Indianapolis Colts

He's usually flawless under pressure, but future Hall-of-Fame kicker Adam Vinatieri WENT DOWN like a sack of potatoes during a field goal kick in NYC yesterday.

The Indianapolis Colts player was a Super Bowl event where he was supposed to put one through the uprights for a bunch of excited fans ... but when he went to plant his foot, things took a turn.

Of course, Adam got up like a champ ... and don't worry, he still made the kick.

Some guys give their wives diamonds when they give birth ... but Indianapolis Colts player Antoine Bethea just set the bar even higher ... lavishing his fiancee with a super tricked-out BMW.

Antoine tells TMZ ... he bought the 2013 BMW X6 to celebrate the birth of their daughter (that's called a push present, guys) and his fiancee's birthday ... then had the whip completely rebuilt.

Sources close to the customizing shop say the car has about $30K worth of modifications, including:

-body lowered 3 inches
-custom grill
-smoked head and tail lights
-customized bumpers
-powder coated black rims

And the sickest part of all ... lighted projectors in the doors that project the BMW logo onto the ground when the doors are open.

BMW. The ultimate birthing machine.

No offense to Cleveland, but Trent Richardson is in a better place now ... and the Browns probably did him a huge favor when they unloaded their star player -- this according to another former first round draft pick, Eddie George.

Eddie says the Browns' decision to trade away Richardson -- their first round pick from a year ago -- was "shocking to me. They went up and got him, and now they're reneging on the draft pick."

But Eddie adds ... Trent should be excited 'cause, well ... he's playing with a winner now.

"They might have done him a favor actually. Sending him with Andrew Luck ... I think he's in a good situation there."

Andrew Luck has the better record ... Robert Griffin III has the flash ... but when it comes to the NFL Rookie of the Year award, it's like "Highlander" ... there can be only one.

So, who deserves it? We ran into Indianapolis Colts superstar Dwight Freeney on the streets of NYC yesterday ... and though you might expect him to lean a certain way, he told us, "Both of those guys ... too much talent ... those guys have too much talent."

Indianapolis Colts head coach Chuck Pagano has been diagnosed with a treatable form of leukemia, the team announced today, and will miss several games to receive treatment.

Colts owner Jim Irsay made the announcement at a news conference today, saying, "He is ready to take this fight on and he is a fighter."

Pagano, 51, had been experiencing what he believed to be fatigue, but a blood test revealed he was suffering from leukemia. He has been receiving treatment in the intensive care unit at an Indianapolis-area hospital since Wednesday.

Bruce Arians, the team's offensive coordinator, will serve as the interim coach in Pagano's absence.