Today in Patriots History

[jmt57]

Today In Patriots History: October 29​

October 29, 1961:
The Patriots win the first of what would be back-to-back victories over the Dallas Texans, 18-17 at the Cotton Bowl. Rookie Don Webb, who would go on to play eleven years with the Pats, got things started by recovering a fumble and running it back 40 yards for a touchdown. The Texans – who would move to Kansas City and become known as the Chiefs a year later rather than compete head to head with the other new pro football franchise in Dallas – scored 17 unanswered points and held a ten-point lead in the 4th quarter. Former Packer Joe Johnson scored on a four yard pass from Butch Songin and after the Pats converted the two point conversion, the deficit was cut to two points. Gino Cappelletti, who also led the Pats with four receptions for 55 yards, kicked the game-winning 24-yard field goal and the Pats improved to 4-3-1 for a first place tie with the Houston Oilers in the AFL East.


October 29, 1967:
The Boston Patriots nearly pull off a big upset but fall to division rival New York 30-23. The Pats led 10-0 at the end of the first quarter and 20-7 late in the first half but Jim Turner kicked three field goals for the Jets to tie the score. Joe Namath then hit Pete Lammons on a 7-yard touchdown pass in the 4th quarter for the game winning score. The Jet defense was stout, limiting the Pats offense to only one touchdown, a 16-yard pass from Babe Parilli to Gino Cappelletti. The rest of the scoring came on three Cappelletti field goals and a 35-yard interception return by John Charles. Cappelletti and Art Graham both had five receptions, for 49 and 52 yards respectively, while Jim Nance had 56 yards on 16 carries for the Patriots. The Jets thoroughly dominated the game, gaining 409 total yards to just 170 for the Patriots, but Gang Green kept shooting themselves in the foot with penalties and turnovers. Don Maynard led the Jets with 132 yards receiving.


October 29, 1972:
Brian Dowling scores on a one-yard run in a loss to the Jets. The Yale grad most well known for being the opposition to Vic Gatto in the ‘Harvard beats Yale 29-29‘ game (and the inspiration for 'BD' in the comic strip Doonesbury) would be one of the very few NFL modern era quarterbacks with more career touchdowns rushing (3) than passing (2).


October 29, 1978:
The Patriots win their sixth straight game and throttle the Jets by the score of 55-21 at Schaefer Stadium. The Pats absolutely dominated, scoring the most points ever in the long running history of games between these two teams. New England jumped out to a 21-0 first quarter lead and kept their foot on the accelerator with three more touchdowns in the second quarter to go in to halftime with a 41-7 lead. The Jets entered the game just one game behind the Patriots in the AFC East hoping to move into a first place tie. Instead the Patriots made a loud and clear statement as they rolled for a whopping 529 total yards of offense while holding the Jets to about half that, 276. Steve Grogan had the same number of touchdown passes as incompletions (four), Harold Jackson had 118 yards receiving and two touchdowns, and Don Calhoun ran for 89 yards on just ten carries. Horace Ivory ran for two touchdowns, Russ Francis had a touchdown catch, and Mike Haynes had a 50-yard interception.

October 29, 1989:
The Patriots beat the Colts 23-20 in overtime on a 51-yard Greg Davis field goal at the Hoosier Dome. The winning kick was Davis’ third long field goal of the game; he had previously connected from 47 yards and 48 yards out. Steve Grogan threw for 355 yards, Eric Sievers had seven receptions for 113 yards, John Stephens ran for 68 yards and a touchdown, and Cedric Jones had an 8-yard touchdown reception; on defense Vincent Brown, Brent Williams and Gary Jeter each had a sack.


October 29, 1995:
John Kasay‘s field goal with 7:52 remaining in overtime gave the Carolina Panthers a 20-17 victory over the Patriots. It was a bitter loss for the Pats as they fell to 2-6 – one win less than the two expansion teams, the Panthers and Jaguars. The Pats continually dug themselves in a hole with poor punts by Pat O’Neil (32.4 yard average), including a 32 yard line drive to set up the game winning drive; a Dave Meggett fumble at the Carolina 6 with 2:57 did not help matters either. Curtis Martin led the Pats with 85 yards rushing and two touchdowns.


October 29, 2015:
The Patriots improve to 7-0 with a Thursday night week 8 36-7 rout over the Dolphins. Tom Brady threw for 356 yards and four touchdowns. TB12 set an NFL record with his 19th game with four TDs and no picks, breaking a three way tie with Drew Brees and Peyton Manning. Stephen Gostkowski kicked three field goals to make it 27 straight in the regular season, breaking Adam Vinatieri’s team record of 25. Ghost also extended his NFL-record consecutive extra points streak to 439.

RB Dion Lewis had 112 yards from scrimmage and a touchdown in his first game back from an abdominal injury, and LeGarrette Blount had 72 yards rushing on 14 carries. Julian Edelman had seven catches for 81 yards and two touchdown receptions, and Rob Gronkowski added 113 yards on six catches and a TD. For Gronk it was his his 19th career 100-yard game, tying linguistically challenged Shannon Sharpe for sixth-most in NFL history by a tight end.


October 29, 2017:
The Patriots improve to 6-2 on the season heading in to their bye with a 21-13 victory over the Los Angeles Chargers at Gillette Stadium. Tom Brady went 32-47 for 333 yards and a touchdown on the afternoon. Patriot running backs combined for 14 catches and 163 yards, led by James White (5 catches on 6 targets for 85 yards, 17.0 ypc) and a now-healthy Rex Burkhead (7 receptions on 7 targets for 68 yards). The Patriots won despite the absence of Dont'a Hightower (torn pec), corners Eric Rowe and Stephon Gilmore, and an off day by Stephen Gostkowski, who missed a pair of 43-yard field goals.

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Mike Long, b. October 29, 1938
Patriot E, 1960
Uniform #87
Long grew up in Marlborough MA and went to college at Brandeis. At the age of 21 he was an end for the 1960 Patriots. He played in the first two games in franchise history, catching two passes for ten yards. Long was not only an original Patriot, but also the original Gronk, the first Patriot to wear #87. When Long got a $500 signing bonus from the Patriots, his first move was to buy kegs of beer for a celebration at Brandeis. Long eventually became a stock trader, played rugby, married a French woman, had two children, and owned a restaurant in southwest France for years.

Ralph Cindrich, b. October 29, 1949
Patriot LB, 1972
Uniform #55
The linebacker was a 5th round draft pick by the Falcons in 1972, but was released at the end of training camp. The Patriots claimed him off waivers and he played in twelve games for the Pats that season. After retiring from pro football Cindrich became one of the NFL's most impactful player agents, known for negotiating top dollar contracts for his clients - and warning teams with reputations of not paying players well to not draft his clients.

Steve Clark, b. October 29, 1959
Patriot DE, 1981-82
Uniform #65
The Patriots selected the Kansas State defensive end in the fifth round of the 1981 draft, 130th overall. Clark was with the Patriots for two seasons, appearing in seven games. He was plagued by knee injuries which eventually curtailed his NFL career, landing on injured reserve for half of 1981 and all of the 1982 season.

Greg Davis, b. October 29, 1965
Patriot K, 1989
Uniform #5
Davis played in 169 games over 12 seasons in the NFL. In nine games with the Patriots he scored 61 points, going 16-23 on his field goal attempts and 13-16 on extra points. Interestingly he was better from long range: 2-2 on FG attempts of 50+ yards, but only 5-9 from the 40-49 and 6-9 from 30-39 yards out. Davis is the co-holder of the NFL record for most successful field goals of 50 or more yards in a single game, with three.

One other player with New England area ties:

Omar Easy, b. October 29, 1977
Easy was the Massachusetts Player of the Year in 1996 while at Everett High School. The fullback was a 4th round draft pick by the Chiefs in 2002, and played four NFL seasons with Kansas City and Oakland. Easy later became the Director of Player Personnel and Development in Football at Penn State. Since 2012 he returned home to put his PhD in Education to better use, and become Vice Principal at Everett High.

Other notable NFL players born today include:
- Andy Russell, b. 10/29/41. Linebacker played in 168 games with the Steelers from 1963-76 and was named to seven Pro Bowls.
- Michael Carter, b. 10/29/60. Nose tackle for three 49er Super Bowl championship teams from 1984-92.
- Andy Dalton, b. 10/29/87. Quarterback for the Cincinnati Bengals is still looking for his first playoff win; not sure that will ever happen as long as Marvin Lewis remains head coach.

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October 29, 1946:
Peter Green was born in London. Green replaced Eric Clapton in John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers and then founded Fleetwood Mac in 1967. Here’s Fleetwood Mac doing a song few know that they actually wrote, performed at the old Boston Tea Party in 1970:

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[jmt57]

Today in Patriots History: October 30​

October 30, 1966:
Jim Nance ran for 208 yards and two touchdowns as the Patriots hold off a late rally and beat the Raiders 24-21 at Fenway Park. At that time that was one of just ten instances when a player rushed for over 200 yards in the histories of the NFL, AFL and AAFC. It was also a franchise record that lasted 17 years, surpassed only by Tony Collins with 212 yards versus the Jets in 1983. Bo's 38 rushing attempts was the most ever at that time in AFL/NFL history, and still ranks as the ninth most in league history today.

Gino Cappelletti also scored on a touchdown pass from Babe Parilli but it was Nance who carried the team on his back as the Pats ran for 281 yards while holding Oakland to just 48 yards on the ground. The Raiders’ Clem Daniels made thing interesting, scoring his second and third touchdowns of the game in the 4th quarter but the Pats held on to improve to 4-2-1 and a first place tie in the AFL East.


October 30, 1977:
Steve Grogan threw three touchdown passes as the Patriots beat the Jets 24-13 at Schaefer Stadium. Daryl Stingley had eight receptions for 121 yards and a touchdown, and Stanley Morgan and Don Hasselbeck also caught touchdown passes in the victory. Sam Cunningham rushed for 79 yards, Don Calhoun had 66 yards on just 12 carries and John Smith kicked three field goals as the Pats improved to 5-2, one game behind the Colts in the AFC East.


October 30, 1983:
Robert Weathers ran for 99 yards on 12 carries and added another 55 yards receiving, but a late rally fell short as the Patriots lost to the Falcons 24-13 in Atlanta. Derrick Ramsey and Mosi Tatupu both scored on touchdown receptions from Steve Grogan but the Pats were in by done in by self inflicted wounds, turning the ball over to Atlanta five times.


October 30, 1988:
The Patriots got a bit of revenge from Super Bowl XX, crushing the Bears 30-7. Chicago came into Sullivan Stadium as heavy favorites with a 7-1 record but were outplayed by the Pats in all phases of the game. Doug Flutie threw for four touchdowns against Mike Ditka and the team that dumped him, including an 80-yard statement scoring strike in the first quarter that set the tempo. Lin Dawson had two touchdown catches, Stanley Morgan had another TD, John Stephensrushed for 124 yards and the Pats defense forced three turnovers in the upset win.


October 30, 1994:
Harlon Barnett intercepted two Dan Marino passes but the Patriots could not capitalize and lost to the Dolphins at Foxboro Stadium.


October 30, 2005:
Tedy Bruschi returned to the field for the Patriots for the first time after suffering a stroke 8½ months earlier, and the Patriots rallied in the 4th quarter for a come-from behind 21-16 victory over the Bills at Gillette Stadium.

Corey Dillon scored with 7:06 remaining to cut the deficit to 16-14 and then with 5:32 remaining Roosevelt Colvin stripped the ball away from Buffalo QB Kelly Holcomb and recovered the fumble at the Bills 23. Tom Brady hit Deion Branch (3 receptions, 92 yards) with a 22-yard pass and then Dillon scored his second one-yard touchdown of the game for the winning points. Buffalo’s final drive ended when Hank Poteat tackled Eric Moulds short of a first down on a 4th and 7 from the Pats 40.


October 30, 2006:
On Monday Night Football the Patriots defense came up big, picking off four passes and recording four sacks as the Pats beat Minnesota 31-7 at the Metrodome. The only points the Vikings scored came on a 71-yard punt return by Mewelde Moore in the third quarter; Laurence Maroney returned the ensuing kickoff 74 yards to set up a 7-yard touchdown pass from Tom Brady to Troy Brown that put the Patriots up by 17.

