Though he became the 10th all-time scorer in NFL history, kicker Robbie Gould had a short-lived but fruitful time with the New England Patriots.
Gould,41, announced his retirement on Thursday via his story in The Players’ Tribune. He spent 18 seasons in the league — mostly with the Chicago Bears, New York Giants, and San Francisco 49ers.
A former Penn State standout, Gould signed his first NFL contract with the Patriots as an undrafted free agent in 2005. The Patriots didn’t have a serious need for a kicker at the time due to Adam Vinatieri.
Robbie Gould and Adam Vinatieri at #Patriots training camp in 2005.
“Coming off a 2005 Super Bowl victory, New England was the perfect team for me to learn anything and everything about how to win in the NFL,” Gould wrote. “Upon arrival, it took me a minute to process that I was in the same room with a team and players I had rooted for as a kid.”
Gould grew up in Pennsylvania before his collegiate career at Penn State where he scored 232 points in four years. He went on to score 1,961 career points in 18 NFL seasons.
“Future Hall of Famer Adam Vinatieri was my mentor,” Gould continued. “There was no obligation for him to take me under his wing, but from the moment I walked into that facility, I immediately felt welcomed.”
“In addition to Adam, all the leaders on that Pats team — Josh Miller, Lonie Paxton, Tom Brady, Mike Vrabel, Rodney Harrison, Tedy Bruschi — provided me with a top-level introduction to the league,” Gould added. “More importantly, they instilled in me the importance of all the little details that lead to winning at the highest level.”
Robbie Gould Says Patriots Shaped ‘Trajectory’ of His Career
He was only supposed to live until his 3rd birthday. Last week Robbie Gould surprised Chase with two tickets to the Super Bowl for his 9th birthday 🙏
(via @49ers)
Gould’s stay in New England lasted into the 2005 preseason when the Patriots released him. It shaped him nonetheless for the following 18 seasons.
“Had my career not started in New England with Bill Belichick, Brad Seely, and the Kraft family, I wholeheartedly believe that it wouldn’t have taken the same trajectory that it did,” Gould wrote.
While Gould then had a short-lived stint with the Baltimore Ravens, he found a home with the Bears for 11 seasons from 2005 to 2015. Gould then played a year for the Giants in 2016 followed by six years with the 49ers from 2017 to 2022.
According to ESPN’s Mike Reiss, Belichick wished he had kept Gould. Vinatieri left for the Indianapolis Colts a year later in free agency, but the Patriots filled the void with Stephen Gostkowski in the 2006 NFL Draft.
Robbie Gould Revealed How Ex-Patriots Coach Brad Seeley Changed His Kicking Technique
In a 2016 interview, Gould revealed that Seeley played a major role in making his career a success. Gould broke the habit of looking at the football “as it went from the snapper to the holder” because of Seeley, according to Reiss.
“I just remember being young, trying to learn from those guys, and I thought, ‘If I’m going to learn, I’m going to learn from the best.’ Even if it never worked out, there are things they do as leaders that you’re going to take on into the next job, whatever it is you’re going to do,” Gould said via Reiss.
“They really taught me how to kick in the NFL, taught me what it was like to do kickoffs, learn get-off times, watch film, learn schemes, and understand what you have to do to play long term,” Gould continued. “Even though it wouldn’t be a situation where I’d always play here, they took a vested interest in me going somewhere else.”
Because of Seeley’s help Gould hit 86.5% of his field goals and 97.5% of his extra points in his NFL career.
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Former Patriots Kicker Announces Retirement