Today In Patriots History Jan 27, 2002: NE upsets Steelers in AFCCG on Troy Brown's ST plays

Sunday January 27, 2002 at 12:40
2001 AFCCG at Heinz Field
New England Patriots 24, Pittsburgh Steelers 17
Head Coaches: Bill Belichick, Bill Cowher
Quarterbacks: Tom Brady, Drew Bledsoe; Kordell Stewart
Odds: Steelers favored by 10
TV: CBS. Greg Gumbel, Phil Simms; Armen Keteyian, Bonnie Bernstein
Partly sunny, 50°; 16 mph wind from the SW
Referee: Ed Hochuli; paid attendance: 64,704; time: 3:46
Game MVPs: Troy Brown
Patriots improve to 13-5; advance to Super Bowl 36 vs St Louis Rams, in New Orleans
Steelers finish the 2001 season with a record of 14-4


It was reported that prior to this game Pittsburgh head coach Bill Cowher told his players to have their bags packed and business in order, in order to avoid distractions heading into the Super Bowl.

Oops.

Maybe the Steelers should have been more focused on special teams.
Or perhaps not given the Patriots additional incentive with bulletin board material.






Troy Brown’s punt return touchdown is one of the most iconic plays in the history of this franchise. The special teams then scored again in the second half when Brandon Mitchell blocked a Steelers field goal attempt. Troy scooped it up and alertly lateraled the football to Antwan Harris, who ran it to the end zone for a 49-yard touchdown - and a 21-3 lead.

Pittsburgh rallied though and brought the deficit down to seven points. But Tebucky Jones and Lawyer Milloy had interceptions off Kordell Stewart on back-to-back Steeler possessions in the last five minutes to put the nail in Pittsburgh's coffin.







Game Recap: Patriotic Performance




















If you think I am over exaggerating about Cowher and the Steelers not taking Troy Brown seriously, consider the following article where Cowher, in a retrospective, talks about Deion Branch returning that punt, not Troy - while offering an excuse I had not heard before. Apparently after the penalty the referee placed the ball on the right hash rather than the left hash.









Drew Bledsoe recalls his last shining moment with the Patriots in the 2001 AFC title game - Patriots.com





Dueling retrospectives from both team's websites:
2001 Flashback: Special win in Pittsburgh showcased winning team formula - Patriots.com

2001 AFC Championship Game - Steelers.com








Box Score; First Half and Full Game Summaries; Team & Individual Stats; Drive Charts, and Full Play-by-Play:


Pats Media Dept - Pre-Game Press Release


Patriots Starting Offense:
80 WR Troy Brown
72 LT Matt Light
77 LG Mike Compton
65 C Damien Woody
63 RG Joe Andruzzi
64 RT Greg Robinson-Randall
83 TE Rod Rutledge
86 WR David Patten
12 QB Tom Brady
32 RB Antowain Smith
44 FB Marc Edwards

Patriots Starting Defense:
91 LDE Bobby Hamilton
96 LDT Brandon Mitchell
93 RDT Richard Seymour
98 RDE Anthony Pleasant
50 LLB Mike Vrabel
54 MLB Tedy Bruschi
95 RLB Roman Phifer
24 LCB Ty Law
36 SS Lawyer Milloy
34 FS Tebucky Jones
45 RCB Otis Smith

Patriots Special Teams:
4 K Adam Vinatieri
13 P Ken Walter
66 LS Lonie Paxton
35 KR Patrick Pass
80 PR Troy Brown

Probably my favorite non superbowl game eva… I was at the ESPN Zone in Orlando, me and a guy from Cambridge and 200+ Steeler fans.

Could have heard a pin drop in there, so so sweet.

January 27, 2000:
Patriots name Bill Belichick their 14th head coach in franchise history.

Belichick had 25 years of NFL experience at the time, including one season (1996) as the Pats Assistant Head Coach/Defensive Backs Coach.

He became the team's 14th head coach (16th including interim coaches Hank Bullough and Phil Bengston) in franchise history.