Brady threw four touchdown passes, the first time he had done that since 2003. Besides Brown he also hit Reche Caldwell, Ben Watson and Chad Jackson on touchdown scores; Brady finished the game 29-43 for 372 yards. Watson led the Pats with seven receptions for 95 yards while Caldwell had seven catches for 84 yards, and Doug Gabriel had five catches for 83 yards. For the Patriots it was their third straight road win, with all three being by more than 21 points.


October 30, 2011:
Rob Gronkowski has seven receptions for 94 yards but the Patriots lose to Pittsburgh 25-17 at Heinz Field. The Steelers dominated, holding a 2:1 margin in total yards (427 to 213), and nearly that ratio in time of possession (39:22 to 20:38). Pittsburgh went 10-16 on third down while limiting the Pats to 3-10 in that department, and Ben Roethlisberger threw for 365 yards and a pair of touchdowns. The score remained close despite those stats thanks to five sacks on Big Ben, a pick deep in Pittsburgh territory that led to a Patriot two-play scoring drive, and a missed field goal by the Steelers. With the victory the Steelers improved to 6-2 while the Patriots dropped to 5-3.


October 30, 2016:
Tom Brady completed 22 of 33 passes for 315 yards and threw four touchdowns, leading the Pats to a 41-25 victory. TB12 improved to 26-3 against Buffalo, which tied Brett Favre for the most career wins by a quarterback in NFL history against a single opponent. Brady threw two 53 yard passes in this game. The first was to former Bills receiver Chris Hogan, who beat Buffalo (and future Patriot) corner Stephon Gilmore to put the Patriots up 14-3 in the first quarter.

The Pats scored 27 points on five consecutive possessions, beginning with another 53 yard TD pass, this one to Rob Gronkowski late in the second quarter. Gronk had five receptions for 109 yards and set two franchise records with that TD. It was his 69th TD overall and 68th TD receiving, moving him one ahead of Stanley Morgan in both categories.

New England was forced to punt just three times, and converted nine out of 13 third downs. With LeSean McCoy sidelined due to a hamstring injury, Bill Belichick apparently like what he saw with Shady's backup. Mike Gillislee had 85 yards rushing on twelve carries and scored a touchdown which pulled Buffalo to within four points in the second quarter, prior to Gronk's TD. The victory was the fourth straight for the Patriots, who improved to 7-1; the Bills dropped to 4-4.

Reggie Dupard, b. October 30, 1963
Patriot RB, 1986-1989
Uniform #21
Selected by the Patriots in the 1st round (26th overall) of the 1986 draft, out of Southern Methodist.
This was one of the worst first round draft picks in Patriot history, which is no easy feat. Dupard never rushed for more than 318 yards in a season, never had more than 232 receiving yards, and never had more than 383 yards from scrimmage. The disparaging "One Yard Dupard" label was not far off: he averaged 3.1 yards per carry for the Pats. He later spent a short time with Washington but was finished his NFL career with just 704 yards rushing over parts of five seasons. While Dupard's lack of production was due in part to knee injuries, the logic of his selection was a head scratcher. The Patriots already had Tony Collins and Craig James, both of whom were relatively young at that time. Why was the decision made to draft yet another running back with a first round pick?

Joe Vellano, b. October 30, 1988
Patriot DT, 2013-2014, 2016
Uniform #72 and #70
Vellano was originally signed as a rookie undrafted free agent by the Patriots on Mat 3, 2013. The former Maryland Terrapin played in all 16 games with 8 starts in place of the injured Vince Wilfork in 2013. Vellano played in the first five games of 2014 but was released on October 7, and spent the rest of the year on the practice squad. He was promoted to the 53-man roster in January and played in the 45-7 playoff victory over the Colts. Vellano spent the 2016 off season with the Patriots but was cut at the end of training camp. he has been with the Falcons since 2016 but was released on 10/24/2017. Vellano earned a ring while with the Patriots for Super Bowl 49.

Kevin Johnson, b. October 30, 1970
Patriot 4th round (86th overall) pick out of Texas Southern in the 1993 draft.
The defensive tackle never made it to a regular season game for the Pats, but he did appear in 38 games for the Eagles and Raiders from 1995-97. Johnson then played for Orlando and Los Angeles in the Arena Football League from 1998-2001.

Dino Philyaw, b. October 30, 1970
Patriot 6th round (195th overall) pick out of Oregon in the 1995 draft.
The RB/KR was cut by Bill Parcells at the end of his rookie training camp, and he signed with the expansion Carolina Panthers. Philyaw appeared in 23 NFL games with the Panthers and Saints from 1995-99. He returned 53 kickoffs for New Orleans in '99, averaging 22.0 yards per return. Philyaw was also drafted by the Cleveland Indians in baseball's 1990 draft. In his post-football career he has worked in orthopedic sales, owned a construction company, and now owns a barbecue catering business in Oregon.


Others with New England area connections born today:

- Liam Ezekiel, b. October 30, 1982
Linebacker was born and raised in Arlington, got a scholarship to West Virginia and then went to Northeastern. He spent two seasons with the Bills and then played in the Arena Football League and United Football League. Ezekiel now works in sales in Fort Collins, Colorado.

- Phil Slosburg, b. October 30, 1926
The defensive back and halfback was drafted by the Boston Yanks in 1948, and played two years for the club. He was inducted into the Temple University Hall of Fame in 1979.

- Ed Keenan, 10/30/1894-1/8/1984
Born and raised in Waterbury CT, Keenan was a 320 pound guard for the 1926 Hartford Blues.


Other NFL players born today include linebacker Keith Brooking (1975) and quarterback Marcus Mariota (1993).

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October 30, 1939:
Singer Grace Slick was born in Chicago.

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[jmt57]

Today in Patriots History: October 31​

October 31, 1959:
Ken Sims was born in Kosse, Texas. The Pats selected the 6’5″ Texas Longhorn with the first overall pick of the 1982 draft. The defensive end was nicknamed ‘Game Day’ because he was quoted as saying ‘I’ll be there on game day’ in response to what was considered lackadaisical effort in practices. Unfortunately for the Patriots his practice habits carried over to Sundays, and Sims never lived up to his draft status. He did play with the Patriots for eight years before he was released after being busted for possession of cocaine during the 1990 off season.


October 31, 1959:
Brian Ingram was born in Memphis. The Patriots drafted the Tennessee Volunteer in the 4th round (111th overall) of the 1982 draft, which was acquired from the 49ers in the Russ Francis trade. Ingram was mostly a special teams player as the Pats were deep at linebacker, occasionally getting playing time when Don Blackmon or Larry McGrew were injured or needed a breather. He went on injured reserve after the 4th game of the 1983 season and was never completely the same after that. Ingram played in 39 games over four seasons with the Pats, his last game with the team being in Super Bowl XX.


October 31, 1964:
Larry Garron scores on a 52-yard pass from Babe Parilli against the Jets. For Garron it was just one of an incredible thirteen touchdowns of more than fifty yards that he scored in his eight years with the Patriots. Gino Cappelletti (who would be named the AFL MVP that season) also had seven receptions, and a career high 147 yards receiving that day. Unfortunately the Pats couldn’t get their running game going and turned the ball over five times. The 35-14 loss dropped the Patriots to 5-2-1 on the season.


October 31, 1965:
Gino Cappelletti scored all but two of the team's points for the Patriots in their 22-6 victory over the Chargers at Balboa Stadium. The Pats opened up scoring when Jay Cunningham scored the only points of his pro football career, tackling Speedy Duncan in the end zone for a safety. Cappelletti then kicked two field goals, caught two touchdown passes from Babe Parilli, and kicked both extra points for a total of twenty points on the day. The Pats defense did not allow any points until late in the 4th quarter, and intercepted four passes: one each by Tom Addison, Mike Dukes, Tom Hennessey and Don Webb.


October 31, 1971:
Steve Kiner, Randy Beverly and Larry Carwell each pick off a John Brodie pass, but the Patriots lose to the 49ers 27-10 at Candlestick Park. Carl Garrett ran for 96 yards on 13 carries and Randy Vataha had a 23-yard touchdown reception from Jim Plunkett for the Pats.


October 31, 1976:
The Patriots defense does its part but the Pats offense can’t get anything going as the Dolphins win 10-3 at the Orange Bowl. Sam Cunningham had 79 yards rushing plus another 25 receiving to lead the Pats, who fell to 5-3. After this game the Pats would go on to win the next six in a row before their season ended in the infamous Ben Dreith game.


October 31, 1979:
Terdell Sands was born in Chattanooga. A 7th round draft pick by the Chiefs in 2001, he had played in 76 NFL games, mostly with the Raiders. The Patriots signed the 6'8, 355 pound defensive tackle on 9/28/2009 after Vince Wilfork sprained his left ankle. LB Precott Burgess was waived to make room for Sands, with concern that Big Vince would be out for an extended period of time. VW was able to play through the injury and three weeks later the Pats signed another linebacker - Junior Seau - and Sands was released.


October 31, 1993:
The Patriots defense did not allow a single touchdown but the offense sputtered with Drew Bledsoe sidelined, and the Pats lost to the Colts 9-6 at the Hoosier Dome. Ben Coates had six receptions for 108 yards while Scott Secules, filling in for Bledsoe, was 25 for 37 for 279 yards – but also threw two interceptions.


October 31, 1999:
The defense had their best game of the year, leading the Patriots to a 27-3 victory over Arizona at Sun Devil Stadium. For the Pats it was just their second Halloween victory in their forty years of existence. Ty Law and Kato Serwango both had an interception, and the pass defense limited Arizona's quarterbacks to a combined 33% completion rate (13-39) and a net of 90 passing yards. The Patriot defense limited the Cardinals to 3-16 on third down (and 0-2 on 4th), and a mere 166 yards of total offense.

Drew Bledsoe matched his career high with four touchdown passes for the Patriots, who at 6-2 were off to their best start since 1980. Bledsoe completed 14 of 22 passes for 276 yards, with no interceptions. Drew threw for three scores in the first half, including two to Shawn Jefferson, as the Pats opened up a 20-0 lead. It was the first easy won of the season for the Pats; four of the five previous victories had been by three or fewer points. On the second play of the 4th quarter Bledsoe threw a 36-yard touchdown pass to Terry Glenn to put the Pats up 27-3. This was on the road against an Arizona defense which heading into the game had been ranked third in the NFL against the pass.


October 31, 2004:
The Patriots lose their first game of the year, 34-20 to the Steelers at Heinz Field. The loss ended two winning streaks: 21 straight counting the playoffs, and a league-record 18 in a row in the regular season. Bill Belichick's game plan was for the Pats to control the ball and the clock behind Corey Dillon, but in warmups he pulled up lame with a thigh injury and could not play. Ty Law was then lost just a few plays into the game with a foot injury and it was the Steelers who controlled the clock, limiting the Pats to just 17:02 time of possession. Without Dillon the Pats were unable to run the ball effectively, averaging less than a yard per rush; the one-dimensional offense became overly predictable and turned the ball over four times.

The Pats were able to get the last laugh though, beating Pittsburgh 41-27 twelve weeks later in the AFC Championship Game, en route to their third Super Bowl victory in four years.


October 31, 2010:
Facing Randy Moss for the first time since he was traded the Patriots beat Minnesota 28-18 at Gillette Stadium, improving their record to 6-1 while the Vikings dropped to 2-5. At the time of the trade some felt the Pats were giving up on the season while Vikings fans prematurely booked their tickets for the Super Bowl. As it turned out it was just another Brad Childress loss to Bill Belichick and the last game Moss (one reception for 8 yards) would play for the Vikings. BenJarvus Green-Ellis ran for 112 yards and two touchdowns and Moss's replacement, Brandon Tate, had 101 yards receiving – including a 65-yard touchdown.

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October 31, 1961:
Larry Mullen Jr, the drummer for U2, was born in Dublin.

