Indianapolis Colts: The 41 Year Old Replacment

Six games into the Indianapolis Colts schedule, one of the worst things that could have happened did, the team lost a player they couldn't afford to lose. Or could they? Adam Vinatieri was going to need knee surgery and likely be out until the playoffs. 10 games left and their future Hall of Fame kicker was going to be sidelined.

What did the Colts do? Bring in Matt Stover to pick up the slack. Now Stover's performances this season have been overshadowed by the play of Manning, Wayne, Clark, Collie and Garcon. The spotlight has been kept off Matt, and I think he will tell you that is just fine. He has filled in greatly in the place kicking role this season, and has contributed to the Colts 14-2 record.

In his 10 games kicking for the Colts this season, Stover has hit 9-11 field goals, and has made all 33 point after attempts he has kicked. It seems that Stover has become a great fit in Indianapolis, even getting the nod to kick in Indy's first playoff game next weekend against the New York Jets.

Now it is unlikely that Stover will kick in the Super Bowl, if the Colts should make it that far. The Colt will probably start Vinatieri, he is ready, for his Super Bowl experience, but will leave Stover on the roster just in case. If the Colts win the Super Bowl, I am sure Stover will be just fine with not playing. He knows that he helped the team get to its best start in franchise history, and looked great doing it.

With the probability of Stover being released this off season being very high, I have 2 words for him: Thank You.