Belichick was most well known for a positive (earning two super bowl rings as defensive coordinator with the New York Giants - inclding a super bowl game plan that sits in the Pro Football Hall of Fame), and an up-and-down tenure with the Cleveland Browns (getting rid of fan favorite but insubordinate Benie Kosar; having to get through a season starting a third-string QB due to injuries; taking over a 3-11 roster and turning them into a playoff team; dealing with the lost focus and turmoil after Art Modell announced the Browns would relocate).

New England traded three draft picks (including a 2000 first-rounder) for two Jet draft picks and the right to hire Belichick as the team's head coach.






There is a very well detailed history of how the trade occurred below, including conjecture at that time that Oakland was the best fit for Belichick, to assessment of what the Jets received in return:
















Looking back at Belichick's two decades of dominance | Patriots.com - Paul Perillo, Jan 27, 2020



From Mike Reiss, Jan 27, 2020

jmt57 said:

Today in Patriots History
10-point underdog Pats stun Steelers at Heinz Field
Troy Brown excels with two critical special team plays
Drew Bledsoe comes off bench, throws TD to David Patten
Tebucky Jones, Lawyer Milloy seal victory with 4th quarter picks​

Sunday January 27, 2002 at 12:40
2001 AFCCG at Heinz Field
New England Patriots 24, Pittsburgh Steelers 17
Head Coaches: Bill Belichick, Bill Cowher
Quarterbacks: Tom Brady, Drew Bledsoe; Kordell Stewart
Odds: Steelers favored by 10
TV: CBS. Greg Gumbel, Phil Simms; Armen Keteyian, Bonnie Bernstein
Partly sunny, 50°; 16 mph wind from the SW
Referee: Ed Hochuli; paid attendance: 64,704; time: 3:46
Game MVPs: Troy Brown
Patriots improve to 13-5; advance to Super Bowl 36 vs St Louis Rams, in New Orleans
Steelers finish the 2001 season with a record of 14-4

Click to expand...

I had gotten tickets to the super bowl that year back in October... one of the guys splitting the season tickets we had had a connection to the league that year... we all thought ****tsburgh was going...

that game was epic...got the call right after the game... THE PATS ARE GOING!!!!! lol, awesome....

January 27, 2008:
Mike Holovak passes away at the age of 88


Mike Holovak was born September 19, 1919 to Polish immigrant parents in Lansford, Pennsylvania. His father was a coal miner, working in the anthracite mines of the Panther Valley. Unlike many miners’ children during the Great Depression, Mike Holovak was able to graduate from high school, earning a football scholarship to Boston College. With the Eagles he played fullback and linebacker, winning All-American honors during his senior year, and was chosen in the first round of the draft by the Cleveland Rams. Before he could start his pro career he entered World War II, seeing action in New Guinea.


By the time the war ended, the Rams had moved to Los Angeles. Holovak played one year there, and two with the Chicago Bears. He was a dependable linebacker, and while he didn’t carry the ball much, could provide good offensive production from the fullback slot. In 1948 he averaged 7.6 yards per carry and scored two touchdowns.


After three years in the NFL Holovak ended his playing career and went into coaching. In 1951 he was named head coach at his alma mater, Boston College. The Eagles had gone 0-9-1 the season before Holovak arrived. In their first year under him they improved to 3-6, and then went eight consecutive years without a losing season. 1954 was Holovak’s best year at Boston College. The Eagles finished 8-1, with a 19-14 loss to Xavier of Ohio being the only blemish on their record. Holovak’s nine year record at Boston College was 49-29-3.






On December 15, 1959, Billy Sullivan made one of his first hires, bringing Mike Holovak on board as a scout. Soon after his duties expanded to Player Personnel Manager and an Assistant Coach for the 1960 Boston Patriots in the brand new American Football League. The next year, when the team started 2-3-1, head coach Lou Saban was fired and Holovak took his place. The Patriots finished the season with seven victories in their last eight games. The transition to winning was essential for the weak Boston franchise and the overall stability of the new league. Will McDonough once wrote, “Billy Sullivan founded the Patriots, but the guy who saved them was Holovak. It was his personality, and the love his players had for him, that kept the team afloat in its first decade of existence. The team won consistently with the lowest payroll in the league and the worst practice conditions imaginable.” Had the Patriots collapsed, the credibility of the AFL as a major league would have been called into question.