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[jmt57]

Today in Patriots History: November 1​

November 1, 1963:
The Patriots crush Houston 45-3 at Fenway Park to improve to 5-4 and move into a first place tie with the Oilers in the AFL East, a half game in front of Buffalo. The Patriots defense was stout on this day, holding Houston to just 19 yards rushing on 12 carries while picking off six Oilers’ passes. Larry Garron got things started with a 76-yard touchdown reception from Babe Parilli, who ran for two touchdowns himself.

The defense was highlighted by two interceptions returned for touchdowns: a 98-yard pick-six by Bob Suci just before halftime that was a huge momentum swing and a in reality a 14-point play, and then a 78-yard return by Jim Hunt to cap off scoring in the 4th quarter; it was this play that earned Hunt the nickname “Earthquake”. Suci had two interceptions on the day, and Tom Addison, Ron Hall and Ross O’Hanley each had one pick also.


November 1, 1970:
Jim Nance ran for 76 yards, including a 19-yard touchdown run, but the Pats defense was unable to contain O.J. Simpson in a 45-10 loss to the Bills at Harvard Stadium. Clive Rush was fired after this game, finishing his career with a 5-16 record as head coach of the Patriots.


November 1, 1981:
Don Hasselbeck had four receptions for 100 yards in a 27-17 loss to the Raiders at Oakland; it was Hasselbeck’s fourth 100-yard game of the season.


November 1, 1987:
Patriots beat the Raiders 26-23 on Tony Franklin‘s 4th field goal of the day at Sullivan Stadium. Stanley Morgan had six receptions for 146 yards and Steve Grogan threw for 282 yards on the day. Tony Collins rushed for 75 yards and also scored on a 15-yard 4th down halfback option pass reception from Mosi Tatupu for the Pats.


November 1, 1992:
For the second straight week the Pats hold their opponent to under twenty points – yet still lose. Vincent Brown scored the Pats only points on a 25-yard fumble return in a 16-7 loss to the Bills at Rich Stadium. Tommy Hodson was the New England quarterback that day, going a respectable 17 for 26 (68%) but only amassing 171 yards through the air.


November 1, 1998:
Drew Bledsoe threw for 306 yards as the Patriots defeated the Colts 21-16 at the RCA Dome. Bledsoe’s 63-yards scoring strike to Tony Simmons gave the Pats an 11-point 4th quarter lead before rookie Peyton Manning hit Marcus Pollard to pull Indy within five with 3:40 remaining. Each of the Colts last two possessions ended with Lawyer Milloy intercepting a Manning pass to seal the victory.

The Pats picked on Indianapolis cornerback Jeff Burris early and often, as Burris drew three critical pass interference penalties. The first flag gave the Pats a first down on the Indy 10; after an 8-yard run by Robert Edwards, Bledose hit Ben Coates with a 2-yard touchdown. After a Colts score on the next possession Burris was called for pass interference in the end zone, and Edwards ran it in for the score from the one. Then in the 4th quarter Burris was flagged again on the TD pass to Simmons, a penalty which the Pats obviously declined.

The Patriots receiving corps was depleted with Terry Glenn, Vincent Brisby and Troy Brown all sidelined with injuries. Coates stepped up with 109 yards and ten receptions, and backup Simmons chipped in with 109 yards as well, on four catches.


November 1 Patriot birthdays include:

- #35, RB Mike Gillislee; b. November 1, 1990 in Deland FL.

- #48, S Tim Fox, b. November 1, 1953 in Canton OH.

- #83, WR Don Westbrook, b. November 1, 1953 in Cheyenne WY.

 

[jmt57]

Today in Patriots History: November 2​

November 2, 1969:
The Patriots pitched a shut out over the Houston Oilers, 24-0 at Alumni Stadium. Ron Sellers was the offensive star of the day with two touchdown catches (for 25 and 43 yards), and the rookie finished with 124 yards receiving. As it turned out it would be the second most yards in a single NFL game game during the NFL career for the former FSU Seminole, who had 158 receiving yards against the Oilers six weeks later.

Carl Garrett averaged 6.7 yards per carry, rushing for 94 yards on 14 carries, and Mike Taliaferro was a very efficient 12-for-22 for 191 yards and the two touchdown passes. On defense CB Daryl Johnson returned a fumble 32 yards for the only touchdown of his pro football career to put the Pats up by 17 at halftime, while Don Webb and John Charles both came up with interceptions off Pete Beathard. The win was the first of the immortal Clive Rush's short lived pro football head coaching career, after having started the season with seven consecutive losses.


November 2, 1975:
Ray Hamilton returned a fumble 23 yards for a touchdown to give the Patriots a ten point third quarter lead - but the Pats were unable to hold on, and the Cardinals won 24-17 at Busch Memorial Stadium. Terry Metcalf, who had already returned a punt 69 yards for a touchdown, ran for two more scores in the 4th quarter for the comeback victory for St. Louis. The Cardinal defense made things rough for Steve Grogan, who completed just 14 of 34 passes for 173 yards with one touchdown (to Randy Vataha), and was picked off twice.


November 2, 1980:
The Patriots down the Jets 34-21 at Schaefer Stadium, improving their record to 34-21. Russ Francis (3 receptions, 69 yards) started things off with a 33 yard touchdown catch from Steve Grogan. After the Pats forced a Jets punt, Roland James (who also had an interception) returned the kick 75 yards for a touchdown. The next Pats drive stalled in the red zone but a John Smith field goal put the Pats up 17-0 at the end of the first quarter. Stanley Morgan (5 receptions, 84 yards) then caught a 9-yard TD pass from Grogan, and early in the second quarter the Pats were up by 24. Don Calhoun rushed for 50 yards on just 11 carries, and Horace Ivory ran for a touchdown. On the other side of the ball Tim Fox and Mike Hawkins both joined James with an interception off a Richard Todd pass.


November 2, 1986:
New England defeats Atlanta 25-17 at Sullivan Stadium for their third straight win in what would end up being a seven game winning streak. Tony Collins had 79 yards receiving, including a 26-yard touchdown from Tony Eason (263 yards passing) that gave the Pats a one point halftime lead. Irving Fryar's 59-yard punt return put the Pats up 19-10 after three quarters, and then Tony Franklin kicked his third and fourth field goal on the day to give the Patriots a 15-point lead. Atlanta’s Gerald Riggs scored on his second one-yard run of the day to pull the Falcons within eight but the Patriots held on for the win. Garin Veris had two and a half sacks in the game and TE Greg Hawthorne had 61 yards receiving, which was his highest total as a Patriot and second most of his NFL career.


November 2, 1997:
Shawn Jefferson had 108 yards on four receptions, Curtis Martin ran for 104 yards, and Drew Bledsoe passed for 313 yards and two touchdowns - yet the Patriots lost to the Vikings 23-18 at the Metrodome.

The most critical play of the game came late in the 3rd quarter when the Pats were on the Minnesota 11 with 4th down and about a foot to go. DL Derrick Alexander managed to split a double team by T Bruce Armstrong and G Max Lane to stop Curtis Martin short of a first down. The Patriots rallied late but were constantly done in by dumb penalties; overall they were flagged eight times for 88 yards. The defense got them back in it with a good pass rush but the Vikings were ready for the Pats blitz late in the 4th quarter. Brad Johnson hit 6'3″ Cris Carter on man coverage by 5'10” Willie Clay on a corner route for a game-clinching 28-yard touchdown.

Pete Carroll's club was not able to take advantage of Minnesota being without their top two running backs and lost their third in a row, and fourth in five games to drop to 5-4 – a bitter disappointment for a team that had gone to the Super Bowl the previous year.


November 2, 2008:
Former Patriot Adam Vinatieri's 52-yard field goal with 8:05 remaining turned out to be the game-winning points, as the Colts beat the Pats 18-15 at Lucas Oil Stadium.

The Patriots ran 17 more plays from scrimmage and held the ball for nine more minutes than the Colts. The problem was that the Pats settled for field goals three times after four long scoring drives, and WR Jabar Gaffney dropped a sure touchdown pass late in the third quarter. The killer though was when TE David Thomas drew a 15-yard dead ball penalty that pushed the Patriots out of field-goal range with 4:45 to go in the game, sealing the Pats fate.

BenJarvus Green-Ellis scored on a 6-yard run to put the Patriots up 12-7 in the 3rd quarter. The Pats went for two but Kevin Faulk was stopped short - though replays showed that he made it in to the end zone. Anthony Gonzalez caught his second TD of the game from Peyton Manning (21-29, 254) in the corner of the end zone and then hit Reggie Wayne on the conversion to make the score 15-12. In the 4th quarter Stephen Gostkowski tied it with his third field goal of the game before Vinatieri hit on the game-winner. Randy Moss had six catches for 65 yards even though he did not have a single pass thrown to him in the first half. Wes Welker caught seven passes, giving him at least six receptions in all eight games of the season; it was the longest such streak to open a season since Jacksonville’s Jimmy Smith in 2001.


November 2, 2014:
Tom Brady threw four touchdowns to get the best of Peyton Manning once again, as the New England Patriots crushed the Denver Broncos by the score of 43-21. The 16th matchup between the era's best quarterbacks was not particularly competitive after the first quarter, with Brady improving to 11-5 versus the tea bagger.

In his 200th career start, Brady passed for 333 yards. His 155 wins in those games is the most ever for a quarterback in that many starts. New England (7-2) won its fifth straight while stopping the four-game winning streak for Denver (6-2) with an exclamation point. At this point Brady had 18 TD passes to one interception in those five victories.

With the loss Manning fell to 2-7 at Gillette Stadium and 5-11 overall against Brady. At least his personal stats were good: Peyton threw for 438 yards and two touchdowns, and set an NFL record by throwing two or more touchdown passes in 14 consecutive games. Most of Manning's yardage came in garbage time, well after the Patriots' fourth straight home win over the Broncos in four years was not in doubt.

After falling behind 7-3 early, the Patriots outscored Denver 24-0 in the second quarter to take a 27-7 halftime lead. Julian Edelman scored twice during that time, on a 5-yard pass reception and then an 84-yard punt return. Shane Vereen then scored on a 5-yard pass with 0:08 to play in the half to put the Pats up by 20.

2014 was the 'we're on to Cincinnati' season. After losing to the Chiefs to drop to 2-2, this was New England's fifth straight win as the team headed in to their bye. The Pats would win two more to extend the winning streak to seven, and finish the season with a victory over Seattle in Super Bowl 49.



November 2 Patriot Birthdays include:

- #10, QB Jimmy Garoppolo, b. Nov 2, 1991 in Arlington Heights IL

- #80, WR Danny Amendola, b. Nov 2, 1985 in The Woodlands TX

- #23, S Willie Andrews, b. Nov 2, 1983 in Longview TX

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November 2, 1944:
Keyboard player Keith Emerson of Emerson, Lake and Palmer was born in Todmorden, West Yorkshire, England

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November 2, 1967:
The Beatles finished recording of the single ‘Hello Goodbye’ at Abbey Road studios London with a second Paul McCartney bass line. The McCartney song had already been selected for the A-side for The Beatles next single, with the flip side to be John Lennon’s ‘I Am the Walrus.’

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[jmt57]

Today in Patriots History: November 3​

November 3, 1961:
For the second time in five days the Patriots beat the Dallas Texans, this time by a score of 28-21 at Nickerson Field. Cotton Davidson hit Bo ****inson with a 40-yard pass to tie the score for Dallas, but Ron Burton returned the ensuing kickoff 91 yards for the game winning touchdown for the Patriots. The Texans outplayed the Pats in this game. Dallas finished with 364 total yards while the Pats were held to just 229; however, the Patriots were clutch in critical moments. The Pats sacked Davidson four times, Frank Robotti and Chuck Shonta both had an interception, the Patriot defense recovered a fumble, and Babe Parilli picked up another fumble for a one-yard touchdown.

Jim Colclough had six receptions for 64 yards, including the first score of the game, a 14-yard pass from Butch Songin. Parilli came in and threw a 7-yard touchdown to Gino Cappelletti to put the Pats up 14-0 before Dallas eventually came back to tie the score at 21. Larry Garron had a strong day with 131 yards from scrimmage: 53 yards on nine carries plus another 78 yards on five receptions.

The Patriots had beaten Dallas 18-17 the previous week, in what was a rare home-and-home scheduling by the league. The Texans did not stick around long; a year later they decided it was better to not compete head-to-head with the NFL’s Dallas Cowboys and they moved north, becoming the Kansas City Chiefs.


