After starting out with eight nominees, only three players remaining standing in the race for induction into the Patriots Hall of Fame this year. As the team announced on Wednesday, those finalists are tight end Rob Gronkowski, guard Logan Mankins and kicker Adam Vinatieri.
Gronkowski is in his first year of eligibility for the Hall, while Mankins has been a finalist each of the three previous years. Vinatieri is a finalist for the second time.
Fans can vote for their favorite candidate on the Patriots’
website.
Gronkowski played nine seasons with the Patriots after originally joining them as a second-round selection in the 2010 NFL Draft. Appearing in 115 regular season games, the Arizona product recorded 521 receptions for 7,861 yards and 79 touchdowns. He added 81 catches for 1,163 yards and 12 scores in 16 playoff games. One of the most productive and decorated players in franchise history, Gronkowski won three of his four total Super Bowls during his time in New England — he later won another ring as a Buccaneer in 2020 — and was voted to five Pro Bowls and named All-Pro on four occasions. He also is a member of the Patriots’ All-Dynasty Team and 2010s All-Decade Team, and as arguably the greatest tight end in NFL history is well on his way toward the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Mankins also spent nine years with the Patriots, even though he narrowly missed out on winning a ring: he joined the organization as a first-round draft pick in 2005, after its third championship, and left via trade to Tampa ahead of the 2014 Super Bowl season. Nonetheless, the Fresno product established himself as one of the best offensive linemen in franchise history. Mankins started all 147 of his combined regular season and playoff games as a Patriot and was voted to six Pro Bowls and six All-Pro teams; he also was named to the organization’s All-Decade Teams for both the 2000s and 2010s, and later named to the organization’s 50th anniversary squad. He
Vinatieri arrived in New England as an undrafted free agent out of South Dakota State in 1996. He spent the first 10 seasons of his 24-year NFL career with the Patriots, and was a cornerstone of their first three championship teams. He kicked game-winning field goals in two of those Super Bowl wins, and additionally made arguably the best kick in NFL history when he split the uprights from 45 yards out in a 2001 divisional round win over the Oakland Raiders. Vinatieri, whose his final 14 seasons were spent with the Colts, made 81.9% of his regular season field goals as a Patriot and 76.5% in the playoffs. Arguably the most clutch kicker the NFL has ever seen, he was named to the league’s 100th Anniversary Team and the All-Decade Team of the 2000s, and will be enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame later this year.
The fan vote to decide the 38th member of the Patriots Hall of Fame runs through 11 p.m. ET on Tuesday, April 28. The selection will be announced by the team later that same week.
