New England Patriots

My All Time Favorite New England Patriots Players

Prior to 1993, the New England Patriots were one of the laughingstocks of the entire NFL. The team had a small degree of the success in the mid 1970s but outside of a lone Super Bowl appearance after the 1985 season, the Patriots were a franchise stuck in the proverbial mud. Those aforementioned teams had some solid players, but few if any were considered the best in team history. Enter Bill Parcells. After the Tuna left the team, the foundation for success was in place. Parcells acquired some of the greatest Patriots ever including Ty Law, Drew Bledsoe, Adam Vinatieri and Tedy Bruschi.

It wasn’t until Bill Belichick took over at the beginning of the 2000 season that many of the best Patriots players in team history started playing for the team. Tom Brady isn’t only considered one of the greatest players in Patriots history, but one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time. Randy Moss, Troy Brown, Wes Welker, Rodney Harrison and Richard Seymour are considered the top players in Patriots history and all played for the team under the Belichick era. The team nearly made history in 2007 when the Patriots won every single game they played until a shocking Super Bowl defeat to the New York Giants ended their hopes of being the second undefeated team in NFL history.

The New England Patriots are the latest dynasty in the NFL. Tom Brady and Bill Belichek have brought the Patriots to new heights.

OFFENSE

QUARTERBACKS

Tom Brady

Tom Brady - New England Patriots

2000 Bowman #236 Rookie Card

 

RUNNING BACKS

Curtis Martin

Curtis Martin - New England Patriots

1995 Upper Deck SP #18 Rookie Card

 

Jim Nance

Jim Nance - Boston Patriots

1968 Topps #72 Rookie Card

 

Sam Cunningham

Sam Cunningham - Patriots

1974 Topps #502 Rookie Card

 

WIDE RECEIVERS

Stanley Morgan

Stanley Morgan - New England Patriots

1978 Topps #361 Rookie Card

 

Irving Fryar

Irving Fryar - New England Patriots

1985 Topps #325 Rookie Card

 

WR – Gino Cappelletti (1960-1970)

 

TIGHT ENDS

TE – Ben Coates (1991-1999)

 

Russ Francis

Russ Francis - New England Patriots

1976 Topps #136 Rookie Card

 

OFFENSIVE LINEMEN

OT – Bruce Armstrong (1987-2000)

 

John Hannah

John Hannah - New England Patriots

1974 Topps #383 Rookie Card

 

Jon Morris

Jon Morris - Boston Patriots

1965 Topps #14 – Boston Patriots

 

Logan Mankins

Logan Mankins - New England Patriots

2005 Upper Deck #159 Rookie Card

 

Tom Neville

Tom Neville - Patriots

1970 Topps #161 Rookie Card

 

DEFENSE

DEFENSIVE LINEMEN

Houston Antwine

Houston Antwine - Boston Patriots

1964 Topps #2 Rookie Card

 

DT – Jim Lee Hunt (1960-1971)

 

Richard Seymour

Richard Seymour - New England Patriots

2001 Topps #360 Rookie Card

 

Julius Adams

Julius Adams - Patriots

1972 Topps #97 Rookie Card

 

LINEBACKERS

LB – Willie McGinnest (1994-2005)

 

Andre Tippett

Andre Tippett - New England Patriots

1984 Topps #143 Rookie Card

 

Nick Buoniconti

Nick Buoniconti - Boston Patriots

1963 Fleer #10 Rookie Card

 

Steve Nelson

Steve Nelson - New England Patriots

1978 Topps #116 Rookie Card

 

DEFENSIVE BACKS

Ty Law

Ty Law - New England Patriots

1995 Upper Deck SP #174 Rookie Card

 

CB – Michael Haynes (1976-1982)

Raymond Clayborn

Raymond Clayborn - New England Patriots

1978 Topps #158 Rookie Card

 

Ronnie Lippett

Ronnie Lippett - New England Patriots

1987 Topps #109 Rookie Card

 

Lawyer Milloy

Lawyer Milloy - New England Patriots

1996 Upper Deck SP #162 Rookie Card

 

Fred Marion

Fred Marion - New England Patriots

1986 Topps #42 Rookie Card

 

SPECIAL TEAMS

Adam Vinitieri

Adam Vinatieri - New England Patriots

1997 Pacific Philadelphia #199 Rookie Card

 

Rich Camarillo

Rich Camarillo - New England Patriots

1983 Topps #327 Rookie Card

 

PR – Troy Brown

Troy Brown - New England Patriots

1986 Action Packed #220 Rookie Card

 

KR – Larry Garron (1960-1967)

HEAD COACH

Bill Belichick

Bill Belichick - Cleveland Browns - New England Patriots

1991 Pro Set #126 Rookie Coach Card

 

 

The New England Patriots were founded in 1960 as the Boston Patriots as a charter member of the AFL. The New England Patriots were a good football team over the years. However, they were unable to win a Championship until Bill Belichek became the head coach, and Tom Brady took over for the injured Drew Bledsoe. The Patriots are now considered a dynasty for their play this decade with three Super Bowl Championships.