November 3, 1962:
The Patriots rallied from 14 down in the second half to tie the Buffalo Bills 28-28 on a cold Saturday night game at War Memorial Stadium. Babe Parilli completed 20 out of 33 passes for 296 yards and three touchdowns for the Pats, and Gino Cappelletti had seven receptions for 103 yards.

Following a Buffalo score in the first quarter Larry Garron ran the follow up kickoff back 95 yards to tie the score at 7. After Parilli hit Ron Burton with a 29-yard touchdown pass the Bills returned the favor, returning the ensuing kickoff for a touchdown of their own to tie the score at 14 at the end of the first quarter. Deep in his own territory Parilli was picked off and the Bills ran it in for a 21-14 halftime lead.

Cookie Gilchrist scored his second touchdown run of the game to put Buffalo up by two scores but the Pats responded. Parilli connected with Capelletti on a six-yard touchdown pass to close the deficit to seven heading into the 4th quarter, and then hit Garron with a 23-yard touchdown to salvage a tie.

The Pats improved to 5-2-1 - but the tie coupled with a win by Houston put them in second place in the AFL East, a half game behind the Oilers.


November 3, 1968:
Tom Mitchell‘s two interceptions were the lone bright spot for the Patriots in a 35-14 loss to the Broncos at Fenway Park. Denver thoroughly dominated on the ground (238 yards to 77), in the air (232 yards to 119) and on defense (harassing Tom Sherman into four interceptions on an 11-for 32 day). Jim Nance ran for 51 yards and one touchdown, and Art Graham had 48 yards receiving and the other Patriot touchdown.


November 3, 1974:
In a battle of two 6-1 teams for supremacy in the AFC East, Buffalo nipped the Patriots 29-28 at Schaefer Stadium when they blocked a last-minute field goal attempt by John Smith. It was the second time in three weeks that the Bills had beaten the Pats.

The Patriots got three touchdowns from Mack Herron on 43 and 20 yard passes from Jim Plunkett, and then on a 2-yard run in the 3rd quarter that put the Pats up 28-26. Buffalo’s John Leypoldt kicked his third field goal of the game on the first play of the 4th quarter for the game winning points. The Pats moved into Buffalo territory but Robert James intercepted a Plunkett pass at the Buffalo 25 and the Bills controlled the ball for the next nine plays. Then with 4:35 remaining and the ball on the New England 19, Jack Mildren forced an O.J. Simpson fumble and recovered on the 25. The Pats drove to the Buffalo 29 before the drive stalled and Smith, who had missed from the 47, lined up for what would be a game-winning 46 yard field goal. The kick was blocked by Earl Edwards and Dave Washington, who also had a 72 yard interception for a touchdown.

The Patriots had taken a 21-12 lead in the 2nd quarter on a 31-yard option sweep by Sam Cunningham and threatened to go up by 16 at the half when they drove to the Buffalo 15 with 1:22 remaining. However Plunkett threw one of his three interceptions on the day and Joe Ferguson completed passes of 20 and 10 yards to Ahmad Rashad (8 catches for 115 yards) and 27 yards to J.D. Hill, setting up a one-yard score by Simpson with 19 seconds remaining to make the score 21-19 at halftime.

For the Patriots Herron finished with 66 yards rushing and 77 yards receiving, and Cunningham ran for 85 yards.


November 3, 1985:
Raymond Berry used a trick play that was installed just four days earlier to surprise Don Shula and beat the Dolphins 17-13 in a gray, drizzly day at Sullivan Stadium for their third win in a row. With the Patriots losing 13-3 in the 4th quarter and facing a 4th-and-one at the Miami 28, 295 pound OT Steve Moore lined up at fullback and led a path for Mosi Tatupu off left tackle. Tatupu however, ran a few steps and then pivoted and pitched back to quarterback Steve Grogan. Grogan then lofted an easy pass to Greg Hawthorne, who caught the ball at the Miami 5 and strolled into the end zone.

After the Patriots got the ball back Tatupu, Craig James and Tony Collins gashed the Miami defense for an 80-yard drive, culminated by Grogan scoring the winning points on a one-yard naked reverse with 3:03 remaining. James finished the game with 119 yards rushing and 35 receiving, and Collins had 49 yards rushing and 47 receiving. The win improved New England’s record to 6-3, one game behind the Jets and one ahead of the Dolphins in the very competitive AFC East.


November 3, 1991:
The Patriots gave the heavily favored Bills a scare but came up short, losing 22-17 at Rich Stadium. Buffalo entered the game with four more wins than the Patriots at 7-1, but the outcome wasn’t settled until Darryl Talley intercepted a Hugh Millen pass at the Bills’ 30-yard line with 46 seconds left. The Patriots never led but Leonard Russell‘s second touchdown run closed the gap to five points in the 4th quarter.

The Patriots defense did a good job, forcing four Buffalo turnovers and making the Bills settle for field goals to keep the game close. Russell finished the game with 106 yards on 27 carries and Irving Fryar had five receptions for 73 yards.

Three weeks later the Pats would do better than just come close and beat Buffalo in Foxboro 16-13.


November 3, 1996:
The Patriots won their third in a row, crushing Miami 42-23. Drew Bledsoe completed 30 of 41 passes for 419 yards and three touchdowns and Curtis Martin ran for three touchdowns for the Pats.

Miami led 17-14 in the 3rd quarter when Bledsoe hit Ben Coates on a 23-yard touchdown pass to give the Patriots the lead. Then with 7:30 remaining Coates caught a short pass and ran 80 yards down the sideline for another score to put the Pats up 28-17. The Pats scored two more 4th quarter touchdowns to go up by 25 before Miami scored in garbage time for the final score.

Coates finished with five catches for 135 yards and two touchdowns, Terry Glenn had ten receptions for 112 yards, and Martin had 109 yards: 53 on 18 carries and 56 on two catches.


November 3, 2002:
In the “Bledsoe Bowl” Tom Brady got the better of his former mentor as the Patriots downed the Buffalo Bills 38-7 in Drew Bledoe's first game facing his old team. Bledsoe actually had a decent game – 28-45 for 302 yards with one touchdown and one interception – but Brady was better, throwing three touchdowns and no picks.

The Pats were up 17-7 at the half and put the game away with a 14-point third quarter. Kevin Faulk scored from 45 yards out and then on fourth-and-3 at the Bills’ 34 Brady hit Antowain Smith for a 5-yard pass. Five plays later Smith capped the 76-yard drive with a 2-yard touchdown run.

Smith finished with 111 yards rushing plus another 31 yards receiving, David Patten had six catches for 88 yards, and Daniel Graham had three catches for 68 yards for the Patriots.


November 3, 2003:
The Patriots beat the Broncos 30-26 on Monday Night Football at Invesco Field to improve to 7-2 heading into the bye week. The game featured an incredibly smart but unconventional decision by Bill Belichick to take an intentional safety late in the game.

The Patriots were down 24-23, pinned on their own one-yard line on fourth down with just 2:49 left to play. Belichick had the Pats take an intentional safety, which was accomplished when Lonnie Paxton sent the snap over punter Ken Walter‘s head, hitting the goal post. The announcers openly second guessed the move (and momentarily could not tell it was intentional) at the time, but it turned out to be genius.

The Pats were given a free kick from the twenty. Aside from moving the point where the ball would have been punted up about 25 yards, Walter did not have to rush his kick or worry about it being blocked either. After the game Belichick said he felt his team had no chance at decent field position if they had to punt from the back of the end zone. By taking the safety Walter was able to get off a 65-yard kick, with the Broncos taking over on their own 15.

Denver went three and out and the Pats got the ball back at their own 42 – a change in field position of 41 yards from when they last had it – with 2:15 still left on the clock. In addition there was the two-minute warning after retaining time by using their last two timeouts. With thirty seconds to go Tom Brady completed a pass to Kevin Faulk for 16 yards - and then on the next play hit David Givens on an 18-yard touchdown to win the game.

The Patriots were up 20-17 but Deltha O’Neal (who was covering Givens on the winning touchdown) returned a punt 57 yards for a Denver touchdown after the Pats had to re-kick due to a holding penalty on Paxton. Adam Vinatieri kicked his third field goal of the game to pull the Pats within one prior to the two scores in the final three minutes.

Deion Branch had 107 yards receiving, including a 66-yard touchdown in the first quarter. The other Patriot score came on a 6-yard pass from Brady to Daniel Graham. Brady finished 20 for 35 for 350 yards, three touchdowns and one pick; Clinton Portis led Denver with 111 yards rushing. The win was just the second in the last fourteen visits to Denver for the Pats, temporarily leaving Shannon Sharpe (3 catches, 46 yards) with nothing to say.



Those born on November 3 include:
- Damien Woody (11/3/77), Patriot shotgun-phobic C from 1999-2003.
- Eric Crabtree (11/3/44), Patriot WR from 1971 had 22 career touchdowns.
- Bronko Nagurski (11/3/08-1/7/90), NFL Hall of Fame legend.
- Phil Simms (11/3/55); QB went 22-25 w/3 TD in Super Bowl XXI.
- Tamba Hali (11/3/83); 5-time Pro Bowl DE for the Chiefs.
- Colin Kaepernick (11/3/87); 2013 flash in the pan San Fran QB.

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November 3, 1957:
Sun Records released Great Balls of Fire by Jerry Lee Lewis.

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[jmt57]

Today in Patriots History: November 4
​

November 4, 1960:
The Patriots beat the Raiders 34-28 at Nickerson Field
Butch Songin threw for 264 yards and three touchdowns as the Pats jumped out to a 20-7 halftime lead and held on for their third win of the year. TE Thomas Stephens got things started with a 19-yard TD and then **** Christy, who finished with 124 yards receiving and another 60 yards on the ground, caught a 28 yard pass to put the Pats up 14-0 at the end of the first quarter. After the Raiders pulled within six on a Tom Flores touchdown, Christy ran for another TD and then Songin hit Jim Colclough on a 38-yard touchdown pass to put the Pats up 34-14 in the 4th quarter. The Pats defense forced four turnovers, including interceptions by Chuck Shonta and Fred Bruney.



November 4, 1973:
Pats lose to the Eagles 24-23 on a Tom Dempsey field goal at Veterans Stadium
The Patriots jumped out to a 17-0 lead early in the third quarter on the second Jim Plunkett to Darryl Stingley touchdown pass but Philadelphia came back when old pro Roman Gabriel threw a pair of touchdowns to Charlie Young. The Eagles returned a fumble 24 yards for a touchdown to take the lead but the Pats came back in the 4th quarter on a 4-yard touchdown run by Sam Cunningham, before Dempsey’s winning kick. Cunningham finished with 61 yards rushing and Josh Ashton had another 60 on the ground; Stingley had 45 yards receiving, TE Bob Windsor had 3 catches for 48 yards and WR Reggie Rucker had 7 receptions for 43 yards; Ron Bolton chipped in defensively with two interceptions for 56 yards.


November 4, 1979:
New England Patriots 26, Buffalo Bills 6 at Rich Stadium
The Pats scored 26 unanswered points to improve to 7-3. The first quarter ended with Buffalo up 6-0 on a pair of field goals but it was all New England in the second half. Steve Grogan hit Horace Ivory with a 6-yard pass to tie the score at halftime and then connected with Stanley Morgan on a 63-yard TD after a John Smith field goal to put the Pats up by ten entering the 4th quarter. Grogan then hit Morgan again on a 34 yard touchdown before Smith kicked another field goal for the final score. The Pats defense was immense, finishing with seven sacks and forcing five turnovers on the day; the Pats finished with 438 total yards to just 264 for Buffalo.

Grogan finished the game 19/35 for 350 yards and three touchdown passes and Morgan had 158 yards receiving, the fifth highest total of his career. On defense Raymond Clayborn and Rod Shoate both had an interception.