Although it wasn’t their best year from a won-lost standpoint, 1963 may have been the most memorable for Holovak’s Patriots. The team finished the year at 7-6-1, tied with the Buffalo Bills for the Eastern Division Championship. After beating the Bills in a playoff game 26-8 to win the AFL East, the Patriots went west to play the San Diego Chargers for the league title. While Holovak’s team came out on the short end of the stick, the offensive fireworks of the game, and warm California weather provided a stark contrast to the NFL’s championship, won by the Chicago Bears in near arctic conditions. The AFL began to develop a reputation for wide-open, exciting football, something which would serve it well in attracting fans and financial stability.


A year later the Patriots went 10-3-1 - a record the franchise would not surpass for 13 years - but missed a chance at the AFL title game on the last game of the season in a 24-14 loss to Buffalo. Then in 1966 another upset loss in the final game of the season denied the Pats a rematch with the Chiefs (whom they had tied in KC a few weeks prior) to decide which team would go to the initial NFL-AFL Championship Game.


1968 was Holovak’s last year as the Patriots’ head coach. He then served as the Director of Player Personnel for the Jets from 1974-76, with one game as interim head coach in New York after Lou Holtz’s resignation. Mike then returned to New England as the Personnel Assistant in Chuck Fairbanks' front office in 1977-78, then as Director of College Scouting for Ron Erhardt in 1979-80.


During the last nineteen years of his career Holovak was Player Personnel Director and General Manager of the Houston/Tennessee Oilers. In Houston Holovak was responsible for bringing Warren Moon from Canada, and making him the centerpiece of the Oilers’ run-and-shoot offense. Moon led the Oilers to the playoff eight years in a row, but was never able to get them to the Super Bowl. Holovak said that was the biggest disappointment of his career. It was a career that didn’t have many.


Mike Holovak retired at the end of the 1998 season. During his long career he did a great deal, but nothing may have been more important than turning the Boston Patriots into winners. Had the franchise collapsed, others in the AFL might have followed. His strength of leadership then marks him as one of the people who should be considered among the league’s founders.



Mike Holovak, RIP (1919-2008)
Pats HC/GM, 1961-1968
- 1964 AP AFL Coach of the Year
- 1966 UPI AFL Coach of the Year
- 1966 Sporting News AFL Coach of the Year
- Patriots All-1960s Team

Pape said:

I had gotten tickets to the super bowl that year back in October... one of the guys splitting the season tickets we had had a connection to the league that year... we all thought ****tsburgh was going...

that game was epic...got the call right after the game... THE PATS ARE GOING!!!!! lol, awesome....

Click to expand...

One of my all-time favorites. Offense, Defense, Special Teams. WIN!

January 27, 1960:
Bob Nelson and Don Edington are lost to the Oakland Raiders in the 1960 AFL Allocation Draft

Through the 1950s the NFL owners were quite content to limit their private club to 12 teams. While many would-be owners applied for admission, the owners were not interested in expanding. Then the AFL was formed, and the NFL owners blinked. They remembered how after WWII ended the All-America Football Conference was formed. From 1946-49 the rival AAFC succedded in attracting fans and players, which resulted in higher expenses (player salaries) while revenue from ticket sales remained level. The result was lower net profits for the owners, which they did not like at all.

In 1960 another upstart league was formed, the AFL, with eight franchises. Suddenly the NFL was very interested in expansion, and courting the same people they had given a cold shoulder to for the last several years. If they could entice some of the new AFL owners with an NFL franchise, perhaps they could kill any potential competition by sabotaging the new league from ever getting off the ground.

