Pat McAfee, let me tell y’all, ain’t just no regular football player. This man here was out there puntin’ like nobody’s business. Started up in college, Pat was kickin’ for West Virginia. It ain’t like he was just messin’ around, either – this man had a leg on him, gettin’ attention from all kinds of folks. So when draft time came in 2009, lo and behold, he got picked up by the Indianapolis Colts. They scooped him up right there in the seventh round.
Now, Pat ain’t your regular punter, no sir. Right in his rookie year, he got the taste of the big lights, playin’ in Super Bowl XLIV. Now, Colts ain’t win that game – them New Orleans Saints got ’em good – but just makin’ it to the Super Bowl in his first year? That’s sayin’ somethin’. Man knew how to handle that football, and he kept doin’ it for eight good years with the Colts.
Pat didn’t just stay quiet, nah. By 2014, he was out here shinin’. He got into the Pro Bowl twice and even got himself named All-Pro once. Folks in the NFL started really knowin’ his name, not just as a punter but as a whole character. He’s a funny guy, y’know, and that ain’t common in them sports circles.
- Drafted: 2009, seventh round
- Team: Indianapolis Colts
- Career Span: 2009 – 2016
- Pro Bowls: 2
- All-Pro: 1
But like they say, all good things got an end. Pat had himself some troubles – knee troubles, to be exact. All that puntin’ and kickin’ ain’t easy on the joints, especially when you gotta deal with surgeries. After his third knee surgery, he had to take a real hard look at his career. It wasn’t just his knee, though; turns out, he wasn’t on the best terms with his manager back then, Ryan Grigson. Y’know, when the relationship goes sour like that, sometimes you just gotta walk away.
And that’s what he did in 2016, hung up them cleats, but Pat didn’t just fade away. He jumped into a whole new thing with his The Pat McAfee Show. He got some friends together, and they got to talkin’ sports, doin’ all kinds of funny stuff. And let me tell ya, it took off. Folk love hearin’ him talk – he got that charm, y’know?
Now folks talk about his career earnings too. Over them eight years, Pat pulled in close to $14.8 million – that’s about $1.85 million each year. Not too shabby for a punter, huh? He wasn’t your regular player, and he ain’t been a regular guy since he stepped off that field.
So that’s Pat McAfee for ya, a punter turned star, turnin’ his own path with that big personality. He’s still out here shinin’, makin’ folks laugh and keepin’ that football spirit alive in a whole new way.
Tags：Pat McAfee, NFL career, Indianapolis Colts, Pro Bowl, All-Pro, Pat McAfee Show