November 4, 1979:
Brooks Barnard was born in Arnold MD
In his one game with the Pats, Barnard averaged 36.5 yards on his ten punts. Despite the lack of offensive prowess, the Patriots defeated Miami. You may not remember Barnard, but you probably remember this 4th quarter play:

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November 4, 1981:
Vince Wilfork was born in Boynton Beach, Florida
The future Hall of Famer (not just Patriots, but Pro Football HoF as well in my opinion) was selected by New England in the first round (21st overall) in the 2004 draft out of Miami. When Brian Billick was head coach of the Ravens he got his wish, getting an opportunity to draft whom he thought was Baltimore's quarterback of the future. The Ravens traded their second-round pick in 2003 and first-rounder in 2004 to New England for the Pats 2003 first round pick. Baltimore selected QB Kyle Boller, who went 20-27 as an NFL starter with 48 TD and 54 INT. In exchange the Pats ended up with Wilfork, as well as Eugene Wilson and Dan Klecko. It was one of the NFL's most lopsided trades of this millennium.

Over 11 seasons with the Patriots, Wilfork was named to five Pro Bowls, won two Super Bowl rings, and played in 179 games (158 regular season, 21 playoffs).


November 4, 1986:
Brandon LaFell was born in Houston.
The wide receiver joined the Patriots in 2014 after four seasons in Carolina. He ranked third on the team that season with 74 receptions for 953 yards, and was second with seven touchdowns.


November 4, 1996:
Denver Broncos 26, New England Patriots 19 at Mile High Stadium
Bronco S Dennis Smith recovered a fumble by Mosi Tatupu with 1:45 to go and ran 64 yards for a touchdown, giving Denver a 26-19 victory; the Pats had led all the way until Denver LB Stever Busick stripped the ball away from Tatupu. Smith scooped it up on the run and went untouched down the right sideline for Denver’s 8th straight win, and the 7th score of the year by their defense.

The Patriots defense had stopped Denver cold on the ground, limiting them to just 28 yards rushing on 18 carries. However the Pats, who ran for 195 yards and had 484 total yards of offense, settled for four field goals while scoring only one touchdown and also turned the ball over three times. Stanley Morgan had 8 receptions for 122 yards and Craig James ran for 120 yards on 20 carries; Clarence Weathers scored the Pats only TD on a 15-yard pass from Tony Eason.



November 4, 1990:
Philadelphia Eagles 48, New England Patriots 20 at Veterans Stadium
Randall Cunningham passed for four touchdowns and ran for another as the Pats fell to 1-7. Cunningham also rushed for a career-high 124 yards, including a 52-yard touchdown on a broken play as the Pats defense forced the Eagles to punt just twice. Irving Fryar led the Patriots with 115 yards receiving and had a 36-yard touchdown from Marc Wilson; Wilson also hit TE Marv Cook with a 14-yard touchdown.


November 4, 1991:
Will Tye was born in Middletown CT.
The tight end played in three 2017 games for the Jets, and is now on the Patriots practice squad.


November 4, 2001:
New England Patriots 24, Atlanta Falcons 10 at the Georgia Dome
A week after throwing four interceptions Tom Brady bounced back with a 3-touchdown, no interception game to get the Pats back to .500 with a 4-4 record. After former Patriot Shawn Jefferson scored on a 19-yard pass from Chris Chandler, the Pats scored 24 unanswered points. In the 2nd quarter Kevin Faulk scored on a 4-yard pass from Brady. Then after a 48-yard Adam Vinatieri field goal, Brady hit Marc Edwards on a 15-yard score to put the Pats up 17-7 at halftime. With a minute to go in the 3rd quarter Brady threw a pass to David Patten which bounced off an Atlanta defender and into the hands of Troy Brown, who ran it in for a 44-yard touchdown.

The Pats defense was relentless, sacking Chandler six times before he was sidelined with a rib injury. Rookie Michael Vick replaced him and the Pats sacked him three times, including one devastating hit by Lawyer Milloy on a last gasp 4th down play in the 4th quarter.



November 4, 2007:
New England Patriots 24, Indianapolis Colts 20 at the RCA Dome
The battle of late-season undefeated teams lived up to the hype with the Pats coming out on top and improving to 9-0. The Colts led 20-10 with 9:42 remaining but Tom Brady hit Randy Moss on a 55-yard post pattern, setting up a 3-yard touchdown pass to Wes Welker. After the defense forced a punt Brady completed a 33-yard pass to Donte’ Stallworth to the Colts’ 13, and then connected with Kevin Faulk on a 13-yard pass over the middle for the go-ahead score with 3:15 left. On the next series Jarvis Green knocked the ball out of Peyton Manning‘s hands and Roosevelt Colvin recovered the fumble to secure the victory.

Moss finished with nine receptions for 145 yards to offset a huge game by Joseph Addai, who had 112 yards rushing on 12 carries and 114 yards receiving on 5 catches, including a highlight reel 73-yard touchdown.



Other birthdays with New England area connections:

- Johnny Spirida (11/4/14-4/?/66). Bridgewater native and St. Anselm's alum was a back, end and punter for the 1939 Washington Redskins.
- Archie Roberts (11/4/42). Born and raised in Holyoke, the quarterback from Columbia was a 7th round draft pick by the Jets in 1965. He appeared in one game as a backup for the 1967 Miami Dolphins.


Best football name born today:
- "Bullet" Baker, appropriately a wingback/tailback from the late twenties and early thirties.

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November 4, 1977:
The Last Waltz premiered, a Martin Scorcese movie based on The Band‘s final concert.

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[jmt57]

Today In Patriots History: November 5


November 5, 1967:
Boston Patriots 18, Houston Oilers 7 at Fenway Park

The Pats defense limited the Oilers to just 200 yards of total offense and one score while forcing Houston to punt eight times, upsetting the Oilers for their third and what would turn out to be final win of the season. Jim Nance rushed for 108 yards, Bob Cappadonna ran for 45 and Art Graham had six catches for 84 yards - but the Pats offense kept stalling when they got close to the end zone. Gino Cappelletti kicked three field goals (on five attempts) to put the Patriots up 9-0 and then the defense came through, tackling Houston RB Roy Hopkins in the end zone for a safety. In the 4th quarter Houston scored on a short touchdown pass to cut the lead to four before Nance ran it in from five yards out for the final score.



November 5, 1978:
New England Patriots 14, Buffalo Bills 10 at Rich Stadium

For the third straight game and seventh time on the season the Patriots rushed for over 200 yards, winning their 7th straight game to improve to 8-2. Steve Grogan (5/17, 65 yards, 0 TD and 1 interception) could not get anything going through the air on this breezy day but it didn’t matter as the Pats just steamrolled the Bills. Horace Ivory rushed for 128 yards and two touchdowns on 16 carries, Sam Cunningham ran for 85 yards on 13 carries, Don Calhoun added another 39 yards rushing and Grogan had an 18-yard run for the Pats. In all the Pats averaged 5.9 yards per carry and ran for 279 yards on the day.



November 5, 1989:
New York Jets 27, New England Patriots 26 at Foxboro Stadium

The Jets got their second win of the season when Ken O’Brien completed four straight passes covering 72 yards in the final 1:03 to set up a 23-yard field goal by Ken Leahy as time expired. For the Jets this was an offensive outburst; in the previous five games (all losses) they had scored just one offensive touchdown. For the Patriots this was the second time they had lost a one-point game in which they had missed an extra point.

Steve Grogan was knocked out of the game on a late hit three minutes into the second half and Marc Wilson came in, rallying the Pats. Down by 12, Wilson hit Cedric Jones on a 65-yard bomb and then connected with Hart Lee Dykes on an 11-yard score with 1:03 remaining to put the Patriots up by two.

Wilson finished 12/18 for 177 yards in his first NFL action in two years. John Stephens had 86 yards rushing, Jones finished with 6 catches for 127 yards, Stanley Morgan had 5 catches for 72 yards and Eric Seivers had 7 receptions for 50 yards.



November 5, 1995:
New England Patriots 20, New York Jets 7 at Exit 16W

Curtis Martin rushed for a career-high 166 yards on 35 carries and scored twice as the Patriots broke a three-game skid with a 20-7 win at Giants Stadium. The Patriots defense came up with a fumble recovery, interception, and five sacks, eventually knocking Glen Foley out with a shoulder injury which ended his season. Vincent Brisby had three catches for 74 yards and Vincent Brown had a sack and an interception for the Pats.



November 5, 2000:
Buffalo Bills 16, New England Patriots 13 at Foxboro Stadium

Steve Christie hit a 48-yard field goal with 48 seconds remaining to force overtime, and then hit his third field goal of the day from 32 yards to win the game.

On the opening drive Drew Bledsoe suffered a thumb injury and was replaced by John Friesz in the second quarter after throwing an interception. The Bills dominated the first half but were only up 10-0 when they turned the ball over on a fumbled handoff from Buffalo QB Doug Flutie to Sammy Morris. Adam Vinatieri kicked a 48-yard field goal to cut the score to 10-7 at halftime.

In the second half the Pats defense dominated, but the offense was unable to capitalize. On one series in the third quarter due to penalties the Patriots had three 3rd and goals from the one yard line and failed to score each time; on the day the Pats had nine plays from the Bills one-yard line and scored only once. In the 4th quarter the Pats had a first and goal from the one and were stopped three times before J.R. Redmond finally punched it in for their only touchdown of the game.

That tied the score and then Troy Brown returned a punt to the Buffalo 43 with 4:04 to play. The Patriots were only able to make one first down but it was close enough for Vinatieri to kick a 43-yard field goal to put the Pats up 13-10 with just 1:57 to go. However Flutie drove the Bills down the field, completing a 24 yard pass and scrambling for an 11-yard gain on 3rd-and-10 to set up the game tying field goal.



November 5, 2006:
Indianapolis Colts 27, New England Patriots 20 at Gillette Stadium

The Colts picked off Tom Brady four times, two on tipped passes, to defeat the Pats and remain undefeated at 8-0. The loss ended a four-game winning streak for the Patriots, who dropped to 6-2.

The Patriots had a chance when Adam Vinatieri, facing his former team for the first time, missed his second field goal of the game from 37 yards with 1:55 remaining. However two plays later Brady was intercepted by Cato June and the Colts ran out the clock.

The Patriots ran for 148 yards, led by Laurence Maroney's 63 yards on 13 carries while Corey Dillon rushed for two touchdowns. Troy Brown had 37 yards on five catches; his second reception made him the Pats all-time leader with 535, surpassing Stanley Morgan.

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November 5, 1931:
Ike Turner was born.

November 5, 1941:
Art Garfunkel was born.

November 5, 1946:
Gram Parsons of The Byrds and Flying Burrito Brothers was born.

November 5, 1947:
Peter Noone of Herman’s Hermits was born.

November 5, 1966:
The number one single was Last Train To Clarksville by The Monkees … although it wasn’t them playing any of the instruments.

November 5, 1970:
Led Zeppelin III was released; the album would go on to sell 6 million copies.

November 5, 1971:
Jonny Greenwood of Radiohead was born.

November 5, 1988:
For the third time in three decades Gerry Coffin and Carole King‘s The Locomotion was a top five single: in 1962 by Little Eva, in 1974 by Grand Funk Railroad, and this time by Kylie Minogue.

November 5, 2003:
Bobby Hatfield of The Righteous Brothers died at age 63.

November 5, 2005:
Guitar player Link Wray died at age 76. The godfather of the power chord may be the only person to have an instrumental (Rumble) banned by radio stations. Besides that song Wray is most well known for inventing the fuzz guitar sound, which he achieved by simply punching a hole in a speaker to create the distorted sound effect.

​

 

[jmt57]

Today In Patriots History: November 6​

November 6, 1964:
Boston Patriots 25, Houston Oilers 24 at Fenway Park

Gino Cappelletti capped off a wild final quarter that had four lead changes with his fourth field goal of the game as time expired, and the Patriots won and improved to 6-2-1.

On the opening kickoff J.D. Garrett fumbled the ball; Houston recovered and scored soon after that. On the ensuing drive the Patriots drove 75 yards, much of it on runs by Larry Garron, who finished with 91 yards rushing on 23 carries. Babe Parilli then scored on a keeper to tie the game at seven.

Early in the second quarter Cappelletti hit on his first field goal from 25 yards out, and then connected again from 33 yards with six seconds to go before halftime to put the Pats up 13-7.

