Ex-Patriot Vinatieri eyes homecoming

INDIANAPOLIS – For the better part of 10 years, Adam Vinatieri called North Attleboro, Mass., home. It was a 10-minute drive to Gillette Stadium in Foxborough.

That’s where Vinatieri established himself as a New England icon. Winning playoff games – Super Bowls – for the Patriots with clutch field goals, and doing so with a disarming smile and down-home humility, will win over even the most cynical fan base.

Walk into any pub and ask the regulars whom they consider the most popular Patriots and the list is short. There’s Hall of Fame guard John Hannah and a pair of current Patriots, quarterback Tom Brady and linebacker Tedy Bruschi.

And there’s Vinatieri.

“You put him up there with those guys, for sure,” said defensive tackle Dan Klecko. “I think he’s one of the biggest figures in New England sports history. Really.”

Klecko witnessed the Vinatieri-mania firsthand. They were New England teammates from 2003-05. They’re still teammates, but now with the Indianapolis Colts.

Sunday night, the Colts and New England renew their heated rivalry at Gillette Stadium.

Will Patriots fans welcome Vinatieri back with a warm ovation? Or will they consider his off-season relocation to Indy a traitorous act and jeer him as vociferously as quarterback Peyton Manning?

“It will be interesting to see,” Vinatieri said. “I think I’ll have a handful of friends at the game, so I’ll get a few cheers out there.”