1996 New England Patriots season

1996 New England Patriots season
Head coach	Bill Parcells
Owner	Robert Kraft
Home field	Foxboro Stadium
Results
Record	11-5
Place	1st AFC East
Playoff finish	Won Divisional Playoffs (Steelers) 28-3 Won Conference Championship (Jaguars) 20-6 Lost Super Bowl XXXI (Packers) 35-21
Pro Bowlers	T Bruce Armstrong QB Drew Bledsoe TE Ben Coates RB Curtis Martin DE Willie McGinest KR Dave Meggett
Uniform
Timeline
Previous season	Next season
1995	1997

The New England Patriots finished the National Football League's 1996 season with a record of eleven wins and five losses, and finished first in the AFC East division. The team lost Super Bowl XXXI to the Green Bay Packers.

Season summary

The relationship between team owner Robert Kraft and coach Bill Parcells collapsed during the NFL draft, when Parcells wanted to draft a defensive lineman but Kraft overruled him, giving head scout Bobby Grier the choice of a player, and receiver Terry Glenn was selected. Parcells stormed out of the Patriots draft war room after the choice was made and vowed to reporter Will McDonough that he was done with New England after 1996. Despite this, the Patriots rallied from a 0-2 start to finish 11-5, then defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers and the upstart Jacksonville Jaguars to advance to Super Bowl XXXI. The season saw the arrival of former Cleveland Browns coach Bill Belichick as he took over coaching New England's defensive backs.

1996 NFL Draft

Schedule

Standings

Notable games

• September 8 at Buffalo Bills:

Despite being intercepted three times, Jim Kelly burned the Patriots as his Bills won 17-10. The game was tied at 10 in the fourth quarter when a blitz was picked up and Kelly found Quinn Early for a 63-yard touchdown. The Buffalo win put the Patriots at 0-2.

• September 15 vs. Arizona Cardinals:

Former New York Jet Boomer Esiason faced the Patriots in New England's home opener of 1996, and after the Patriots defense limited Boomer to four completions for 22 yards and two INTs he was benched and Kent Graham took over, throwing one pick and nineteen passes (for just nine completions) and 111 yards. Drew Bledsoe threw three touchdowns, two to Curtis Martin, who also rushed in an additional score in a 31-0 shutout. The only aspect of the Patriots' game that struggled was rookie PK Adam Vinatieri, who booted a 31-yard field goal in the fourth but missed a PAT and missed another field goal try, earning a mild rebuke from coach Bill Parcells in the postgame press conference.

• September 22 vs. Jacksonville Jaguars:

The Patriots behind three field goals by rookie Adam Vinatieri, and touchdowns by Ben Coates and Curtis Martin led 22-0 in the final seconds of the first half, but from his 49 Jaguars quarterback Mark Brunell escaped a sack and threw a desperation heave to the endzone; in the endzone scramble the ball was kicked in the air by Willie Clay of the Patriots and caught by the Jaguars' Jimmy Smith for a touchdown. The Jags blocked a Vinatieri kick and Brunell completed long-bomb touchdown throws to Andre Rison. The game was tied at 25 when Brunell uncorked another desperation heave to the endzone on the final play of regulation; it was caught with one hand by Jags receiver Willie Jackson off the chest of Willie McGinest, but Jackson was ruled down at the one-foot line. The Patriots finally won on a 40-yard Vinatieri field goal in OT, the first game-winning FG in Vinatieri's career.

• October 6 at Baltimore Ravens:

The Patriots made their first trip to Baltimore since losing to the Colts in October 1983; this time their foe was the former Cleveland Browns that had been coached by New England's assistant head coach and defensive backs coach Bill Belichick the year before. Now known as the Baltimore Ravens, they proved to be an offensive challenge as Earnest Byner and Carwell Gardner rushed for 133 yards while future Patriot Vinny Testaverde threw for 353 yards and three touchdowns. Drew Bledsoe outdid Vinny with four scores, but New England leads of 35-14 and 46-22 weren't exceptionally secure as the Ravens scored 24 points in the fourth quarter. It wasn't enough to stop a 46-38 Patriots win.