On the first play after the kickoff to start the second half George Blanda hit rookie TE Willie Frazier on a bomb with what would turn out to be the longest play of his pro football career, for an 80-yard touchdown; after Blanda kicked the extra point Houston was up by one point. Parilli came back and completed a 64-yard pass play to SE Art Graham, but the Patriots could not get the ball into the end zone. The Pats settled for a 22-yard field goal from Cappelletti late in the period which gave the Patriots a 16-14 lead.

The score remained that way until there was 6:46 to play when Blanda threw a 38-yard touchdown to SE Charlie Frazier. The Pats came right back though, with Parilli rolling out and running it in from the five yard line. With the Pats up 22-21 the decision was made to go for two points, but a pass from Parilli to Graham was incomplete.

Houston got the ball back and moved to midfield with about a minute to play, and two passes from Blanda to Frazier put the ball on the four-yard line. Charley Tolar, who had scored the first touchdown of the game, was stopped before the goal line by Nick Buonoconti. Blanda proceeded to kick what appeared to be a game winning ten yard field goal, giving the Oilers a 24-22 lead with just 32 seconds to play.

After receiving the kickoff Parilli completed passes to TE Tony Romeo and Cappelletti to quickly move the ball past midfield. With time running out Parilli rolled out, but with nobody open he took off and ran down the sideline. Babe astutely stepped out of bounds at the Oilers’ 34-yard line so the team could get one last play off, with just one second remaining on the clock. Cappelletti then booted a 42-yard field goal and the Patriots won the game, 25 to 24.

Parilli finished the game with 256 yards passing plus 96 yards rushing, including two touchdown runs. Art Graham had eight catches for 167 yards, and Nick Buonoconti had one interception.



November 6, 1966:
Denver Broncos 17, Boston Patriots 10 at Fenway Park

On a windy day in which the two teams combined for twelve turnovers the Pats were upset by the one-win Broncos, falling to 4-3-1.

In his entire pro football career Denver’s Max Chobian threw four touchdown passes; two of them came in this game, including the game-winning 4th quarter bomb to Al Denson. The Patriots defense forced seven turnovers but the offense could not capitalize, fumbling the ball away five times and gaining just 43 yards on the ground on 25 carries. Jim ‘Earthquake’ Hunt scored the only touchdown of the day for the Patriots when he recovered a fumble in the end zone in the second quarter to give the Patriots a 7-0 lead.



November 6, 1972:
Baltimore Colts 24, New England Patriots 17 at Schaefer Stadium

The Patriots comeback on Monday Night Football fell short, and the Colts won in a slight upset. Carl Garrett ran for 65 yards and added another 62 on eight receptions.



November 6, 1977:
Buffalo Bills 24, New England Patriots 14 at Schaefer Stadium

The Patriots turn the ball over four times and the Bills got their second win of the season, while the Pats four-game winning streak came to an end as they slipped to 5-3. After Buffalo went up by 14 Raymond Clayborn ran back the ensuing kickoff 93 yards for a touchdown to pull the Pats within seven. However in the third quarter the Bills got a pick six, and although Sam Cunningham scored on a ten-yard run it was too little, too late.



November 6, 1983:
New England Patriots 21, Buffalo Bills 7 at Sullivan Stadium

Although big offensive plays grabbed the headlines, the Pats won this one the old fashioned way: with good defense and a strong running game.

In the second quarter Steve Grogan completed a 35-yard pass to Stanley Morgan to set up a touchdown run by Tony Collins, and then he hit Clarence Weathers on a 40-yard pass to put the Patriots up 14-0 at halftime. Grogan then connected with Weathers again for a 58-yard touchdown to put the Patriots up 21-0 before Bills scored late for the final score. Defensively the Pats stuffed Buffalo on a first and goal after a pass interference penalty and the Pats finished with 450 yards, to 263 for Buffalo. The Patriots D had four interceptions, including two by Rick Sanford, his fifth and sixth of the season. Fred Marion and Larry McGrew both had an interception as well, and Clayton Weishuhn had two sacks. Tony Collins ran for 100 yards and as a team the Pats ran for 199 yards on the game.



November 6, 1988:
New England Patriots 21, Miami Dolphins 10 at Sullivan Stadium

Rookie John Stephens ran for over 100 yards for the third straight game, as the Pats beat Dan Marino and the Dolphins.

Stephens rushed for 104 yards and his 13-yard touchdown in the third quarter put the Pats up 21-3. On that drive as well as another in the second quarter (that finished with a one-yard TD by Bob Perryman) the Patriots did not throw one single pass, and they finished the game with 203 yards rushing.

In between those drives the Pats scored on a one-yard pass from Doug Flutie to Irving Fryar. Flutie extended his undefeated streak in Foxboro to nine games: five wins with Boston College and four with the Patriots.

After a Marino touchdown pass cut the lead to 11 Miami drove again down to the six yard line, but a Roland James interception in the end zone with 2:59 remaining sealed the victory.



November 6, 1994:
Cleveland Browns 13, New England Patriots 6 at Municipal Stadium

A Browns team led by Bill Belichick as head coach and Nick Saban as defensive coordinator shut down the Pats and improved to 7-2, while the Patriots fell to 3-6. Belichick and Saban came up with an effective game plan to counter Drew Bledsoe, who was just 20 for 43 for 166 yards with no touchdowns and four interceptions on the day. Marion Butts led the Patriots with 86 yards rushing on 25 carries, while WR Michael Timpson had seven receptions for 69 yards; the only New England points came on two Matt Bahr field goals.



November 6, 2011:
New York Giants 24, New England Patriots 20 at Gillette Stadium

Eli Manning threw a one-yard touchdown pass to TE Jake Ballard with fifteen seconds left to play, and the Patriots lost to the Giants. The loss ended an NFL record streak of 31 consecutive regular season home wins by Tom Brady, and also a 20 game regular season home winning streak for the Pats.

The Patriots had taken a 20-17 lead when Brady completed a 14-yard touchdown pass to Rob Gronkowski with 1:36 left to play in the game. However Sergio Brown was flagged for pass interference, giving the Giants first and goal on the one yard line with thirty seconds on the clock. The Pats defense stopped New York on first and second down before Ballard’s touchdown on third down.

Brady finished with 342 yards passing and two touchdowns, Wes Welker had nine catches for 136 yards, Gronk had eight receptions for 101 yards and the TD, and Aaron Hernandez had a 4th quarter touchdown reception which tied the score at 10-10.



Among those born on November 6 is former inmate number W106228. RIP.

♪ ♫ ♮ ♯ ♪ ♫ ♮ ♯ ♪ ♫ ♮ ♯ ♪ ♫ ♮ ♯ ♪ ♫ ♮ ♯ ♪ ♫ ♮ ♯ ♪ ♫ ♮ ♯ ♪ ♫ ♮ ♯​

November 6, 1970:
Aerosmith made their live debut, playing their first ever gig at Nipmuc Regional High School in Mendon, Mass. Since that time the Bad Boys From Boston have gone on to sell more than 150 million albums and become the best selling American rock band of all time.

​

 

[Actual Pats Fan]

November 6, 1994:
Cleveland Browns 13, New England Patriots 6 at Municipal Stadium

A Browns team led by Bill Belichick as head coach and Nick Saban as defensive coordinator shut down the Pats and improved to 7-2, while the Patriots fell to 3-6. Belichick and Saban came up with an effective game plan to counter Drew Bledsoe, who was just 20 for 43 for 166 yards with no touchdowns and four interceptions on the day. Marion Butts led the Patriots with 86 yards rushing on 25 carries, while WR Michael Timpson had seven receptions for 69 yards; the only New England points came on two Matt Bahr field goals.

Of course, this game preceded the big OT win over the Vikes, a seven-game win streak and return to Cleveland for a first-round playoff loss to BB & the Browns.

the Pats scored on a one-yard pass from Doug Flutie to Irving Fryar. Flutie extended his undefeated streak in Foxboro to nine games: five wins with Boston College and four with the Patriots.

What could have been...

 

[Actual Pats Fan]

November 5, 1966:
The number one single was Last Train To Clarksville by The Monkees … although it wasn’t them playing any of the instruments.

Interesting, how people pick and choose whom and how to criticize or attempt to belittle someone or something.

Countless star singing performers never played a note on any instrument in the studio or on stage.

In the Monkees' case, when they dumped Don Kirshner after failing to convince him that they were in fact not robot sheep, in their third album, Headquarters, the group plays all the instruments, using sessions musicians only as an addition to their own.

The album charted at the No. 1 in the U.S. for one week, then was replaced by The Beatles' iconic Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. It then began a run of 11 consecutive weeks at the No. 2 position as Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band remained at No. 1.

The Beatles were brilliant, but they did have a slew of session musicians playing in Pepper and other albums.

 

[Actual Pats Fan]

November 3, 1985:
Raymond Berry used a trick play that was installed just four days earlier to surprise Don Shula and beat the Dolphins 17-13 in a gray, drizzly day at Sullivan Stadium for their third win in a row. With the Patriots losing 13-3 in the 4th quarter and facing a 4th-and-one at the Miami 28, 295 pound OT Steve Moore lined up at fullback and led a path for Mosi Tatupu off left tackle. Tatupu however, ran a few steps and then pivoted and pitched back to quarterback Steve Grogan. Grogan then lofted an easy pass to Greg Hawthorne, who caught the ball at the Miami 5 and strolled into the end zone.

After the Patriots got the ball back Tatupu, Craig James and Tony Collins gashed the Miami defense for an 80-yard drive, culminated by Grogan scoring the winning points on a one-yard naked reverse with 3:03 remaining. James finished the game with 119 yards rushing and 35 receiving, and Collins had 49 yards rushing and 47 receiving. The win improved New England’s record to 6-3, one game behind the Jets and one ahead of the Dolphins in the very competitive AFC East.

Similarly to '01, the win streak in '85 was punctuated by crucial, close games like this one, which were really must-wins for the Pats due to their terrible start with Eason.

Grogan called timeout before the 4th down, walked to the sideline and asked Raymond Berry, "Are you sure about this?" "It's the perfect time for it," replied cool Ray. Back in the huddle, everyone glared at Greg Hawthorne, saying "You had better hang on to it." The play hadn't exactly worked to perfection in practice...

When Mosi turned and lateraled the ball back to Grogan, I said to my father, "Oh! This is a GOOD call, no matter what happens!!"

The play-by-play guy on TV was as lost as the Dolphins' D..."And, it is uh, trick play...Touchdown!"

In Super Bowl XX, the Bears went with what got them there...and the Patriots didn't.

 

[jmt57]

This Day In Patriots History: November 7​

November 7, 1965:
Buffalo Bills 23, Boston Patriots 7 at Fenway Park

Once again the Pats, who finished the season last in the AFL in points scored in ’65, could not get anything going on offense. After Buffalo opened up a 13-0 lead a one-yard run by J.D. Garrett in the second quarter cut the lead to six. However, Buffalo ran the ensuing kickoff back 102 yards and was never seriously threatened again. The Patriots defense did a good job, allowing just one touchdown and just 161 yards of total offense but the Patriots offense turned the ball over four times (two interceptions, two fumbles) and was stymied on the ground (28 yards rushing on 29 carries). Jim Colclough was the lone bright spot with four receptions for 114 yards.



November 7, 1971:
New England Patriots 28, Houston Oilers 20 at Schaefer Stadium

Touchdown runs by Jim Nance and Carl Garrett capped a 4th quarter come from behind victory for the Pats in Foxboro. Houston’s Dan Pastorini threw for over 100 more yards than Jim Plunkett, but the Pats defense picked off three Pastorini passes while Plunkett was error free on the afternoon.

The Patriots got some contributions from unlikely sources in this game. Hubie Bryant scored the only touchdown of his NFL career on a 10-yard pass from Plunkett in the first quarter to give the Pats a 7-0 lead. In the second period Jack Maitland found the end zone from two yards out for his only TD as a Patriot, and one of only two scores in his NFL career. Houston then scored on Mark Moseley‘s second field goal of the game to make the score 14-6 Pats at halftime.

The Oilers came back in the second half when Pastorini hit future Hall of fame WR Charlie Joinerfor a 28-yard touchdown to cut the deficit to one, and took the lead early in the fourth quarter when Pastorini ran it in from one yard out. However the Pats came back with a 4-yard TD by Nance and then Garrett scored the game winner on a 2-yard run.

