49 Fun Facts About New England Patriots

Which Boston business executive was awarded the eighth and final AFL franchise on November 16, 1959?

Billy Sullivan, a Boston business executive, was awarded the eighth and final AFL franchise on 16 November 1959; the Boston Patriots name came from a fan contest.

The Patriots' 1971 Foxborough stadium originally carried which beer company's name?

Schaefer Stadium, named for the F&M Schaefer Brewing Company, which bought the naming rights, opened in Foxborough in 1971 with seating for about 60,000.

The Patriots' logo from 1961 to 1992 showed a Revolutionary War minuteman doing what?

Pat Patriot, the logo used from 1961 to 1992, drew a minuteman in a three-point stance. Hiking a football was the pose, and the design later gave its name to the team mascot.

The Patriots' logo unveiled in 1993 is popularly known by what nickname?

The Flying Elvis nickname stuck because fans thought the gray minuteman's face, with its streaming red, white and blue hat, resembled a young Elvis Presley.

Which team crushed the Patriots 46-10 in Super Bowl XX?

The Chicago Bears, with Richard Dent as MVP and William 'The Refrigerator' Perry scoring a touchdown, routed New England 46-10 after the Patriots had won three road playoff games as a wild card.

Which Patriots quarterback replaced a struggling Tony Eason during Super Bowl XX?

Steve Grogan replaced Tony Eason, who went 0-for-6, in the second quarter of Super Bowl XX and threw the Patriots' only touchdown pass, to Irving Fryar.

Who was the first special-teams Super Bowl MVP, with a 99-yard kickoff return in Super Bowl XXXI?

Desmond Howard returned a kickoff 99 yards for a touchdown in the Packers' 35-21 win, the first special-teams player named Super Bowl MVP.

Which head coach left the Patriots for a division rival after Super Bowl XXXI, refusing even to fly home with the team?

Bill Parcells, feuding with Robert Kraft over personnel control, quit after Super Bowl XXXI to coach a division rival and flew home from New Orleans separately from the team.

Robert Kraft bought the Patriots in which year?

Robert Kraft bought the Patriots in 1994 for $172 million from James Orthwein, who had planned to move the team to St. Louis.

Before New England, Bill Belichick was head coach of which team from 1991 to 1995?

Bill Belichick coached the Cleveland Browns from 1991 to 1995, going 36-44 with one playoff trip, and was fired after the franchise's move to Baltimore was announced.

In December 2024, Bill Belichick was named head football coach of which university?

Bill Belichick was hired by North Carolina in December 2024, his first college head-coaching job, succeeding Mack Brown as coach of the Tar Heels.

With which overall pick of the 2000 NFL draft did the Patriots take Tom Brady?

Tom Brady went 199th overall, in the sixth round of the 2000 draft, behind six other quarterbacks, including Giovanni Carmazzi and Spergon Wynn.

Tom Brady played his college football for which school?

Tom Brady played at Michigan from 1995 to 1999, starting his final two seasons and beating Alabama 35-34 in overtime in the January 2000 Orange Bowl.

Whose injury in 2001 opened the door for Tom Brady to become the Patriots' starter?

Drew Bledsoe suffered a sheared blood vessel in his chest from a Mo Lewis hit in week two of 2001, and Tom Brady kept the job when Bledsoe was fit again.

Who was the Boston Patriots' first head coach when they began play in 1960?

Lou Saban coached the Boston Patriots from their 1960 debut until he was fired five games into 1961 and replaced by Mike Holovak; Saban later won two AFL titles with Buffalo.

Which Raiders defender's hit on Tom Brady triggered the Tuck Rule ruling?

Charles Woodson's corner blitz knocked the ball loose, but referee Walt Coleman ruled on replay that Brady's arm had been moving forward, making it an incomplete pass.

Super Bowl XXXVI, the Patriots' first title, was the first Super Bowl ever played in which month?

