Playoff Dola. Danny Playoffs. Professional model. Clutch football player. A thorn in Bill Belichick’s side. Call him what you will, Daniel “Danny” James Amendola has had a remarkable football journey, and now his professional playing portion has come to a close.
Belichick speaks ahead of start of training camp
Thirteen seasons, five teams, three Super Bowl appearances and two rings later, he retires a folk hero in New England for his big catches and gutsy performances on the biggest stages for the Patriots in the second half of their double dynastic run. While his overall stats are not worthy of the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton (he never topped 689 receiving yards in a season), he should be a no doubter for the Patriots Hall of Fame.
An undrafted free agent out of Texas Tech University, just like the player he was signed to replace in New England, Wes Welker, Amendola never became the next “slot machine” in New England. He had an outstanding debut for the Patriots, with 10 catches for 104 yards, helping lead the Pats to a tougher than imagined win over the Bills.
Amendola, who was a bit fragile at times -- though his all-out style and slight frame could have contributed to that -- tore his groin off the bone, compromising his first season in Foxborough. His teammate, Julian Edelman, rose to the occasion of go-to third-down guy that year, leaving Amendola to try to find a niche role with the Pats. Come 2014 postseason did he ever. And thus the legend of Playoff Dola was born.
There’s perhaps his most memorable play, “The Pass” -- the option throw from Edelman that electrified Gillette Stadium and sparked the comeback vs. the Baltimore Ravens in one of the most thrilling Divisional Round games this century. One might say it’s the most important pass not thrown by Tom Brady in Pats history. Amendola also caught a huge touchdown in Super Bowl 49, part of New England’s furious comeback in the first of two improbable Super Bowl wins.
In Super Bowl 51, Amendola made his mark on the greatest postseason comeback in NFL history with eight receptions for 78 yards, a touchdown, a two-point conversion to send it to overtime, and a 4th & 3 conversion that goes often overlooked.
The next season, with Julian Edelman out for the year with a torn ACL, Amendola, along with Chris Hogan, stepped up to fill in for Brady’s security blanket, putting on his signature performance as a Patriot in yet another remarkable Patriots postseason comeback, this time against the Jacksonville Jaguars in the AFC Championship.
His seven-catch, 84-yard performance was highlighted by two touchdown catches, one a nifty toe-drag back of the endzone snag with less than three minutes left to win the game. But perhaps his 3rd & 18 reception to keep the game-winning drive alive is his best catch for New England. Just one of many times the Pats and Brady needed someone to step up and step up big, and there was all 5’ 11” of Amendola.
Following the Patriots’ heartbreaking loss to the Eagles in Super Bowl 52, where Amendola went off for eight catches and 152 of Brady’s 505 passing yards, Playoff Dola was done in New England. He had taken three paycuts over the course of his five-year stint with the Pats, with some wondering if he’d take a reduction in salary for another chance at the championship (his initial deal in 2013 was five years, $30 million).
He signed a two-year deal worth $12 million, more importantly with $8.25 million guaranteed, with the rival Dolphins, though he only played one season there. The Patriots went on to win their final Super Bowl with Tom Brady that season, but Amendola left for a bigger payday. There were rumors of clashes with Belichick, whom Amendola called “the best coach to ever coach the game” and also an “a**h**e” in an interview with ESPN’s Mike Reiss back in 2018.
Gronk told Amendola to have fun and “be free” in his Instagram farewell to Dola that spring, a theme that would recur again and again with championship players leaving New England over the next few seasons. When those departures reached their tipping point with Brady taking his talents to Tampa, Amendola sided with his former QB and good friend in the divorce.
We’ve just come to accept that most players don’t retire a Patriot and get the “Foxboro Forever” farewell like Julian Edelman. Usually it ends with some acrimony, a sudden trade or a contract disagreement between said player and Bill Belichick. The hope is time heals all wounds and a mutual appreciation of accomplishment and success during their time with the Pats can be shared one day soon. Nobody knows exactly where the Amendola relationship with Belichick and the Patriots sits, but there’s no disputing it was an incredibly successful half decade together, regardless of what expectations were when he joined the team, departing the St. Louis Rams for Foxboro in the spring of 2013.
When you think New England Patriots and the 20-year run of success and Super Bowls, as far as players go, Tom Brady will always come first to mind. Then likely Gronk and Julian Edelman. In that next wave of players integral to multiple playoff appearances and Super Bowl championships, an argument can be made that Danny Amendola, alongside the likes of Deion Branch, could enter the equation for next players that come to mind, given his massive contributions.
Looking past how it ended and back to how successful it was between player and team should be easy for the organization. As should recognizing how important Danny Amendola was to five straight playoff runs, three Super Bowl appearances and two of the unlikeliest championships of all time. A handsome man who moonlights as a professional model, Amendola looks good in just about anything he wears. Here’s hoping Danny Playoffs gets a well deserved chance to look sharp sporting a red jacket on the field at Gillette Stadium some day soon.
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