Randy Vataha had seven catches for 77 yards for the Pats and Bryant, who was primarily a punt and kick returner during his three years in the NFL, had five catches for 79 yards, both career highs. Bob Gladieux came through with a 48-yard left-handed halfback option pass completion to Bryant, and on defense Jim Cheyunski, Randy Beverly and Steve Kiner each had an interception.



November 7, 1975:
After being ousted as President of the Patriots the previous year, Billy Sullivan became the first majority owner in club history when he purchased additional voting stock to give him 88 percent of the franchise’s voting stock.



November 7, 1976:
New England Patriots 20, Buffalo Bills 10 at Schaefer Stadium

Sam Cunningham rushed for 141 yards and Mike Haynes had the first punt return for a touchdown in franchise history as the Pats improved to 6-3.

John Smith kicked a pair of field goals before Haynes scored on his 89-yard punt return to put the Patriots up 13-0. Buffalo then got on the scoreboard with a field goal to make it 13-3 at halftime.

In the third quarter Cunningham scored on an 8-yard run and the Pats defense never let the Bills back in the game. The Patriots dominated in all three phases of the game: on offense (172 yards rushing), special teams (Haynes’ touchdown) and defense (an amazing eight turnovers). Haynes, Steve Nelson, Tim Fox and Prentice McCray each had an interception for the Patriots’ defense.

The win would be the first of what turned into a six-game winning streak to finish the season that came to an abrupt end in the infamous Ben Dreith game.



November 7, 1993:
Buffalo Bills 13, New England Patriots 10 in OT at Foxboro Stadium

The one-win Pats almost pulled off a huge upset over the one-loss Bills but once again came up short. For the third game in a row first-year coach Bill Parcells’ team scored no more than one touchdown and fell to 1-8 heading into their bye week.

After a scoreless first half Leonard Russell scored on a two yard rush, and then early in the 4th quarter Scott Sisson kicked a 27-yard field goal to put the Patriots up by ten. The Bills then scored on a 9-yard pass from Jim Kelly to TE Pete Metzelaars, tied the score on a 27-yard field goal by Steve Christie and then won it in overtime a 30-yard Christie field goal.

Buffalo took over at their own 13 with 1:04 remaining and the Pats up by three. Pats FS Harlon Barnett missed a sideline tackle on Buffalo WR Russell Copeland, allowing him to run to the Pats nine-yard line to set up the game tying field goal.

On the opening drive in overtime Parcells elected to go for it on 4th-and-one on the Buffalo 48 but Russell was stopped for no gain. However the Pats were able to get the ball back when they recovered a Metzelaars fumble on the 25. The Pats offense stalled once again though and when Buffalo got the ball back Pats CB Reyna Thompson was beat for a 46 yard completion from Kelly to Andre Reed down to the Pats 19 which set up the winning kick.

Despite the late lapses the Patriots defense did come up with three fumble recoveries to overcome a 317-yard passing game by Kelly and 142 total yards by Thurman Thomas (111 rushing, 31 receiving). Leonard Russell led the Pats with 95 yards rushing.

Scott Sisson missed a 28-yard field goal in the second quarter, making it the third straight game that ‘Missin’ Sisson‘ had been a factor in close losses. After this game Sisson was just 12 for 20 on field goal attempts on the season, and was 0-for-5 from beyond 40 yards.

When QB Scott Secules left the game with a separated shoulder and was replaced by Drew Bledsoe the crowd cheered; it was not clear if the applause was for Bledsoe entering the game or for Secules’ exit. Bledsoe had some choice words for the fans after the game but due to this happening almost twenty years ago it did not create the stir that happened in Kansas City earlier this season.



November 7, 2004:
New England Patriots 40, St. Louis Rams 22 at Edward Jones Dome

The Pats had a touchdown pass to a linebacker, a kicker throw a pass for a touchdown, and a wide receiver, practice squad player, linebacker, and rookie free agent all playing defensive back at various times in this win. In addition Troy Brown became the first player in Pats franchise history to catch a pass thrown by a quarterback, running back, wide receiver, and now a kicker during his career.

The Pats came into this game without starting RT Tom Ashworth, CB Ty Law or CB Randall Gay, and then number 3 CB Asante Samuel was sidelined with a shoulder injury on the second play of the game. Bill Belichick ended up going with WR Troy Brown and Earthwind Moreland, who was just promoted from the practice squad two days earlier as defensive backs. The Pats secondary was helped out by the front seven, who sacked QB Marc Bulger three times and harassed him on every drop back.

After two Adam Vinatieri field goals the Rams got on the scoreboard when they knocked the ball out of Tom Brady‘s arm and fell on it in the end zone. On the following possession Brady moved the ball 64 yards on 10 plays, scoring on a 2-yard TD pass to LB Mike Vrabel in the corner of the end zone to put the Pats up 13-7.

The Rams finally took advantage of the depleted New England defense, completing a 48-yard pass to TE Brandon Manumaleuna, who was covered by a linebacker with no safety help; on the next play Bulger hit Isaac Bruce for an 11-yard touchdown. The Pats came back on a tremendous 50-yard pass and catch from Brady to David Givens which set up another Vinatieri field goal, a 45-yarder to give the Pats back the lead at 16-14. With two minutes left the Rams were shredding the Pats secondary but the line came through, knocking the ball out of Bulger’s hand with Jarvis Greenrecovering it on the 28.

After a roughing the passer penalty Brady completed a 20-yard pass to David Patten, moving the ball to the Rams’ 37, and then hit Patten again for 19 yards to set up another Vinatieri field goal as time expired, giving the Pats a 19-14 halftime lead.

In the second half the Pats pulled off one of the more memorable plays in the history of the franchise. Vinatieri was lined up for a 21-yard field goal but the Rams defense was asleep, leaving Troy Brown all alone on the edge of the field. Vinatieri took the direct snap and threw a four-yard touchdown pass to Brown and the Pats led 26-14. Four plays later the Rams had a mismatch with Willie McGinest covering WR Tory Holt, yet Willie was able to get his hands on the pass and the deflection was picked off by Roman Phifer, who returned it to the Rams’ 21-yard line. A couple minutes later Corey Dillon juked a Rams defender out of his jock to score on a 5-yard run and the Pats went up 33-14. In the 4th quarter the Rams scored to get within 11 but the Pats came back with Brady hitting Bethel Johnson a 4-yard touchdown to finish the scoring.

Givens finished the game with five catches for 100 yards and Dillon had 112 yards on 25 carries for the Pats.



November 7, 2005:
Indianapolis Colts 40, New England Patriots 21 at Gillette Stadium

With eight key players out with injuries the Patriots were no match for the 8-0 Colts on Monday Night Football, as Indy controlled the clock and dominated the Patriots on both sides of the ball. The Colts had drives of 54, 68, 73, 60, and 74 yards, including a 17-play second-quarter drive that chewed up over nine minutes.

The turning point came in the 2nd quarter after an interception by Mike Vrabel gave the Pats the ball, down 14-7. A banged-up Corey Dillon had the ball ripped away from him on a 1st down from the Colts’ 17 by Dwight Freeney, and the Colts drove 73 yards for a two-touchdown halftime lead and were never seriously threatened after that.

David Givens had four catches for 64 yards, Deion Branch had five catches for 58 yards and a touchdown, Troy Brown had five catches for 57 yards and a touchdown, and Daniel Graham had five catches for 41 yards and a touchdown for the Patriots.



November 7, 2010:
Cleveland Browns 34, New England Patriots 14 at Cleveland Browns Stadium

The Pats came out flat and the Browns just ran the ball right up the gut and over the Pats. Peyton Hillis had the best game of his career, running for 184 yards and two touchdowns while the Patriots were just out of sync and a step slower all day. Aaron Hernandez scored both touchdowns for the Patriots, on short passes from Tom Brady.

For the Patriots the game seemed to serve as a wake-up call: they went on to win each of their next eight games, finishing the season with an NFL-best 14-2 record.

♪ ♫ ♮ ♯ ♪ ♫ ♮ ♯ ♪ ♫ ♮ ♯ ♪ ♫ ♮ ♯ ♪ ♫ ♮ ♯ ♪ ♫ ♮ ♯ ♪ ♫ ♮ ♯ ♪ ♫ ♮ ♯​

November 7, 1943:
Joni Mitchell was born in Alberta.

​

 

[jmt57]

Today In Patriots History: November 8​

November 8, 1970:
St. Louis Cardinals 31, Boston Patriots 0 at Busch Stadium

MacArthur Lane rushed for three touchdowns for the Cardinals, who improved to 6-2. The Pats turned the ball over four times in the first-ever game between these two franchises, falling to 1-7. Charley Frazier, the former Oiler playing his final season of pro football, led the Patriots with five receptions for 54 yards. MacArthur Lane? Wow, that name’s a true blast from the past…



November 8, 1981:
Miami Dolphins 30, New England Patriots 27 in OT at Schaefer Stadium

The Pats jumped out to a 17-3 lead over the heavily favored Dolphins but were unable to hang on. Stanley Morgan started things off with a 76-yard highlight reel touchdown from Steve Grogan, and finished with 5 receptions for 182 yards. Grogan threw for 355 yards on the day but his four interceptions helped Miami get back in the game. Tony Collins had a touchdown and 90 yards rushing. The win improved Miami’s record to 7-2-1 while the Pats fell to 2-8.



November 8, 1987:
New York Giants 17, New England Patriots 10 at the Meadowlands

The Patriots defense forced three turnovers but the offense could not capitalize. Ed Reynolds intercepted two passes and Andre Tippett picked off another for the Pats. The only touchdown for New England came in the 2nd quarter on a 15-yard pass from Steve Grogan to TE Greg Baty.

With this game Grogan had now played every other team in the NFL.



November 8, 1992:
New Orleans Saints 31, New England Patriots 14 at Foxboro Stadium

Bobby Hebert threw three touchdowns as the Saints improved to 7-2 while the Patriots lost their ninth straight game. Highlight of the game for the Pats was an interception that linebacker Vincent Brown returned 49 yards for a touchdown; the other score came on an 8-yard run by Leonard Russell.



November 8, 1998:
Atlanta Falcons 41, New England Patriots 10 at Foxboro Stadium

The Falcons scored two touchdowns in the first six minutes and cruised from there, improving to 7-2 for their best start in franchise history. At this point Atlanta still had plenty of doubters but they would end up going 14-2, before losing to Denver in the Super Bowl.

At the time of the game the Patriots were considered to be the better team, coming off a 10-6 season and being in the Super Bowl themselves the year before that. However the Pats were overwhelmed and fell out of first place, slumping to 5-4 with their third loss in four games.

New England had a chance to get back in the game midway through the second quarter with a fourth-and-2 at the Atlanta 13-yard line and the score 21-3. Pete Carroll went for a first down rather than a field goal but Drew Bledsoe fumbled, and DE Chuck Smith not only recovered but returned the ball 71 yards for a touchdown to give Atlanta a 28-3 halftime lead.

The Patriots struggled with key offensive players sidelined, including three wide receivers. Vincent Brisby missed his fourth straight game, and Terry Glenn and Troy Brown sat out their third game in a row; in addition the Pats also missed the blocking of fullback Tony Carter, who was recovering from knee surgery.

Adam Vinatieri‘s 40-yard field goal after Ty Law‘s sixth interception of the season cut the lead to 14-3, but RB Jamal Anderson‘s second touchdown run made the score 21-3. On the ensuing drive the Pats turned the ball over on the ill-fated fourth down play and the game was essentially over at that point. Tony Simmons led the Patriots with four receptions for 95 yards, and Shawn Jefferson had a pair of catches for 61 yards.



November 8, 2009:
New England Patriots 27, Miami Dolphins 17 at Gillette Stadium

Randy Moss caught a short pass over the middle, shoved Vontae Davis aside with a stiff-arm, and ran 71 yards for the winning touchdown. That play (and ensuing 2-point conversion to Moss) put the Pats up 24-17 with 3:15 remaining in the 3rd quarter, but Miami never moved the ball inside the Pats’ 40-yard line for the rest of the game.