Super Bowl XXXVI fell on 3 February 2002 because the schedule slid a week after the September 11 attacks; the Patriots chose to be introduced as a team rather than individually.

By how many points were the Rams favoured over the Patriots in Super Bowl XXXVI?

The Rams, the 'Greatest Show on Turf', were favoured by 14 points, yet Ty Law's 47-yard interception return for a touchdown helped the Patriots lead 17-3 in the third quarter.

Adam Vinatieri won Super Bowl XXXVI with a field goal on the final play from how many yards?

Adam Vinatieri's 48-yard field goal as time expired beat the Rams 20-17, the first Super Bowl decided on the final play; two years later his 41-yarder beat the Panthers.

Adam Vinatieri played his college football at which school?

Adam Vinatieri kicked at South Dakota State, then a Division II school in Brookings, went undrafted and joined the Patriots in 1996 after a season with the Amsterdam Admirals.

Which two performers were involved in the Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime 'wardrobe malfunction'?

Janet Jackson and Justin Timberlake ended their halftime duet with the exposure that brought CBS a $550,000 FCC fine, later thrown out in court; the Patriots beat the Panthers 32-29.

Which receiver was Super Bowl XXXIX MVP with a record-tying 11 catches against the Eagles?

Deion Branch caught 11 passes for 133 yards in the 24-21 win over Philadelphia, tying Dan Ross and Jerry Rice's Super Bowl record, and was named MVP without scoring.

Gillette Stadium, opened in 2002, was originally known by what name?

CMGI Field was the name sold to internet company CMGI before the 2002 opening; after the dot-com bust that deal was scrapped and Gillette bought the naming rights.

What structure at Gillette Stadium reaches 218 feet and offers 360-degree views of Foxborough?

A lighthouse 218 feet tall, topped by an observation deck, was built at the north end of Gillette Stadium in a 2023 renovation, replacing the stadium's original smaller lighthouse.

Which receiver set an NFL record with 23 touchdown catches for the 2007 Patriots?

Randy Moss caught 23 touchdown passes in 2007, breaking Jerry Rice's 1987 mark of 22, while Tom Brady threw a then-record 50 touchdown passes and won his first MVP.

Who ended the 2007 Patriots' perfect season in Super Bowl XLII?

The New York Giants won 17-14 after David Tyree's helmet catch kept the winning drive alive, leaving the Patriots 18-1 after an 18-0 start.

The 2007 'Spygate' penalty punished the Patriots for videotaping which team's sideline signals?

The New York Jets, coached by former Patriots assistant Eric Mangini, were the team taped in the 2007 opener; the NFL fined Belichick $500,000 and took a first-round pick.

Which undrafted rookie's goal-line interception with 20 seconds left sealed Super Bowl XLIX?

Malcolm Butler, an undrafted rookie from West Alabama, jumped Russell Wilson's slant to Ricardo Lockette at the goal line, moments after Jermaine Kearse's juggling catch had set up first-and-goal.

Which pop star opened the Super Bowl XLIX halftime show riding a giant golden mechanical lion?

Katy Perry rode in on a giant golden lion to 'Roar' and later shared the stage with Lenny Kravitz and Missy Elliott, with the dancing 'Left Shark' stealing the show.

How many games was Tom Brady suspended over Deflategate?

Four games was the suspension the NFL imposed in May 2015; a judge voided it for 2015, but the Second Circuit reinstated it and Brady sat out the first four games of 2016.

Deflategate stemmed from the January 2015 AFC Championship Game against which opponent?

The Indianapolis Colts, beaten 45-7 that day, had alerted the league; linebacker D'Qwell Jackson's interception produced the ball that was checked at halftime.

From what deficit did the Patriots come back to win Super Bowl LI against Atlanta?

Down 28-3 midway through the third quarter, the Patriots scored 31 unanswered points, helped by Julian Edelman's catch off a defender's shoe, in the first Super Bowl to reach overtime.

Super Bowl LI, the 34-28 overtime win, was played in which city?

