A Future Quarterback Rivalry?
By Bryan Morry, November 26, 2024
The Patriots and Colts have a long history. It’s hard to imagine a generation of fans has grown up without realizing (maybe?) that the Colts and Patriots were AFC East rivals from 1971-2001. Of course, the Colts played in Baltimore through the 1983 season before packing up in the middle of the night and sneaking out of town to Indianapolis, where they began playing in 1984.
When the AFL and NFL merged in 1970, the Colts were a season removed from a stunning Super Bowl III loss to Joe Namath’s New York Jets, but they won five of the first six matchups against the Patriots, who then started to even things up in the latter half of that decade. The Patriots finished 9-11 against the Colts in the 1970s, but went to control the rivalry in every decade since … until recently.
History Not on Pats Side
By Bryan Morry, November 19, 2024
The 3-8 Patriots are facing a daunting task this week. Heck, if they were 8-3, they would face a daunting task. It’s their annual trip to Miami, where history is, to put it nicely, unkind to the Patriots.
New England’s all-time record in South Florida is 17-42 (.288). It might be easy to blame that low winning percentage on an 18-game losing streak in Miami between 1967 and 1985, but it’s more than that.
Tom Brady was 24-12 in his career against the Dolphins during the Patriots two-decade-long dynasty. But his record against the Dolphins in Miami? 7-10. The Patriots won six Super Bowls during Brady’s time in New England, but his teams were 2-4 in Miami during those championship seasons.
Does History Favor the Pats?
By Bryan Morry, November 14, 2024
History might favor the Patriots as they return to Gillette Stadium following two straight road games and a visit to Miami awaiting. That lone home contest in that four-game stretch will feature the Los Angeles Rams visiting New England.
The Rams are one of eight teams that are winless at Gillette Stadium (0-2). They lost to the Patriots, 23-16, on Oct. 20, 2008, and again, 26-10, on Dec. 4, 2016. Historically, the Rams are 3-3 in New England, 3-3 vs. the Patriots at home and 0-3 at neutral sites (we’ll get to those).
The two teams met six times while the Rams called St. Louis home and the Patriots were 4-2 in those games, including a 1-1 record at home. They are 2-2 at home when the Rams must travel across the country from Los Angeles.
However, this week has a different twist. Following a Monday night home loss to Miami, Los Angeles will travel across the country on a short week.
Battle of Rookie QBs in the Windy City
By Bryan Morry, November 6, 2024
So it’s two first round rookie quarterbacks getting set to duel in an intra-conference matchup with the Patriots traveling to Chicago for the second of three road games in a four-week span. The Patriots are limping at 2-6, and the Bears followed three straight wins with losses in each of the last two weeks to sit at 4-4 on the season.
Bears quarterback Caleb Williams was the 2024 first overall draft pick while New England’s starting quarterback, Drake Maye, was selected third overall. Both have experienced some highs and lows, but Williams has been starting since Week 1 while Maye will make just his fifth start. He is 1-3 so far and he didn’t finish the win over the Jets after leaving with a head injury and watching Jacoby Brissett lead a final-minute, game-winning drive.
Williams is thriving in front of the Soldier Field crowd. The Bears are 4-0 at home and 0-4 on the road. They have averaged almost 30 points per game at home and only 13 per game on the road. So it will be interesting to see if the Patriots defense can put an end to that trend.
The matchup of two top three picks will garner most of the attention this week, and the Patriots and Bears don’t have a ton of history. Everyone of age in both regions sure remembers Jan. 26, 1986, when Chicago mauled the Patriots in Super Bowl XX, 46-10, and scored 46 unanswered points in the process. New England opened the scoring with a Tony Franklin field goal and closed it with a Steve Grogan-to-Irving Fryar touchdown pass, but it was all Bears between those two scores.
One of the more exciting games between the clubs came back in 2002. The Patriots were the defending Super Bowl champions and in the midst of a non-playoff, 9-7 season. Soldier Field was being renovated, forcing the teams the teams to play at the University of Illinois in Champagne.
Pats Hope to Dance in Music City
By Bryan Morry, October 31, 2024
It’s always good to beat the Jets. Last week’s win was the 75th over the Patriots New York and AFC East rival.