On the Patriots’ second possession of the game Moss made a one-handed catch against Davis for a 36-yard gain, down to the 1-yard line; Laurence Maroney ran for the TD on the next play to put the Pats up 7-3.

Miami came back with two touchdowns in which they used the Wildcat (which they first used the previous season) almost exclusively. The second TD came on RB Ronnie Brown‘s 1-yard pass, giving the Dolphins a 17-16 lead, capping off a 16-play drive which consumed 10:09 off the clock. The Pats responded with two plays that gained nine yards and then the touchdown to Moss.

Maroney carried the ball 20 times for 82 yards; in the previous seven games of the ’09 season he had never run more than 16 times and only once previously had he run for more than 43 yards. Moss led the Pats with 147 yards receiving and Wes Welker had nine receptions for 84 yards; Tom Brady finished with 332 yards, going 25-for-37 on the day.



November 8, 2015:
New England Patriots 27, Washington Redskins 10 at Gillette Stadium

The Pats jumped out to a quick lead and cruised to their 8th straight victory to start the 2015 season. With 4:30 still remaining in the first quarter the Pats were up 14-0 while Washington had run just one play from scrimmage. It could have actually been more one-sided: sandwiched between those two touchdowns the Pats squandered another scoring opportunity on a fumble.

New England opened up the game with a 13-play scoring drive, capped off by a Julian Edelman 8-yard touchdown reception. Jonathan Freeny then recovered an onside kick by Stephen Gostkowski, but that drive stalled on an Edelman fumble at the Washington 26. On the next play Logan Ryan intercepted a Kirk Cousins pass, and returned it to the 28. LeGarrette Blount then ran it in from five yards out for a 14-point lead. At that point the Patriots had run 24 plays from scrimmage, while Washington had just one snap on offense.

Tom Brady finished 26-39 for 299 yards, with two touchdowns and one interception. Blount had 29 carries for 129 yards and a touchdown, and Brandon LaFell had five receptions for 102 yards.

♪ ♫ ♮ ♯ ♪ ♫ ♮ ♯ ♪ ♫ ♮ ♯ ♪ ♫ ♮ ♯ ♪ ♫ ♮ ♯ ♪ ♫ ♮ ♯ ♪ ♫ ♮ ♯ ♪ ♫ ♮ ♯​

November 8, 1949:
Bonnie Raitt was born in Burbank.

​

 

[jmt57]

Today In Patriots History: November 9​

November 9, 1969:
Miami Dolphins 17, Boston Patriots 16 at Alumni Stadium

The Pats rallied from a 10-0 halftime deficit with three 4th-quarter touchdowns, but a two-point conversion attempt for the win at the end failed, giving the Dolphins their second win of the season.

The game was a defensive struggle due in large part to a strong wind and torrential downpour; the two teams combined for just 15 first downs and 91 yards passing while punting twelve times. Miami picked off one of the few pass attempts deep in Pats territory for the only touchdown of the first half. Rookie Carl Garrett got the Patriots on the scoreboard with the longest run of his career, an 80-yard scamper for a touchdown in the 4th quarter. Gino Cappelletti then tied it when the Pats were unable to punch it in close to the goal line with a 17-yard field goal, but future Hall of Famer Larry Csonka then broke a tackle for a 54-yard TD for the Dolphins. The Pats came back late with a 15-yard touchdown from Mike Taliaferro to Bill Rademacher and decided to go for two points and the win rather than a tie. Rather than hand off to Garrett or Jim Nance they opted to pass the ball, which went incomplete and the game was over.

Nance finished the game with 109 yards rushing and Garrett had 92 on 12 carries; Rademacher had 55 yards on the only two passes that Taliaferro completed.


November 9, 1970:
Jimmy Hitchcock was born in Concord, North Carolina.
The Patriots selected the CB from UNC in the third round (88th overall) in the 1995 draft.
#31 played in 36 games with the Pats from '95-'97 (as well as two playoff games), becoming a starter in his third season in Foxboro. He had four interceptions with the Pats, including a franchise record 100-yard pick-six off Dan Marino in a 27-24 victory over the Dolphins in '97. Hitchcock returned to the Pats in 2002 after four seasons with the Vikings and Panthers. He finished his NFL career with 19 interceptions in 101 games played, plus one pick in six playoff games.


November 9, 1975:
New England Patriots 33, San Diego Chargers 19 at San Diego Stadium

CB Bob Howard picked off a 1st-quarter Dan Fouts pass and returned it 44 yards for the only touchdown of his 13-year NFL career, giving the Pats a 10-3 lead they would never relinquish. Sam Cunningham ran for 90 yards and one touchdown and added another 30 yards receiving, and John Smith added three field goals. Russ Francis had three receptions for 81 yards, Randy Vataha had five catches for 56 yards and a TD, and Steve Grogan went 17-for-28 for 245 yards for the Patriots.



November 9, 1986:
New England Patriots 30, Indianapolis Colts 21 at the Hoosier Dome

After staking the hapless Colts a 14-3 lead in the second quarter the Pats woke from their slumber with 27 unanswered points, to improve to 7-3 while Indy slumped to 0-10.

Steve Nelson and Ronnie Lippett each had two interceptions, while Don Blackmon, Johnny Rembert and Garon Veris each had a sack as the defense provided the needed spark to win this game. Tony Eason was 19-33 for 240 yards and two touchdowns and Stanley Morgan had five catches for 89 yards. The Pats touchdowns were scored by TE Willie Scott on an 8-yard reception, Irving Fryar on a 2-yard catch, and Mosi Tatupu on a one-yard run.



November 9, 1997:
New England Patriots 31, Buffalo Bills 10 at Rich Stadium

For the first time in franchise history the Patriots pulled off the rare feat of scoring an offensive, defensive and special team touchdown in their win over the Bills.

After the Bills opened up scoring with a Steve Christie field goal, Derrick Cullors returned the ensuing kickoff 86 yards for a touchdown to give the Pats a 7-3 lead. In the second quarter Adam Vinatieri connected on a 46-yard field goal and then Drew Bledsoe hit Ben Coates with a 6-yard pass to give the Patriots a 17-3 halftime lead.

After the break the Pats had the Bills trapped deep in their own end when Chris Slade tipped a Todd Collins pass to himself and waltzed into the touchdown to put the Patriots up by 21. Buffalo finally got a touchdown on a run by Antowain Smith before Curtis Martin finished off the scoring with a one-yard plunge for the final score.

Martin finished the game with 93 yards running, including a beautiful 32-yard scamper; his running set up a couple of long passes from Drew Bledsoe: a 50-yarder to Troy Brown and a 40-yarder to Terry Glenn. The New England defense had a great performance in this matchup of two 5-4 teams; besides Slade’s pick, Ty Law, Willie Clay and Jimmy Hitchcock each had an interception as well.



November 9, 2008:
New England Patriots 20, Buffalo Bills 10 at Gillette Stadium

Rookie BenJarvus Green-Ellis ran for a career-high 105 yards and scored a touchdown for the fourth straight game, and the Pats’ defense did the rest, holding the Bills to just 58 yards in the second half.

BJGE capped a 19-play drive with a 1-yard touchdown with 1:57 left to secure the victory. Matt Cassel started things off, rushing for a 13-yard touchdown on the Patriots’ first series; it was the longest touchdown run by any Patriot at that point of the season.

The Law Firm got the call because the Pats were without injured running backs Sammy Morris, Laurence Maroney and Lamont Jordan. The two teams entered the game with identical 5-3 records and against a strong Buffalo defense this game looked like trouble, with only BJGE and Kevin Faulk available at RB, and Cassel making just his 8th start since high school. Cassel did his part, finishing 23-for-34 for 234 yards and no interceptions, and taking only one sack.

The Pats defense really stepped up, holding Marshawn Lynch to 46 yards while Trent Edwardsthrew for only 120 yards; his only TD came late in garbage time. The Patriots controlled the clock (37:40-22:20) and gained over 200 more yards than Buffalo, 370-168.

Ellis Hobbs and Deltha O’Neal both had a pick, Richard Seymour and Ty Warren both had a sack, and Wes Welker was the leading receiver with nine catches for 107 yards.

♪ ♫ ♮ ♯ ♪ ♫ ♮ ♯ ♪ ♫ ♮ ♯ ♪ ♫ ♮ ♯ ♪ ♫ ♮ ♯ ♪ ♫ ♮ ♯ ♪ ♫ ♮ ♯ ♪ ♫ ♮ ♯​

November 9, 1941:
Tom Fogerty, guitar player for Creedence Clearwater Revival, was born in Berkeley.

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November 9, 1958:
Elvis Presley‘s Hound Dog became the first single that was not Christmas-themed to sell 3,000,000 copies.

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November 9, 1963:
The Kingsmen released Louie, Louie. Radio stations banned the song because of the lyrics, despite the fact that they were completely unintelligible, and the FBI actually investigated the group. On this same date in 1998 the band was awarded royalties from the song; they had not been paid any since the early 1960’s. Richard Berry, who originally wrote the song five years earlier and was living off welfare in LA slums, earned over $1,000,000 in an out of court settlement in the mid-eighties for royalties he had not been paid.

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November 9, 1967:
The first issue of Rolling Stone magazine was published.

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[Actual Pats Fan]

November 7, 1943:
Joni Mitchell was born in Alberta.

"Woodstock"

Joni Mitchell wrote the song from what she had heard from then-boyfriend, Graham Nash, about the Woodstock Music and Art Festival. She had not been there herself, since she was told by a manager that it would be more advantageous for her to appear on The **** Cavett Show. She wrote it in a hotel room in New York City, watching televised reports of the festival. "The deprivation of not being able to go provided me with an intense angle on Woodstock," she told an interviewer shortly after the event. David Crosby, interviewed for the documentary Joni Mitchell: Woman of Heart and Mind, stated that Mitchell had captured the feeling and importance of the Woodstock festival better than anyone who had been there.

 

[Actual Pats Fan]

The Law Firm

I used to call him Ben Watson Jarvus Green-Ellis Hobbs

Like many Patriots teams over the years, I would have loved to see what this team would do in the playoffs.

 

[Actual Pats Fan]

Rather than hand off to Garrett or Jim Nance they opted to pass the ball, which went incomplete and the game was over.

"...Yeah, we've completed two passes all day today, so lets surprise 'em!..."

Reminds me of The Game in '67, where with the seconds winding down and deep in Yale territory at the Yale Bowl, Harvard decided to hand off to a kid who'd had exactly zero carries all year.

Don Gillis' voice could be heard out the window in homes across Massachusetts:

"FUMBLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLE!"

BTW, check out Brian Dowling in these game highlights (he did this every week):

 

[pherein]

Today In Patriots History: November 8​

November 8, 1992:
New Orleans Saints 31, New England Patriots 14 at Foxboro Stadium

Bobby Hebert threw three touchdowns as the Saints improved to 7-2 while the Patriots lost their ninth straight game. Highlight of the game for the Pats was an interception that linebacker Vincent Brown returned 49 yards for a touchdown; the other score came on an 8-yard run by Leonard Russell.

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Bobby Herbert is GOAT babe !!! ... err cr um ah err .. wrong forum sorry cant lie in here. Play threw please, nothing to see here

 

[jmt57]

"...Yeah, we've completed two passes all day today, so lets surprise 'em!..."

Reminds me of The Game in '67, where with the seconds winding down and deep in Yale territory at the Yale Bowl, Harvard decided to hand off to a kid who'd had exactly zero carries all year.

Don Gillis' voice could be heard out the window in homes across Massachusetts:

"FUMBLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLE!"

1968(?)
I was the new kid in my elementary school, sixth grade.

Teacher made an assignment for an oral report, not sure now exactly what it was, but essentially a 'brush with fame' or semi-famous relative, etc.

For me I had recently found out that Vic Gatto was a distant relative. Told the story of the genealogical connection, and then recounted the 29-29 win.

Perfect timing.

After having been the ostracized new kid for two months I was suddenly accepted with everyone willing to talk to me, invited to play and start on all our inter-school sports teams, etc.

By comparison the fact that my uncle was the US assistant secretary of commerce of the current administration was met by total indifference, even by my teacher.