The only original AFL ownership to take the bait was the one from Minnesota, a group headed by Max Winter, Bill Boyer, and H.P. Skoglund, with Ole Haugsrud and Northwest Publications Inc as minority owners. This left the AFL with having to find a new owner and location. Los Angeles Chargers owner Barron Hilton (hilton Hotels) threatened to forfeit his franchise unless another team was placed on the West Coast. So Oakland was awarded a team they didn’t ask for. Because they were a late entry into the league the Raiders were awarded players through an Allocation Draft as well as drafting players through a regular draft. The late start was apparent on the field, with the Raiders posting a 9-33 record in their first three years of existence.


As for the players, Don Edington was an end from Florida, and Bob Nelson a center from Wisconsin. Neither ever played a down in either the AFL or NFL.





January 27, 1970 at the Belmont Plaza Hotel in New York
Day One (rounds 1-7) of the 1970 NFL Draft


Like many drafts from this time period, the 1970 draft explains quite a bit about why the Patriots were as bad as they were in the years immediately following the merger.

With the fourth overall pick the Pats selected DT Phil Olsen. He spent his first season on IR and then escaped as a free agent in a front office oversight the following offseason.

The Pats didn't have a second round pick, having traded that away with AFL All-Star CB Leroy Mitchell to Houston, for Larry Carwell, Charlie Frazier, Sid Blanks and Ronnie Caveness. Carwell was a decent player but Mitchell was much better. Frazier was a past his prime, 30-year old receiver. Blanks was strictly a backup, and Caveness didn't make the Patriot roster. The Oilers got the better end of the deal even before factoring in the 31st overall pick of the draft.

The third and fourth round picks were used on LB Mike 'Cat' Ballou and RB Eddie Ray; both were gone after one season. The Pats had traded their own fifth round pick to the Jets for OT Ezell Jones, who lasted a year and a half, but they also had a fifth from Miami thanks to the highly dubious Nick Buoniconti trade. The Pats used that selection on Bob Olson, who did not make the roster and never played in the NFL.

The Patriots did not have a sixth round pick, having traded that away to Buffalo the previous year for safety/punter Tom Janik. That trade for Janik would turn out to be by far the best value for the Pats from their entire allotment of 1970 draft picks. In the seventh round the Pats also added Odell Lawson, who returned kicks for the Pats as a rookie, playing in a total of 16 games before moving on.




January 27, 1980:
The 30th annual Pro Bowl takes place in Honolulu, with NFC winning 37-27.
Saints RB Chuck Muncie is MVP; NFC participants reveived $5,000 each while the AFC received $2,500 each.
Al Michaels, Howard Cosell and Fran Tarkenton announced the game on ABC.

The Patriots tied a franchise record with seven players named to the Pro Bowl following the 1979 season:
DE Julius Adams
FS Tim Fox
LG John Hannah
CB Mike Haynes
WR Stanley Morgan
ILB Steve Nelson
K John Smith




January 27, 1992:
The Patriots acquire OL Reggie Redding from Atlanta in exchange for a 1992 5th round pick and a 1993 conditional pick

Redding started 14 games at RG for **** MacPherson's two-win team in 1992 before landing on IR on December 24. Whether it was due to the severity of the injury or just Bill Parcells cleaning house, Redding was released at the start of training camp the following July - and never caught on with another team, ending the Cal State-Fullerton alum's NFL career after two seasons.






January 27, 1995:
Multiple coaches are shifted around by Bill Parcells:

Mike Pope moves from RB coach to TE coach
Charlie Weis moves from TE coach to RB coach
Special assistant Dante Scarnecchia becomes defensive assistant and LB coach
Offensive assistant Maurice Carthon adds the titles of RB and ST coach




January 27, 1999:
Patriots name Ivan Fears WR coach, Brad Seely ST coach and Dante Scarnecchia OL coach

Scarnecchia began his NFL career in 1982, to this point working primarily as a ST/TE coach. This was his first time working as an OL coach for the Patriots, though he had done so for Ron Meyer twice: at SMU in 1980-81, and with the Colts in 1989-90. Coincidence or not, Indy fired Meyer five games into his first season without Scar, in 1991.

