Mr. Clutch

Another member of the Patriot dynasty announced his retirement today. Kevin Faulk. #33. Before there was Wes Welker, there was Kevin Faulk. Whenever Brady needed a first down, he looked to Faulk. He made some of the biggest plays on a team of big plays.

I have Faulk ranked as the ninth most important player during the Pats' dynasty. He really was the role player who played every role perfectly. Need a big first down? Throw it to Faulk. Need a block to stop the blitz? Keep him in the backfield just in front of Brady. Need a sure-handed kick returner with the game on the line? Kevin Faulk is your guy. No matter what Bill Belichick needed, Kevin Faulk was always his guy. Even on the infamous 4th-and-2 against the Colts that to this day I still believe Faulk got. Even if you needed a blunt at a Lil' Wayne concert, Kevin Faulk was your guy for that too.

ESPNBoston's Mike Reiss has a good piece on the retirement ceremony. Belichick called him the hardest worker and ultimate team player. Brady called him clutch.

Kevin Faulk looked like he was 40 when he was first taken by the Pats in the second round of the 1999 NFL draft. He was the best decision  then-GM Bobby Grier ever made. Faulk was a star at LSU, finishing his career with the SEC record for all-purpose yards. (A record Tebow broke). That sums up Kevin Faulk ... all-purpose yards. He was as dangerous on the draw play as he was on the screen pass as he was on the kick return. He could get you a tough first down on 3rd-and-2 or take a short pass 40 yards on 1st-and-10. He could bull his way over a tackler or make an acrobatic finger-tip grab and never break stride. Faulk was one of those players who was like having an extra coach on your team. The Pats had a ton of those guys. That's how you win Super Bowls.

The Pats have had a lot of players that have been a lot of fun to root for in the past decade. Not for the rest of the NFL, of course. But if you were a Pats' fan it was a blast to root for Tedy, Rodney, Ty, Willie, Corey, Brady, Welker, Randy, Troy, Vrabel, Vince, and on and on. They were just easy players to like. None more so than Kevin Faulk.

Thanks, #33.