1990 1-15

[SoCal Bong]

As we reflect on what could have been a historic season in Miami, let's celebrate the worst teams to "compete" since the NFL adopted the 16-game schedule in 1978.

None of these teams can match the futility of the expansion Buccaneers, who completed an imperfect 0-14 inaugural season in 1976 and went on to lose their first 12 games of 1977.

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=imperfection/071217

12. 1990 New England Patriots



Kurt Snibbe
Record: 1-15 (won second game)


Synopsis: Now we begin discussing teams that truly had a great opportunity to achieve 0-16, but lost their focus early in the season. Under coach Rod Rust, the Pats lost 11 games by at least 13 points and six games by 20 or more points.



But they had to go and win in Week 2 … by a mere two points in Indianapolis over a Colts team coached by former Pats coach Ron Meyer.



The Pats were a well-balanced team, stinking equally on both sides of the ball. The defense ranked 27th in points and yards (out of 28 teams). The offense ranked 26th in yardage and 28th in points, scoring 47 fewer points than the next-to-worst scoring offense.



The quest ends: The quest was derailed in the second game, when the Pats' defense allowed just 207 yards and forced five takeaways -- including four picks by rookie Jeff George. Still, New England eked out only a 16-14 win behind veteran QB Steve Grogan.



Quotable: "It feels good," Rust told The Boston Globe. "But I don't look upon it as my first NFL [victory]. I see it as the first win of the season for the Patriots."



Unbeknownst to Rust, the Pats wouldn't win again that season, nor would he win another game as an NFL head coach.

 

[MetalBleachers]

I remember that game, thinking that the Pats should be scoring more points because the Colts just weren't very good. Little did I know...

That season was like watching a pony try to thread a needle: frustrating and impossible. Failed fake punts, bad kicks, an offense that couldn't move the ball and a defense that couldn't stop it from moving.

 

[Horace Ivory]

I was at the game in Indy that day as well as the one two years later when we got our first win in week 10. I can remember leaving the then Hoosier Dome proclaiming "We're 1-9". Good thing for us the Colts were in our division then. They were the only team we could beat.

We've come a long way baby!

 

[Ring 6]

That was the culmination of the slide into oblivion.
From the SB in 1985, the playoffs in 1986.
We lost the strike game in 1987 and were mediocre, and missed the playoffs by one game.
In 1988 we were 9-7 again missing the playoffs by one game.
In 1989 we lost something like 4 starters for the season to injuries in preseason games and limped to 5-11.
Then 1990 comes and we are the worst team in the league.

That ushered in the **** mcPherson era, where we were competing in the NFL with mid-major college schemes. Had a little hope there for a while in 1991, and 1992 was a nightmare.
Along comes the Tuna and 1993 is looking like 1990 all over again until a late season run gets us to 5-11, and sets up the playoff season of 1994.

From 1994, we have made the playoffs 10 times (out of 14 years) won the division 8 times, and pointing toward our 4th Lombardi. And we have had exactly 2 losing seasons in those 14 years, 1 in the last 12.
amazing that such a run can begin within 4 years of that 1990 season, and the 'real' dynasty started on the heels of going 11-5, 10-6, 9-7, 8-8, 5-11, 0-2.

Sometimes I think that we take it for granted around here.
Just stop a second and realize this:
Since Tom Brady started his first game, the Patriots are 84-24 in the regular season and 96-26 overall. That is a .787 winning percentage, or on average 12.6 wins in a 16 games season. BEFORE TOM BRADY STARTED HIS FIRST GAME THE FRANCHISE HAD NEVER WON MORE THAN 11 GAMES IN A SEASON. (Assuming we win the last 2 we will have averaged 12.3 per season)(Prior to that day we had, IIRC a grand total of 6 playoff wins in our franchsie history)
Think about that for a second. In th elast 7 years we have AVERAGED more wins than any Patriot team had ever won in ANY season, and have already won twice as many playoff games as the franchise had as a whole in 40 years.

It would be great if someone could look up and see if any team in NFL history has won more games in a 7 year stretch than our 84, soon to be 86, as well as if any team has ever won 12 playoff games in 6 years, or 15 in 7, IF we go all the way.

 

[Flying Fungi]

bittersweet memories

there was indeed a time when traffic was not a problem getting to Sullivan Stadium

 

[Joker]

I had season's tickets back then...Section 206...went to every single game....funny how I remember the tailgates but not the games

 

[Richter]

Being the glutton for punishment that I am, this is actually the year I became I die-hard fan of the team. Really, I wasn't old enough in earlier years to claim such status. Something about that team, awful as it was, and with the controversy surrounding it, still sucked me in.

 

[Aldogg]

I remember me and my father had that game on tape when we won that season. We maybe watched it once a week, usually on a Monday a day after the latest crushing defeat. Luckilly only being 11 at that time, I don't have many memories from those dark years, just glad my father made sure I kept on the path of a Pats fan, as I am sure all my "friends" from those years with their Bills, Cowboys and 49ers jackets are having as much fun as the last few years have been.

 

[italian pat patriot]

always nice to listen your good memories also in the bad years

 

[DarrylS]

That is why we need to savor the moment, those were the days of TV blackouts and learned to love Gil and Gino.. those were the days of no Patriots branding at all, all you could buy was Dallas, Dolphins and Oakland gear.. the days of old Foxboro Stadium, or whatever it was called.. practice at Bryant.. days of long suffering and ridicule by the Jets and Dolphins fans, payback is a bytch...

