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
RUNNING BACKS
Curtis Martin
Jim Nance
Sam Cunningham
WIDE RECEIVERS
Stanley Morgan
Irving Fryar
WR – Gino Cappelletti (1960-1970)
TIGHT ENDS
TE – Ben Coates (1991-1999)
Russ Francis
OFFENSIVE LINEMEN
OT – Bruce Armstrong (1987-2000)
John Hannah
Jon Morris
Logan Mankins
Tom Neville
DEFENSE
DEFENSIVE LINEMEN
Houston Antwine
DT – Jim Lee Hunt (1960-1971)
Richard Seymour
Julius Adams
LINEBACKERS
LB – Willie McGinnest (1994-2005)
Andre Tippett
Nick Buoniconti
Steve Nelson
DEFENSIVE BACKS
Ty Law
CB – Michael Haynes (1976-1982)
Raymond Clayborn
Ronnie Lippett
Lawyer Milloy
Fred Marion
SPECIAL TEAMS
Adam Vinitieri
Rich Camarillo
PR – Troy Brown
KR – Larry Garron (1960-1967)
HEAD COACH
Bill Belichick
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.