Die Chilluminati » Nike and switched out all his equipment. He ch

INDIANAPOLIS - Adam Vinatieris greying temples and greyer beard reveal one part of his remarkable career. At age 41, he is the NFLs oldest player.Hes not slowing down.Nine years after the leagues best clutch kicker made the surprising move to leave New England and sign with rival Indianapolis, Vinatieri is still finding ways to kick it in a young mans world.At his age, he could probably just leave practice and say See you on Sunday. But Vinnie works just as much now as he did when he was 25 years old, teammate Pat McAfee said. The reason he is so good and can be so good for however long he wants to be is his work ethic.McAfee was 9 years old when Vinatieri was a rookie in 1996.Over five seasons as Vinatieris understudy, the Colts punter and kickoff specialist says Vinatieri has advised him on everything from how to eat right to finding the proper balance between football and life. McAfee believes those life lessons have helped him thrive, and remain the primary reason Vinatieri seems to be on the cusp of milestones every week.The next chapter could come Sunday night when Vinatieri will try to become the first player in league history with 17 seasons of 100 points. He needs eight points to break a tie with Jason Elam, and it would be a fitting moment as the Patriots (7-2) and Colts (6-3) renew their rivalry.Hes as good of a kicker, good of a clutch kicker, and consistent kicker thats probably ever been in the game, New England coach Bill Belichick said Wednesday. Mentally, hes as tough as they come in terms of concentration, focus, discipline, blocking out all the things that he cant control and just doing his job.Vinatieri, after all, made decisive last-minute field goals in each of New Englands three Super Bowl wins. He earned his fourth Super Bowl ring in his first season with Indy. He made two equally memorable field goals during a New England blizzard, to tie and then beat Oakland, as the Pats made their first title run.Last month, he became first NFL player to score 900 points with two franchises and hes just 60 points away from making it an even 1,000 with both teams. With two points Sunday, hell also join Morten Andersen, Gary Anderson and Jason Hanson as the only players to reach 2,100 career points.Things havent changed much this year. Vinatieri is 32 of 32 on extra points and 20 of 20 on field goals. His current streak of 26 consecutive field goals made is the third longest in franchise history.But Vinatieris legacy cannot be measured purely by numbers.Hes played for Hall of Fame coach Bill Parcells, Hall of Fame finalist Tony Dungy and, of course, Belichick. Hes played with three No. 1 overall draft picks -- Drew Bledsoe, Peyton Manning and Andrew Luck -- in addition to certain Hall of Famer Tom Brady. He also played for the defunct World League of American Football long ago.Not all of his moments have been memorable. His Super Bowl kickoff against Green Bay in 1997, returned for a touchdown by Desmond Howard, has appeared in the NFLs Hall of Fame. It made Howard the only special teams player to ever win the MVP award.Vinatieri put that behind him long ago. An avid hunter, he also learned at a young age about the necessity of maintaining a steady heart rate before taking a shot.Backup quarterback Matt Hasselbeck saw how good he truly is when Vinatieri popped in a video of a lion hunt in Africa. As Vinatieri tracked the animal, the guide started explaining it was no longer safe.I feel like Im pretty unflinchable and my heart was racing, Hasselbeck said. I remember thinking, Theres no way a field goal is going to get his heart racing.Teammates dont just respect Vinatieri for his experiences. Theyve given him one of the rarest titles a kicker can attain, locker room leader.Not surprisingly, Vinatieri doesnt let the milestones, the nickname, the honours or the buzz get in the way of what he does best. Thats how he got a foothold in the NFL. And thats how he intends to keep it until he leaves, on his terms.Its been a lot of fun, he said. There have been so many great moments throughout my career -- the first time you win the Super Bowl is something you dream about as a kid. The Snow Bowl game was fun. Tackling Herschel Walker as rookie was great fun.When you get to my age, you focus on staying healthy and staying productive, he added. If thats a year or three years, I dont know. Im not putting a time on it.___Online:AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and http://twitter.com/AP_NFL Eric Oelschlagel Jersey . 