NRG Stadium in Houston hosted Super Bowl LI in 2017, where Brady, 39, became the oldest Super Bowl MVP to that point and Lady Gaga headlined halftime.

Who scored the only touchdown in the Patriots' 13-3 Super Bowl LIII win over the Rams?

Sony Michel's two-yard run with seven minutes left was the game's only touchdown; Julian Edelman was MVP with 10 catches for 141 yards.

The Patriots' sixth Super Bowl title tied them for the most in NFL history with which franchise?

The Pittsburgh Steelers had won six, the last in the 2008 season, when the Patriots' title for 2018 made it six apiece; New England's came in 2001, 2003, 2004, 2014, 2016 and 2018.

Rob Gronkowski's 17 receiving touchdowns in 2011 set the single-season record for which position?

Tight end Rob Gronkowski, the 42nd pick of the 2010 draft out of Arizona, caught 17 touchdown passes in 2011, beating the tight-end record of 13 shared by Antonio Gates and Vernon Davis.

Which guard, drafted from Alabama in 1973, was the first Patriots player in the Pro Football Hall of Fame?

John Hannah, the fourth overall pick in 1973, played 13 seasons at left guard for New England and entered the Hall of Fame in 1991, his first year of eligibility.

Tom Brady left the Patriots in March 2020 to sign with which team?

Tom Brady signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on 20 March 2020 and won Super Bowl LV with them that season, while the Patriots went 7-9 under Cam Newton.

How many times was Tom Brady named Super Bowl MVP?

Five Super Bowl MVP awards went to Tom Brady, for Super Bowls XXXVI, XXXVIII, XLIX, LI and LV; he also won league MVP in 2007, 2010 and 2017.

Which quarterback did the Patriots take third overall in the 2024 NFL draft?

Drake Maye went third overall in April 2024, behind Caleb Williams and Jayden Daniels, after a 4-13 season in 2023 that ended Bill Belichick's 24-year tenure.

Who did the Patriots hire as head coach in January 2025 after firing Jerod Mayo?

Mike Vrabel, a linebacker on three Patriots Super Bowl winners, was hired on 12 January 2025 after coaching the Tennessee Titans from 2018 to 2023.

Which team beat the Patriots 29-13 in Super Bowl LX?

It was New England's twelfth Super Bowl appearance and first since the 2018 season.

When the AFL and NFL merged in 1970, the Patriots were placed in which division?

The AFC East was the Patriots' division from the 1970 realignment, when the ten AFL clubs joined three NFL teams to form the American Football Conference; the club became New England in 1971.

Which newspaper artist created the original 'Pat Patriot' logo?

Phil Bissell of The Boston Globe drew Pat Patriot in 1960, right after a fan contest chose 'Boston Patriots' as the team's name.

What geographic name did the team briefly adopt in 1971 before the NFL rejected it?

Bay State Patriots was the name announced early in 1971, but the NFL rejected it (fans had already shortened it to 'B.S. Patriots'), and the club became the New England Patriots on 22 March 1971.

How did the owner let fans judge a proposed new logo at a 1979 home game?

A sound level meter gauged the crowd's cheers for each design at a 1979 home game; fans roared louder for Pat Patriot, and the proposed streamlined minuteman was dropped.

Which head coach led the Patriots to Super Bowl XX after taking over in 1984?

Raymond Berry, a Hall of Fame receiver, replaced Ron Meyer midway through 1984; his 1985 team went 11-5 and won three road playoff games to reach Super Bowl XX.

Which Major League Soccer club began playing at Gillette Stadium alongside the Patriots in 2002?

The New England Revolution, an MLS charter club from 1996, is owned like the Patriots by the Kraft Group and moved into Gillette Stadium when it opened in 2002.

What is the nickname of the 'Rivalries' uniform unveiled in 2025 for AFC East home games?

Its Storm Blue base carries six red stars along the neckline, one for each New England state.