Sometimes when people whine about how this team does not have a running game, aging linebackers, bad punting.. remember when we were bad at every phase of the game and all we ever got was excuses and BS. Savor the moment, it is great.. do not forget the past.

 

[italian pat patriot]

I remember me and my father had that game on tape when we won that season. We maybe watched it once a week, usually on a Monday a day after the latest crushing defeat.

great ! really TRUE fans

 

[chris_in_sunnyvale]

We lost the strike game in 1987 and were mediocre, and missed the playoffs by one game.

The first strike game was against the Browns. Raymond Berry installed four - and only four - running plays. The Browns figured them out and the Pats couldn't run for a single yard after that.

In 1988 we were 9-7 again missing the playoffs by one game.

With Eason hurt, the Pats were getting decent production from Doug Flutie. Nothing stellar, but the team was winning. Then Eason gets healthy enough to start the penultimate game against awful Tampa and the Pats squeak one out in OT (their first OT win ever). With a playoff spot on the line, the Pats go to Denver and Eason looks his horrible self against the Broncos. Berry has Flutie come in on the final play to throw a Hail Mary. Flutie should have thrown it right at Raymond's nose.

In 1989 we lost something like 4 starters for the season to injuries in preseason games and limped to 5-11.

Tippett, Lippett and Veris all went down in the preseason finale vs. Green Bay. That season was jarring. Despite not making the playoffs the two years prior, they did have winning seasons for four straight years. The 5-11 campaign came out of nowhere.

Then 1990 comes and we are the worst team in the league.

That ushered in the **** mcPherson era, where we were competing in the NFL with mid-major college schemes. Had a little hope there for a while in 1991, and 1992 was a nightmare.

1991 was interesting. The team won 6 games, including a nice come-from-behind victory over Warren Moon's Oilers (a solid playoff team then). Brockton High's Greg McMurtry caught the game winning TD that game. Hugh Millen came out of nowhere to throw for 3000 yards. Then 1992 rolled around and the steps forward in 1991 all went to hell. I was at the delayed (by Hurricane Andrew) opener in Anaheim and watched the Pats get shut out 14-0 in a half-full stadium...walked up to the ticket window 5 minutes after the game started and got great seats. Hugh Millen went from promising in 1991 to awful in 1992. I think the Pats played Seattle and lost, thus giving the Pats the Drew Bledsoe tiebreaker since both teams finished 2-14.

Along comes the Tuna and 1993 is looking like 1990 all over again until a late season run gets us to 5-11, and sets up the playoff season of 1994.

Pats were 1-11 with the lone victory against Arizona and Scott Secules got that start over a banged up Bledsoe; Bledsoe had yet to win as a starter. Bledsoe finally got that first win under his belt with an ugly 7-2 victory over awful Cincinnati. Then they beat Belichick's Cleveland squad. Then everything started to click for Drew and he and the Pats throttled Indy 38-0, setting up a spoiler-deluxe matchup at home vs. Miami. I still remember Bledsoe's OT TD pass to Michael Timpson, giving the Pats a 33-27 victory and knocking Miami out of the playoffs. Bledsoe would carry over his hot play into the first few games of 1994, eventually combining for four straight 300+ yard passing games between the two seasons.

From 1994, we have made the playoffs 10 times (out of 14 years) won the division 8 times, and pointing toward our 4th Lombardi. And we have had exactly 2 losing seasons in those 14 years, 1 in the last 12.
amazing that such a run can begin within 4 years of that 1990 season, and the 'real' dynasty started on the heels of going 11-5, 10-6, 9-7, 8-8, 5-11, 0-2.

Sometimes I think that we take it for granted around here. Just stop a second and realize this:
Since Tom Brady started his first game, the Patriots are 84-24 in the regular season and 96-26 overall. That is a .787 winning percentage, or on average 12.6 wins in a 16 games season. BEFORE TOM BRADY STARTED HIS FIRST GAME THE FRANCHISE HAD NEVER WON MORE THAN 11 GAMES IN A SEASON. (Assuming we win the last 2 we will have averaged 12.3 per season)(Prior to that day we had, IIRC a grand total of 6 playoff wins in our franchsie history)
Think about that for a second. In th elast 7 years we have AVERAGED more wins than any Patriot team had ever won in ANY season, and have already won twice as many playoff games as the franchise had as a whole in 40 years.

I moved to Silicon Valley the year the 49ers won their last title. Their fans were incredibly arrogant and absolutely took the team's accomplishments for granted. Little did their fans know that the good times were coming to an end. Since Eddie DeBartolo was forced out and his sister and her incompetent husband took over, the franchise has been a mess. Most of their fans now would just relish the idea of being respectable, forget championship-caliber.

I hope the Pats fans who critique the heck out of the team don't lose sight of the big picture...this is a golden era for the Patriots and the team's fans. Try and enjoy the ride the team is providing because the good times can come to an end as the 49ers fans now know all too well. Most Pats fans old enough to remember the late 1980s/early 1990s should understand this as well.

Regards,
Chris

 

[italian pat patriot]

interesting Chris; 1989 season would have probably be a little bit different without so many injuries in pre-season