Top 11 plays of No. 11’s career
Hats off to No. 11.
Patriots wideout Julian Edelman announced his retirement Monday, capping a remarkable 12-year NFL career. Edelman will one day be enshrined in the team’s Hall of Fame.
Until then, what better way could there be to honor him than by ranking the 11 best moments of his career?
11. Breakout in Houston
Best remembered as the game when Wes Welker tore his ACL, the Pats’ 2009 regular-season finale also featured Edelman’s arrival as a receiver. He caught 10 passes for 103 yards in a loss at the Texans, seeing a game-high 16 targets from Tom Brady. He followed that outing with a two-touchdown performance the next week in a Wild Card loss to Baltimore.
10. Killing the Colts
Five catches for 58 yards and one touchdown. A 47-yard rush. One punt return for a touchdown, and a forced fumble in kick coverage.
What else could Edelman possibly do on a football field, other than what he achieved during a 2012 rout of Indianapolis? More on that later.
9. Cruising against the Chiefs
Returned from a broken foot in January 2016, Edelman matched a career postseason best with 10 catches over a divisional-round triumph against Kansas City. Brady targeted Edelman four times on the opening drive of the receiver’s first game in months, proving their connection hadn’t rusted during Edelman’s time away.
8. Mr. Do-it-all
Desperate for defensive help in 2011, Bill Belichick converted his scrappy receiver/returner into a backup corner. Edelman recorded 18 tackles and two QB hits in the regular season, before playing both sides and logging 27 defensive snaps in the AFC Championship Game, when he covered Pro Bowl Ravens wideout Anquan Boldin.
7. Smash in postseason
As the Patriots’ run game and defense obliterated the Chargers throughout a 2019 divisional-round win, Edelman kept himself busy by making history. By the final gun, he’d become the NFL’s second all-time leader in career postseason receptions, moved into the league’s top 10 for career playoff receiving yards and became the first Patriot with five 100yard receiving games in the postseason.
6. Clutch in KC
One week later, Edelman played 93 offensive snaps in an AFC Championship classic at Kansas City. Six of his seven receptions moved the chains, including four spread over the fourth quarter and overtime. Without his work over the middle, the Pats fall short in their quest for a sixth Super Bowl.
5. The 94-yard punt return TD
For a second straight year, Edelman punctuated the Pats’ regular season with a memorable performance in Jan. 2011. This time, during a beatdown of the Dolphins, he broke the franchise record for longest punt return with a 94-yard score, his first return touchdown as a Patriot.
4. First double pass
Down by eight in a heated battle with the Ravens, the Pats called Edelman’s number in the second half with a double pass. Taking Brady’s heave left behind the line of scrimmage, Edelman uncorked a perfect 51-yard parabola to a wide-open Danny Amendola, who sent Gillette Stadium shaking as he crossed the goal line. It was the first and only playoff completion of Edelman’s career.
3. MVP
The only offensive player to shine in the lowest-scoring Super Bowl ever, Edelman finished with 10 catches for 141 yards. The Rams simply couldn’t cover him; no matter the play, the route, his alignment or assignment.
2. Super Bowl XLIX winner
Down by three at Seattle’s 3-yard line with 2:06 remaining. Whip route. Left flat. Seahawks cornerback Tharold Simon didn’t stand a chance. Touchdown, Edelman.
1. The Super Bowl catch
Equal parts magnificent and miraculous, Edelman’s diving, finger-tip catch with less than three minutes left in regulation of Super Bowl LI captured everything about that game in a single play. It is indisputably one of the greatest plays in NFL history.