Vince Wilfork showed up in New England as a 21st-overall pick in 2004, looking like a mountain that had somehow learned how to play nose tackle, and the Patriots put the 325-pounder to work right away. The former Miami national champion shared time as a rookie yet still started Super Bowl XXXIX, helping close out the win over the Eagles and grabbing the first ring of his career.

The starting job became permanent in 2005. From that point forward, Wilfork locked down nose tackle and defensive tackle, the immovable object in the middle who forced offensive lines to double-team him or watch runs die at the line. He earned his first Pro Bowl in 2007 and then stacked four more consecutive selections from 2009 through 2012. The 2012 season brought first-team All-Pro recognition; that year he also piled up three sacks, four fumble recoveries, and constant pressure that made life easier for everyone behind him. Opposing centers learned early that moving him required a full committee.

The production stayed steady across the prime years. Wilfork routinely finished among the team leaders in tackles while the Patriots remained contenders. He missed most of 2013 with a torn Achilles, then returned in 2014 for one final run in New England. That season he helped the defense hold firm through the playoffs and contributed to the Super Bowl XLIX victory over Seattle. Two rings bookended his time in Foxborough, with the second arriving a decade after the first.

After the 2014 season, Wilfork left as a free agent and signed with the Houston Texans. His eleven years with the Patriots ended there. With New England, he finished with 16 sacks and 517 tackles across 158 games and 148 starts. He did that as a multi-time captain and a constant presence in the middle of the front. Off the field, he somehow made overalls look cooler than any player before or since, a human wrecking ball who treated game day and everything around it with the same unmovable presence.

Wilfork later played two seasons in Houston before retiring. The Patriots placed him in their Hall of Fame in 2022. The massive nose tackle who showed up as a champion from Miami left as one of the most reliable interior anchors of the dynasty era.