• October 27 vs. Buffalo Bills:

The Bills rallied from a 13-0 halftime Patriots lead. An intentional-grounding penalty on Jim Kelly in the endzone was ruled a Patriots safety, but the Bills took an 18-15 lead on a Thurman Thomas run and a Darick Holmes two-point conversion. With 1:25 to go Curtis Martin stormed through for a ten-yard touchdown, but Adam Vinatieri's extra point was missed. Willie McGinest then ran back an interception for a 46-yard touchdown, but Kelly launched a desperation heave with 33 seconds to go and it was batted off the fingers of Patriot defenders and caught for the touchdown by Andre Reed. The Bills' onside kick attempt was then caught by Keith Byars, ending a 28-25 Patriots win.

• November 10 at New York Jets:

The Jets held Drew Bledsoe of the Patriots without a completion in the first quarter. Behind quarterback Frank Reich and running back Adrian Murrell the Jets stormed to a 21-0 lead before the Patriots began clawing back. Trailing 27-24 late in the fourth Bledsoe (24 of 30 for 297 yards after being shut out in the first) completed a first-down throw to Ben Coates on 4th and 2 to the Jets 49-yard line; the Jets disputed the ball spot by line judge Charles Stewart but the call stood. Bledsoe then completed a four-yard touchdown to Keith Byars, but the Jets roared downfield on a long throw from Reich to Jeff Graham to the Patriots 11-yard line. On the next play Reich was picked off by Lawyer Milloy for a 31-27 Patriots win. "They're the best 1-9 football team in history, I guess," Bledsoe said afterward.

• November 17 vs. Denver Broncos:

The Patriots suffered their ninth straight loss to the Broncos as Terrell Davis ran roughshod over them to the tune of 152 rushing yards, two rushing touhdowns, and a 15-yard touchdown catch from John Elway, who ran in another touchdown himself in a 34-8 runaway win. Shannon Sharpe was held in check by the Patriots wit just 37 receiving yards, but the rout inspired him to taunt booing Patriot fans by simulating a phone call to President Bill Clinton requesting the National Guard "because we are killing he Patriots!" The clip by NFL Films is among the most replayed in retrospectives on Sharpe's career.

• December 21 at New York Giants:

The Patriots visited Giants Stadium for the final game of the season and fell behind 22-0; Drew Bledsoe was called for intentional grounding in the endzone, making for a Giants safety; he was then picked off by Jason Sehorn for a 23-yard touchdown. Bledsoe stormed back with touchdown throws to Terry Glenn and Ben Coates to go with a Vinatieri 40-yard FG and a Dave Meggett 60-yard punt return touchdown. The Patriots won 23-22.

• AFC Divisional Playoff vs. Pittsburgh Steelers:

The Patriots hosted a playoff game for only the second time in their history, the first coming in 1978; ironically, like the 1978 game against the Houston Oilers, this 1996 game was against an AFC Central team. The game was shrouded in fog and was nicknamed by some "Fog Bowl II." The Steelers running game flamed out after their first possession, while the Patriots erupted; a 52-yard screen pass from Drew Bledsoe to Terry Glenn set up a two-yard Curtis Martin touchdown. Keith Byars ran in a 34-yard screen pass for a touchdown and Martin torched past eight tackles at his 22 and raced to a 78-yard touchdown and a 21-0 Patiots halftime lead; Martin would add a 23-yard score in the fourth to cap a 166-yard rushing day. Steelers quarterback Kordell Stewart did not have a single completion in ten attempts and was periodically rotated in and out with Mike Tomczak, neither of whom could stop a 28-3 Patriots rout.

Final roster

Staff

Notes and references

External links

• Season page on Pro Football Reference