2017 New England Patriots season

2017 New England Patriots season
OwnerRobert Kraft
Head coachBill Belichick
Home fieldGillette Stadium
Results
Record13–3
Division place1st AFC East
Playoff finishWon Divisional Playoffs
(vs. Titans) 35–14
Won AFC Championship
(vs. Jaguars) 24–20
Lost Super Bowl LII
(vs. Eagles) 33–41
Pro Bowlers
4
AP All-Pros
3
Team MVPTom Brady
Team ROYDeatrich Wise Jr.
Uniform

The 2017 season was the New England Patriots' 48th in the National Football League (NFL), their 58th overall and their 18th under head coach Bill Belichick.

The Patriots entered the season as the defending champions of Super Bowl LI.[1] They failed to match their 14–2 record from last season with their Week 14 loss to the Miami Dolphins.[2] Despite that, in Week 15, the Patriots secured their 9th consecutive AFC East title, their 15th of the last 17 seasons, with their victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers.[3] With their win over the Buffalo Bills in week 16, the Patriots obtained their 8th consecutive 12-or-more win season stretching all the way from 2010, an NFL record.[4] Their Week 17 victory over the New York Jets clinched their top seed in the AFC for the second straight year, thus giving the Patriots home-field advantage throughout the entire AFC playoffs for the second year in a row.[5]

The Patriots defeated the Tennessee Titans in the divisional round 35–14, and the Jacksonville Jaguars in the AFC Championship game 24–20, claiming their second consecutive AFC title.[6] This was their seventh consecutive AFC Championship appearance, adding onto their record from the previous year.[7] The win also made Tom Brady the oldest quarterback (40 years, 163 days) to win a playoff game, surpassing Brett Favre for the record.[8] It was also the second time they advanced to the Super Bowl two consecutive seasons, the first being 2004. They faced the Philadelphia Eagles in a rematch of Super Bowl XXXIX. This also made the Patriots the only team in NFL history to appear in ten Super Bowls, and gave the Patriots a chance to repeat as Super Bowl Champions for the second time in franchise history, and for the first time since 2004. In addition, they had the chance to tie the Pittsburgh Steelers for the record of most Super Bowl wins by a team in NFL history with 6. However, due to a late strip-sack of Brady by Brandon Graham and a failed Hail Mary pass, the Eagles defeated the Patriots in Super Bowl LII by 41–33, ending the Patriots chance at a sixth Super Bowl title and resulting in their first Super Bowl loss since 2011. The loss prevented the Patriots from repeating their three-in-four Super Bowl run that they managed from 2001 to 2004. Also with the loss, the Patriots tied the NFL record for most Super Bowl losses with five, and made them the fifth defending Super Bowl champion to lose the next year's game, after the 1978 Dallas Cowboys, the 1983 Washington Redskins, the 1997 Green Bay Packers, and the 2014 Seattle Seahawks.[9] They would later be joined by the 2020 Kansas City Chiefs.

  1. ^ Shpigel, Ben (February 7, 2017). "Patriots Mount a Comeback for the Ages to Win a Fifth Super Bowl". The New York Times. Retrieved February 5, 2017.
  2. ^ Hill, Rich (December 11, 2017). "Patriots vs Dolphins recap: New England loses to Miami 27–20 in worst game of the year". Pats Pulpit. Retrieved December 26, 2017.
  3. ^ Howe, Jeff (December 17, 2017). "Patriots turn in fantastic finish to knock off Steelers, clinch AFC East title". Boston Herald. Archived from the original on December 21, 2017. Retrieved December 22, 2017.
  4. ^ McBride, Jim (December 24, 2017). "Patriots reach 12 wins for NFL-record eighth straight year". The Boston Globe. Retrieved December 25, 2017.
  5. ^ Schrock, Joshua (December 31, 2017). "Patriots Clinch No. 1 Seed, Home-Field Advantage With 26–6 Win Vs. Jets". NESN. Retrieved December 31, 2017.
  6. ^ Jones, Jonathan (January 13, 2018). "Tom Brady and the Patriots Easily Dismantle the Titans and Advance to AFC Championship game". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved January 14, 2018.
  7. ^ "Game Notes: Patriots advance to seventh straight conference championship game". New England Patriots. January 14, 2018. Retrieved January 14, 2018.
  8. ^ "Tom Brady Becomes Oldest Quarterback to Win Playoff Game in NFL History". Bleacher Report. January 14, 2018. Retrieved January 14, 2018.
  9. ^ "Patriots tie record for most Super Bowl losses". February 4, 2018.