| |
|
 |
|
The
New England Patriots are a professional
football team and one of four teams in the
East Division of the American Football
Conference (AFC) of the National Football
League (NFL). The team’s name was inspired
by Boston’s role in the American Revolution
(1775-1783). Formerly known as the Boston
Patriots (1960-1970), the Patriots were
founded in 1960, as a charter American
Football League member. They joined the
National Football League in the 1970 merger.
The Patriots uniform consists of the colors
Blue, White, Red, and Silver. The helmet
design is a man's face in silhouette,
wearing a red-white-and-blue tricorn hat.
The Boston Patriots played in the first-ever
game in the American Football League,
against the Denver Broncos on September 9,
1960. In its second season in the American
Football League (AFL), the Patriots compiled
a winning record. Eleven Patriots played in
the 1963 AFL All-Star Game as head coach
Mike Holovak steered Boston to a tie for the
Eastern Division title. The team boasted
many stars, including linebackers Tom
Addison and Nick Buoniconti, wide receiver—placekicker
Gino Cappelletti, running back Jim Nance,
and quarterback Babe Parilli.The Patriots
struggled from 1964 to 1969, posting winning
records in only two of six seasons. In 1967
Nance received the league’s most valuable
player (MVP) award.
|
 |
|
The club joined the NFL in 1970,
establishing its home in Foxboro.
Because the team played its games
outside of Boston, the franchise was
renamed in 1971 as the New England
Patriots to appeal to a greater number
of fans. The Patriots fielded several
strong teams during the 1970s and 1980s,
reaching the playoffs five times from
1976 to 1986. Star players during the
period included quarterback Tony Eason,
tight end Russ Francis, future Hall of
Fame offensive guard John Hannah,
cornerback Mike Haynes, and linebacker
Steve Nelson. New England made a
remarkable turnaround in 1976, finishing
with an 11-3 win-loss record and earning
a wildcard berth to the playoffs under
head coach Chuck Fairbanks. |
|
|
The
team starred Russ Francis, John Hannah, Mike
Haynes, and Steve Nelson. In 1978, led by
second-year quarterback Steve Grogan, the
Patriots won their first NFL Eastern
Division crown. In the early 1980s, however,
New England again dropped to the bottom of
the division. The Patriots weren't
successful from 1987 to 1993, bottoming out
in 1990 with a 1-15 record. The team
rebounded in 1994 behind second-year
quarterback Drew Bledsoe, who led the NFL in
passing yards. Former New York Giants coach
Bill Parcells coached the Patriots to two
more playoff appearances in 1995 and 1996.
Powered by Bledsoe and running back Curtis
Martin, New England captured the AFC
championship in 1996 before losing in the
Super Bowl to the Green Bay Packers, 35-21.
After the loss, Parcells resigned and former
San Francisco 49ers defensive coodinator
Pete Carroll was hired to replace him.
Before the 2000 season, former Cleveland
Browns head coach Bill Belichick replaced
Carroll. Despite a 5-11 record in his first
year, Belichick built a contender that went
11-5 in 2001. |
|
The Patriots then pulled off a series of
postseason upsets, culminating in a
20-17 victory over the St. Louis Rams in
the 2002 Super Bowl. Quarterback Tom
Brady, who replaced Bledsoe early in the
season, was named the game’s most
valuable player (MVP). Brady repeated as
MVP with the Patriots’ victory in the
2004 Super Bowl. In a remarkable season,
again led by head coach Belichick, the
Patriots ran off 15 straight victories,
including the Super Bowl, the second
longest winning streak in NFL
history.The Patriots have appeared in
four Super Bowls, of which they have
only won two. This are Super Bowl XXXVI
in 2002, when they defeated the St.
Louis Rams, 20-17, and Super Bowl
XXXVIII in 2004, when they beat the
Carolina Panthers, 32-29. They lost
Super Bowl XX in 1986, to the Chicago
Bears and Super Bowl XXXI to the Green
Bay Packers, in 1997. |
|
 |
|
|
Before the 2000 season, former Cleveland
Browns head coach Bill Belichick replaced
Carroll. The Patriots Hall of Famers Nick
Buoniconti, John Hannah and Mike Haynes.Hall
of Fame Nicholas Anthony Buoniconti is a
former AFL and NFL Hall of Fame linebacker,
who played for the Boston Patriots and Miami
Dolphins.Buoniconti graduated from Notre
Dame, and was drafted by the Patriots in the
thirteenth round of the 1962 AFL draft. He
made an immediate impact with the Patriots
for, helping the team capture the 1963 AFL
Eastern Division title. With Boston, he
appeared in five AFL All-Star Games, and
recorded 24 interceptions, which is still
the seventh-most in team history. He was
later traded to the Dolphins.He was named to
the Pro Bowl in 1972 and 1973. The New
England Patriots plays its home games at
Gillette Field in Foxboro, Massachusetts.
The stadium was opened in 2000 and has a
seating capacity of 68,000. Former stadiums
include Harvard University (30,898), opened
in 1970 and Foxboro Stadium, opened in 1971-
2001. |
|
|
|