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Advancing to the Champions League quarterfinals should be a formality after Lionel Messi scored a penalty and Dani Alves added a late second to secure a commanding 2-0 advantage over City in the round of 16 on Tuesday. HOYLAKE, England -- Walking off the 18th green as the British Open champion, Rory McIlroy kept gazing at all the greats on golfs oldest trophy. On the claret jug, his name is etched in silver below Phil Mickelson. In the record book, he is listed behind Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods as the youngest to get three legs of the career Grand Slam. And over four days at Royal Liverpool, he had no equal. "Im immensely proud of myself," McIlroy said after his two-shot victory Sunday that was never really in doubt. "To sit here, 25 years of age, and win my third major championship and be three-quarters of the way to a career Grand Slam ... yeah, I never dreamed of being at this point in my career so quickly." He had to work a little harder than he wanted for this one. Staked to a six-shot lead going into the final round, McIlroy turned back every challenge. He made two key birdies around the turn, and delivered a majestic drive at just the right moment to close with a 1-under 71 and complete his wire-to-wire victory. In another major lacking tension over the final hour, what brought The Open to life was the potential of its champion. After nearly two years of turmoil, McIlroy looked like the kid who shattered scoring records to win the 2011 U.S. Open at Congressional, and who won the PGA Championship at Kiawah Island by a record eight shots a year later. Boy Wonder is back. Or maybe hes just getting started again. McIlroy won by two shots over Sergio Garcia and Rickie Fowler to become the first start-to-finish winner since Woods at St. Andrews in 2005. Even with one major left this year, the Northern Irishman already is looking ahead to Augusta National next April for a shot at the slam. "Ive really found my passion again for golf," McIlroy said. "Not that it ever dwindled, but its what I think about when I get up in the morning. Its what I think about when I go to bed. I just want to be the best golfer that I can be. And I know if I can do that, then trophies like this are within my capability." McIlroy put an end to this major with a powerful drive down the fairway at the par-5 16th, setting up a two-putt birdie to restore his lead to three shots. He finished with two pars, tapping in for par on the 18th green. The hard part was trying not to cry when his mother, Rosie, came onto the green with tears streaming down her face. She was not at the other two majors. Before leaving, McIlroy turned and applauded the fans in the horseshoe arena who were witness to another masterpiece. This could have been another romp except for a shaky stretch early for McIlroy, and solid efforts from Garcia and Fowler. Garcia pulled within two shots with four holes to play until he put his tee shot in a poot bunker just right of the 15th green.dddddddddddd His first shot failed to get over the 4-foot sodden wall and rolled back into the sand. He made bogey, and two birdies over the final three holes were not enough. Garcia shot 66 and was runner-up in a major for the fourth time. "I think that we gave it a good effort," Garcia said. "And there was someone a little bit better." Fowler, playing in the final group for the second straight major, didnt do anything wrong. He just didnt do enough right to make up a six-shot deficit. Fowler played without a bogey, made three birdies on the last four holes and shot 67. "He played awesome," Fowler said. "And it was just kind of fun to throw a few shots at him coming. To see him win was pretty cool." It was the first time two straight majors were won wire to wire. Martin Kaymer did it last month at Pinehurst No. 2, taking the U.S. Open by eight shots. McIlroy, who finished at 17-under 271, wasnt the only big winner Sunday. Ten years ago, his father and three of his friends each put up 100 pounds ($170) at 500-1 odds that McIlroy would win the British Open before he turned 26. The kid made good on the best with a brand of golf that had him marked early as golfs next great player. McIlroy moved up to No. 2 in the world, perhaps on his way to regaining the No. 1 ranking that once looked as if it would be his for years. He ended the 2012 season by winning his second major and capturing the money title on the PGA Tour and European Tour. Since then, the road has been bumpier than some of the dunes at Hoylake. McIlroy signed a megadeal with Nike and switched out all his equipment. He changed management for the second time, leading to lawsuits that are still to be decided. And after getting engaged to Caroline Wozniacki on New Years Eve, he abruptly broke off the engagement in May with a telephone call. His path to victory in The Open was much smoother. McIlroy made back-to-back bogeys on the front nine and had to save par from a pot bunker to avoid a third. But he steadied himself with a birdie on the par-3ninth, and when Garcia made a 10-foot eagle ahead of him on the 10th to cut the lead to two, McIlroy answered with a two-putt birdie. Garcia blinked when he could least afford it, leaving a shot in the bunker at No. 15 as McIlroy watched from the tee. David Hearn of Brantford, Ont., tied for 32nd place after shooting a 71. Jim Furyk was among four players who tied the course record with a 65 to finish fourth. Tiger Woods was long gone. He finished his 75 as McIlroy was still on the practice range. Woods finished 69th -- his worst finish over 72 holes in any major -- and wound up 23 shots behind, his largest deficit ever in a major. ' ' '