriots. Later in the Super Bowl he would hit the game-winner to clinch the teams’ first title. Two years later he did it again. In fact the first three of the teams’ championships were decided by three points each.

By 2006 Vinatieri had reached two Pro Bowls and was among the elite in the league but at age 34 the team felt he was declining after a difficult season the year prior. So they let him walk. Turns out their vaunted ability to predict ends of player careers were way wrong there. Vinatieri joined the Indianapolis Colts and immediately helped them to win the Super Bowl that year, playing a key role. He has remained with them since, going to a third Pro Bowl in 2014 at the age of 42.

Next: #9

Home/Power Rankings