January 27, 2006:
Ray Ventrone is re-signed; Ventrone and Todd Mortensen are allocated to NFL Europa

Bubba was signed by the Pats as an undrafted rookie out of Villanova, and spent the entire 2005 season on New England's practice squad. He played in ten games for the Cologne Centurions in '06 before landing on IR, with the injury also ending his 2006 NFL season. After spending the 2007 offseason with the Jets, Ventrone returned to New England, playing in two games plus two postseason games while spending the rest of the season on the Pats practice squad. Ventrone played in 15 games with the Patriots in 2008, then spent six seasons with the Browns and 49ers. Overall Bubba played in 97 regular season NFL games, plus five playoff games.

Since 2015 Ventrone has been an NFL coach, starting as an assistant special teams coach for the Patriots from 2015-2017. Since 2023 he has been an assistant head coach/special teams coordinator for the Cleveland Browns, though that job may be up in the air depending on who the Browns hire as their new head coach.



Mortensen served as a backup quarterback at BYU for three seasons (2001-03), then transferred to the University of San Diego for his senior season, where he threw for 2,874 yards and 25 touchdowns. He set single-game records for both attempts (57 vs Penn) and completions (37 vs Dayton), while also setting single-season records for both attempts (389) and completions (234). He led the Pioneer Football League in passing yards, completions, completion percentage, touchdown passes, passing efficiency (140.3) and total offense (2,849). He originally signed as an undrafted rookie with Detroit in 2005, then after playing for the Hamburg Sea Devils in NFLE he played briefly in Canada as well as the Arena league. A high school valedictorian, Mortensen received his J.D. from Penn and his MBA from the Wharton School in 2012. He subsequently joined the prestigious law firm of Sullivan & Cromwell LLP in New York City.





January 27, 2009:
Floyd Reese is named senior football advisor



Caserio remained in his position as director of player personnel through the 2020 season, and appeared to have far more influence than Reese ever did, who left after the 2012 season.




January 27, 2016:
Cole Popovich is hired as an offensive assistant

This was Popovich's first NFL gig, after working as a college coach from 2011-2015. Popovich worked as an offensive assistant for three seasons, then as an assistant RB coach in 2019 and co-offensive line coach in 2020. He has been with the Houston Texans since 2023, currently serving as the OL coach and run game coordinator.





January 27, 2025:
Mike Vrabel continues to form his staff:
- Doug Marrone is hired as OL coach
- Jason Houghtaling is hired as assistant OL coach
- Thomas Brown is hired as TE coach/passing game coordinator
- Milton Patterson is hired as defensive assistant
- 2024 ILB coach Dont'a Hightower 'will not be returning'




January 27, 2026:
News breaks that Bill Belichick was not voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and the internet explodes

Happy 37th birthday to Stevan Ridley
Born January 27, 1989 in Natchez, Mississippi
Patriot running back, 2011-2014; uniform #22
Pats 3rd round (73rd overall) selection of the 2011 draft, from LSU
Pats résumé: Four seasons, 52 games, 2,963 yard from scrimmage, 22 TD
4.3 yards per carry, 3 TD in four postseason games


The 2011 draft was a good one for the Patriots, with the team selecting tackles Nate Solder and Marcus Cannon, running backs Stevan Ridley and Shane Vereen, offsetting picks for backups Ryan Mallett and Ras-I Dowling. The Pats originally had the 60th overall pick in the second round but traded down - getting Ridley 13 spots later, and picking up a fifth round pick that was used for Cannon.

As a rookie Stevan Ridley gained 5.1 yards per carry as part of a running back by committee that was headed by BenJarvus Green-Ellis. The following year Ridley had the best season of his career, rushing for 1,263 yards and 12 touchdowns. In the playoff loss to Baltimore serial nemesis Bernard Pollard gave Ridley a concussion on a helmet to helmet hit, resulting in a fumble.

Ridley already had four fumbles in the regular season and would have four more in 2013, resulting in a loss of playing time. After fumbling for the third game in a row early in a game against the Broncos he was benched. Ridley was a healthy scratch the following week, with LeGarrette Blount assuming the role as lead running back.

