Danny Amendola calls it a career.
The former New England Patriots wide receiver announced his retirement on Monday after 13 years in the NFL. He was signed by the Dallas Cowboys in 2008 as an unwritten free agent and has earned opportunities with the St. Louis Rams, Patriots, Miami Dolphins, Detroit Lions, and Houston Texans – although he will be most remembered for his time at Foxborough.
“I love Danny,” Patriots head coach Bill Belichick said during his media availability Tuesday morning.
“He was a very good player for us. He had a lot of talent, played mainly inside but could also play outside, could come back, very smart, tough, reliable, good hands, concentration – just a good footballer. Glad we got him here and he’s certainly made a big contribution for us.
Amendola had 617 receptions for 6,212 receiving yards and 24 touchdowns, playing in 163 NFL games with 76 starts.
His longest tenure came in New England, where he suited up perfectly as a closing and special team receiver, catching 230 passes for 2,383 yards and, not to mention multiple clutches plays en route to wins. in the Super Bowl against the Seattle Seahawks and the Atlanta Falcons.
“Very reliable, He was tough. He blocked. We were lucky to have good players in that position,” Belichick said, noting receivers such as Troy Brown, Wes Welker, Julian Edelman, and Jakobi. Meyers.
“The guys that have played there have been different, but they’ve all been prolific and all brought the same common characteristics inside the receiver.
It’s been a very productive place for us over the years, through a lot of different types of plays, quarterbacks, play calls, and defenses. We’ve been very, very lucky with the players we’ve had here, but Danny is definitely high in this group.”
In 13 postseason games, all for the Patriots, Amendola had 57 receptions for 709 yards and six touchdowns to earn the nickname “Playoff Danny”.
Not bad for a player who entered the league below par, was no good, and bounced between two practice squads before finally falling in favor of the Rams.
“It was better than I could have imagined,” Amendola said, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter, who said the 36-year-old was open to pursuing other, different interests.
Amendola signed a contract with Ford Models in 2017 and was featured in Architectural Digest last year for his interest in interior design and showing off his unique home in Austin, Texas.
He will certainly continue to indulge in this kind of hobby, but it wouldn’t be a surprise if he follows in Edelman’s footsteps and drips into sports programming.
