Indianapolis Colts former Patriots Notes

The Indianapolis Colts have three players on the roster who were once members of the New England Patriots, with the most notable of them obviously being kicker Adam Vinatieri. But the Colts also picked up a safety who was released just a few months ago by the Pats in Sergio Brown.

K Adam Vinatieri

Vinatieri is the most clutch kicker in NFL history, and I’m sure every New England Patriots fan will agree wholeheartedly with this one. He left the Pats after the 2005 season and won his first Super Bowl ring with another team in just his first season with the Colts. The two-time All-Pro kicker is off to the worst start of his 17-year career, as he has only connected on 75% of his kicks. If that number stood, it would be the lowest total of his career.

The Colts kicker is likely just dealing with some bad luck, and that number will rise. He has had field goal percentages of 85.2% and 92.9% over each of the past two seasons, and he has still been money on short kicks and field goal between 40-49 yards. It’s been the 30-39 yard range that Vinatieri has struggled in, which points to the fact that he is dealing with some rough luck.

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S Sergio Brown

The Indianapolis Colts picked up the former Patriots special teamer after he was released by the Pats during the roster crunchdown. Brown continues to play a role on special teams with the Colts, and he has amassed six tackles with a pass defended thrown in for good measure.

CB Darius Butler

Remember this guy? Darius Butler is a competent cornerback in coverage, but he is so awful against the run that it has caused him to get cut by both the New England Patriots and Carolina Panthers. Butler is going to be starting for the Colts due to the loss of Vontae Davis (who almost always picks off Tom Brady for some reason), which means that Stevan Ridley, Shane Vereen, and Danny Woodhead should have some fun running it towards his side of the field. That’s especially true if Deion Branch is ever blocking Butler.

However, Butler is coming off of maybe the best game of his career after picking off two passes against the Jacksonville Jaguars after realizing that this is his last chance to prove himself in the NFL. He still hasn’t proven himself yet, but let’s see if Butler uses that as a springboard against a much tougher opponent; his former team.

You can follow Joe Soriano on Twitter @SorianoJoe.