The final play of Ridley's career with the Patriots came on October 12, 2014. The running back tore his ACL and MCL, landing him on IR. As a consolation prize Ridley did get a ring for the Super Bowl victory over Seattle that season.

Stevan Ridley signed with the Jets the following offseason, but the knee injury lingered. He bounced around between six teams over the next four seasons, last playing in 2018. In 74 NFL games Ridley rushed for 3,102 yards and 24 touchdowns.

Happy 58th birthday to Anthony Pleasant
Born January 27, 1968 in Century, Florida
Patriot defensive lineman, 2001-2003; uniform #98
Signed as a 33-year old veteran free agent on March 22, 2001
Pats résumé: three seasons, 37 games, 10 sacks; three playoff games, one super bowl ring


Patriots make Pleasant acquisition - Patriots.com, March 22, 2001

Happy 33rd birthday to Damiere Byrd
Born January 27, 1993 in Erial, New Jersey
Patriot wide receiver, 2020; uniform #10
Signed as a 27-year old veteran free agent on March 23, 2020
Pats résumé: one season, 16 games; 619 yards, one touchdown


Damiere Byrd played college ball at South Carolina, where he was also considered to be the fastest player on the Gamecocks track team. He went undrafted, signed as a rookie by Carolina in 2015. During the Panthers' 2017 season he played against the Pats - and suffered a broken arm on his only touch of that game, a 12-yard reverse.

After getting little playing time during three years in Carolina, Byrd signed a one-year contract as a free agent with Arizona in 2019. While there he was on the field more often, with 32 receptions for 359 yards and a 70% catch percentage.

Thanks to an absence of talent at WR on the 2020 Patriot roster, Byrd was suddenly thrust into a far more significant role. He finished the season with 47 receptions (3rd) for 604 yards (2nd) despite often being covered by opponent's top cornerback due to his speed.

Byrd then played for Chicago in 2021, then Atlanta in 2022-23. He finished his eight-year NFL career with 130 receptions for 1,689 yards and seven touchdowns over 76 games.

Happy 50th birthday to Fred Taylor
Born January 27, 1976 in Pahokee, Florida; hometown Belle Glade FL
Patriot RB, 2009-2010; uniform #21
Signed as a 33-year old veteran free agent on Feb 27, 2009
Pats résumé: two seasons, 13 games; 447 yards, four touchdowns


Fred Taylor was a great running back, rushing for over 1,200 yards six times with Jacksonville from 1998-2008. The Pats signed the 33-year old Florida Gator a week after being waived by the Jaguars. At the time I thought/hoped this would be a great addition, while blocking out the reality it would be a big nothing-burger. Unfortunately his time in Foxboro was defined by injuries, to the surprise of nobody. Taylor suffered an ankle injury after the fourth game of 2009 against the Ravens; he would not return until the final game of the season. Then in 2010 a toe injury kept Taylor off the field for ten weeks.

In 13 games with the Pats he averaged 4.0 yards per carry, rushing for 424 yards and four touchdowns. Over 13 NFL seasons Taylor totaled 14,079 yards from scrimmage and scored 74 touchdowns. At the time his 11,695 career rushing yards ranked as the 15th most in league history (18th now).

Taylor grew up in Belle Glade, Florida, a small town with a population of less than 17,000 that has produced an inordinate 23 NFL players seeking to escape since 1985. Also known as "Muck City" for the large amount of gross residue from sugar cane farming, it is situated on the southeastern shore of Lake Okeechobee, that large body of water you see on a map of southwestern Florida that is 80 miles northwest of Miami.




On a side note, Fred Taylor was part of a very one-sided trade. On Feb 13, 1998 the Jaguars traded QB Rob Johnson to Buffalo. In exchange Jacksonville received a first round pick, ninth overall (used on Taylor), plus a fourth round pick. Johnson had been a backup to Mark Brunell and Buffalo head coach Wade Phillips immediately named Johnson the starter, with the former USC QB signing a five year contract for what was big money back then. The Jaguars went 25-7 in Taylor's first two seasons.