It is their second most win over any opponent with Buffalo atop that list at 78. The win also snapped an eight-game losing streak at Gillette Stadium and a six-game losing streak this season. To say the win provided a reprieve from a sea of negativity is an understatement even if it’s temporary.
Winning is obviously important, but coming off a loss to Jacksonville in which the head coach Jerod Mayo, more or less, questioned his team’s will to compete against the Jags, that Jets win was a sign that, in the face of criticism, the team wanted to respond for its coach.
A Rivalry No Matter Their Records
By Bryan Morry, October 24, 2024
It is a different time in the AFC East. Looking back at the last nine seasons, the division has had at least two teams finish above .500 in eight of those nine with a third team at or near .500 in several other instances. In 2018, only the Patriots finished above .500. In 2021, three AFC East teams finished with winning records.
Through seven weeks this year, only one team – the Bills – has a winning record. Miami is 2-4, the Jets are 2-5 and New England sits at the bottom of the standings at 1-6.
So a week after two 1-5 teams – the Patriots and Jaguars – met in London, the 1-6 Patriots get set to host the 2-5 Jets. So it’s not exactly a battle for AFC supremacy, but regardless of the records, it’s still a Boston-New York rivalry situation.
Patriots Hope for a Jolly Good Trip to London
By Bryan Morry, October 18, 2024
“Across the pond” is too cliché. So the Patriots will not be traveling there for the second straight season. They will, however, cross the Atlantic Ocean for their third all-time game in London after playing in Frankfurt, Germany, last season. This time, they will play the Jacksonville Jaguars in a battle of struggling 1-5 teams.
In fact, this will be New England’s fifth international regular season game in franchise history. The team thumped the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 35-7, at Wembley Stadium in London on Oct. 25, 2009. It returned to Wembley on Nov. 28, 2012 to defeat the Rams, 45-7.
Texans Ride High Into Foxborough
By Bryan Morry, October 10, 2024
The Patriots are throwing it back this weekend wearing their red home jerseys – the color worn by the team from 1960-1992. With the team in throwback mode, The Hall went into the same mode in examining the 2024 team’s rough start. Call this a throwback look at some of the team’s forgettable seasons.
In the last quarter century, the New England Patriots have started a season 1-4 just two other times – 2023 and 2000. Since the AFL-NFL merger in 1970, the Patriots have started 1-4 or worse (0-5 in 1992) a total of 10 times, including the two aforementioned since 2000.
The Patriots Set to Host Division Rival
By Bryan Morry, October 3, 2024
The Patriots return home this week after opening the season with three road games in four weeks, including the last two away from Gillette Stadium’s friendly confines. They will do so facing AFC East rival Miami for the 118th time.
The teams first met back in 1966 with the Patriots securing a 20-14 win in Miami thanks to Jim Nance’s 133 rushing yards that included a 27-yard touchdown run. Miami leads the all-time series, however, 62-55…
The Patriots Hope to Strike Gold
By Bryan Morry, September 24, 2024
The 1-2 Patriots head on the road for the third time in the first four weeks of the NFL season. That schedule occurrence has happened to New England only six other times since the AFL-NFL merger in 1970 (2022, 2014, 2012, 2011, 2003, 1994).
Only once did the Patriots emerge from such a four-game season-opening stretch with a winning record – that coming back in 2011 when they opened with a 3-1 mark, including 2-1 on the road. Here are the results of the other five road-heavy four-game starts:
Pats to Face Jets, Rodgers Thursday Night
By Bryan Morry, September 16, 2024
The Patriots and Jets will meet for the 131st time when New England travels to Met Life Stadium for a Week Three Thursday night matchup. The Pats are 16-9 all-time in Thursday games, including last year’s 21-18 win at Pittsburgh on Dec. 7, 2023.
They are, however, just 7-6 as the Thursday road team, which is typically a disadvantage in the short week with a travel day on Wednesday. Fortunately, it will be a short trip for New England, which could mitigate that disadvantage somewhat.
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Seahawks Fly In for Home Opener
By Bryan Morry, September 11, 2024
The Patriots will host the Seattle Seahawks in their 2024 home opener after an upset road win in the season opener at Cincinnati in first year head coach Jerod Mayo’s NFL debut on the sideline.
New England may be returning to Gillette Stadium this weekend, but it remains an underdog even playing on its home turf. The season-opening win against the Bengals did little to squelch national skepticism about the Patriots 2024 prospects.
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