 

NICKNAME

  • Named Patriots because of Boston’s heritage as the birthplace of the American Revolution.

TEAM NAMES

  • Boston Patriots (1960-1970)
  • New England Patriots (1971-Present)

HEAD COACHES

  • Lou Saban (1960-1961)
  • Mike Holovak (1961-1968)
  • Clive Rush (1969-1970)
  • John Mazur (1970-1972)
  • Phil Bengtson (1972)
  • Chuck Fairbanks (1973-1978)
  • Ron Erhardt (1979-1981)
  • Ron Meyer (1982-1984)
  • Raymond Berry (1984-1989)
  • Rod Rust (1990)
  • Dick MacPherson (1991-1992)
  • Bill Parcells (1993-1996)
  • Pete Carroll (1997-1999)
  • Bill Belichick (2000-Present)

SUPER BOWL CHAMPIONS

  • Super Bowl XXXVI (2001) – New England Patriots defeat St. Louis Rams 20-17
  • Super Bowl XXXVIII (2003) – New England Patriots defeat Carolina Panthers 32-29
  • Super Bowl XXXIX (2004) – New England Patriots defeat Philadelphia Eagles 24-21
  • Super Bowl XLIX (2014)New England Patriots defeat Seattle Seahawks 28-24
  • Super Bowl LI (2016) – New England Patriots defeat Atlanta Falcons  34-28 (OT)
  • Super Bowl LII (2018)New England Patriots defeat Los Angeles Rams 13-3

AFL CHAMPIONS (PRE-1966)

  • None

SUPER BOWL APPEARANCES

  • Super Bowl XX (1985) – New England Patriots vs. Chicago Bears
  • Super Bowl XXXI (1996) – New England Patriots vs. Green Bay Packers
  • Super Bowl XXXVI (2001) – New England Patriots vs. St. Louis Rams
  • Super Bowl XXXVIII (2003) – New England Patriots vs. Carolina Panthers
  • Super Bowl XXXIX (2004) – New England Patriots vs. Philadelphia Eagles
  • Super Bowl XLII (2007) – New England Patriots vs. New York Giants
  • Super Bowl XLVI (2011) – New England Patriots vs. New York Giants
  • Super Bowl XLIX (2014) – New England Patriots vs. Seattle Seahawks
  • Super Bowl LI (2016) – New England Patriots vs. Atlanta Falcons
  • Super Bowl LII (2017)New England Patriots vs. Philadelphia Eagles
  • Super Bowl LII (2018)New England Patriots vs. Los Angeles Rams

AFL CHAMPIONSHIP GAMES

  • 1963

AFL/AFC CHAMPIONSHIP GAMES

  • 1985, 1996, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2011, 2014

DIVISION CHAMPIONS

  • 1963, 1978, 1986, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018

PLAYOFF APPEARANCES

  • 1963, 1976, 1978, 1982, 1985, 1986, 1994, 1996, 1997, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018

PLAYOFF RECORD

  • 37-20 .649

HALL OF FAME PLAYERS

  • Nick Buoniconti LB (1962-1968) – Class of 2001
  • John Hannah G (1973-1985) – Class of 1991
  • Mike Haynes CB (1976-1982) – Class of 1997
  • Curtis Martin RB (1995-1997) – Class of 2012
  • Andre Tippett LB (1982-1993) – Class of 2008

RETIRED NUMBERS

  • 20 Gino Cappelletti WR (1960-1970)
  • 40 Mike Haynes CB (1976-1982)
  • 57 Steve Nelson LB (1974-1987)
  • 73 John Hannah G (1973-1985)
  • 78 Bruce Armstrong T (1987-2000)
  • 79 Jim Hunt DT (1960-1971)
  • 89 Bob Dee DE (1960-1967)

PRO BOWL MVP

  • 1967 Babe Parilli QB

SUPER BOWL MVP

  • Super Bowl XXXVI – Tom Brady QB (2001)
  • Super Bowl XXXVIII – Tom Brady QB (2003)
  • Super Bowl XXXIX – Deion Branch WR (2004)
  • Super Bowl XLIX – Tom Brady QB (2014)
  • Super Bowl LI – Tom Brady QB (2017)
  • Super Bowl LIII – Julian Edelman WR (2019)

 

©MMXIX My All Time Favorites, all pictures and logos, team names are property of the National Football League. This site is not affiliated with the NFL or New England Patriots.  All Football Cards are low resolution scans from a personal collection and each is credited with the production company name and year.  This site is maintained for research purposes only.

 

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