Johnson suffered one injury after another and Doug Flutie took over, with far better results. Johnson infamously publicly whined 'I'm not a backup', and later owner Ralph Wilson meddled by forcing Phillips to start Johnson in a playoff game. Over the course of his career Rob Johnson was 12-17 as a starting quarterback - a stark contrast to the career that Fred Taylor had.

Happy 61st birthday to Tom Rehder
Born January 27, 1965 in Sacramento
Patriot tackle/guard, 1988-1989; uniform #76
Pats 3rd round (69th overall) selection of the 1988 draft, from Notre Dame
Pats résumé: two seasons, 32 games

Tom Rehder played in every game during his two seasons with the Patriots, with zero starts. He was signed by the Jets as a free agent in 1990, and earned a ring with the Giants in their wide right super bowl 25 victory over Buffalo.






Happy 70th birthday to Sidney Brown
Born January 27, 1956 in New Orleans
Patriot cornerback, 1977-1979; uniform #21
Pats 3rd round (82nd overall) selection of the 1977 draft, from Oklahoma
Pats résumé: two seasons, 16 games

Sidney Brown had been recruited by Chuck Fairbanks when Brown was in high school and Fairbanks was the Oklahoma Sooners head coach. Brown spent his rookie season on injured reserve, then played in every game the following year. He was injured early in the 1979 training camp and spent another season on IR, and never made it back to the NFL after that.





Happy 47th birthday to Al Johnson
Born January 27, 1979, in Brussels, Wisconsin
Patriot guard/center, 2009 offseason; uniform #85
Signed as a 30-year old veteran free agent on March 16, 2009
Pats résumé: one offseason

Al Johnson was a second round draft pick by Dallas in 2003, and played in 66 NFL games for the Cowboys and Cardinals.
He was waived by the Patriots with an injury settlement on August 6, to make room for Derrick Burgess.





Happy 30th birthday to Marcus Epps
Born January 27, 1996, in Burbank, California; hometown Huntington Beach CA
Patriot free safety, 2025 offseason; uniform #22
Signed as a seventh-year veteran free agent on March 14, 2025
Pats résumé: one offseason





Epps was waived by the Patriots on August 26, then re-signed with Philadelphia three days later. He played in twelve games with four starts and 21 tackles for the Eagles in 2025, missing five games late in the season while on IR.





Happy 58th birthday to Tom Quinn
Born January 27, 1968, in Pasadena, California; hometown Santa Ana CA
Patriot assistant special teams coach, 2024-present
Hired on February 24, 2024
Pats résumé: two seasons on the coaching staff

Tom Quinn is one of the few members of Jerod Mayo's coaching staff to be retained by Mike Vrabel. He spent ten seasons as the special teams coordinator for the Giants before joining Tennessee in Vrabel's last season with the Titans.





Happy 76th birthday to Steve Endicott
Born January 27, 1950, in Grants Pass, Oregon
Patriot receivers coach, 1982-1984
Hired in January, 1982
Pats résumé: three seasons on the coaching staff, going 22-19 with one playoff appearance

Steve Endicott worked at SMU, then followed Ron Meyer to New England when Meyer was hired to be the Pats head coach.








Other pro football players born on January 27 with a New England connection:

Logan Woodside, 31 (1995)
Draft Pick Trade
August 29, 2017: Traded by Patriots as 2018 7th round pick (249th overall) to Bengals for Marquis Flowers
The QB from Toledo has played in 13 NFL games, bouncing between the active roster and practice squads for the Bengals, Titans and Falcons.

Fritz Pollard (1894-1986)
Bates College; Brown University
Hall of Fame tailback from the 1920s was the first African American player in the NFL, as well as the first to be a head coach.

Deon Anderson, 43 (1983)
Born in Providence; Hope High School in Providence; UConn
Drafted by the Cowboys in 2007, the fullback spent four seasons with Dallas.

Dennis Cambal, 77 (1949)
Born in Waltham; Phillips Andover Academy
The tight end was drafted by Oakland in 1972, and later played for the Jets.

John Badaczewski (1922-1999)
Boston Yanks, 1946-48
Two-way lineman played in the NFL for eight seasons.