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Best memories of attending a Pats game?


Best road game memory......Randy Moss abusing Miami right in front of my 3rd row end zone seats despite 3 and 4 man blanket coverage all afternoon.

Best home game memory....the special needs adult sitting in my row at old Schaefer mooing like a cow for 3 hours.
 
I love walks down memory lane, in no particular order:
1997 season opener vs SD - It was beautiful weather, sunny skies, we were in shorts, t shirts, had a great tailgate and the Patriots destroyed SD.
1997 vs Chicago - again, beautiful fall day and Pats lay waste to Chicago. Pats got to 4-0 and national talking heads were putting them in the discussion of the best team in the league.
1989 vs Houston - my first game ever, my father got tickets and brought me on a divorced dad sunday to see Doug Flutie beat the highly touted Houston Oiler. Also a lasting memory is the fat load in front of me who kept spilling his food all over himself.
1996 AFC Championship Game - loudest I've ever heard foxboro - the aluminum bleachers were shaking when O T I S Smith returned that fumble for a TD. It was deafening and I guarantee anyone who was there will echo my sentiments; never been louder in Foxboro for a Pats game.
2001 vs Oakland - 'nuff ced on this one, the snowbowl and not to mention 2 of my buddies got PC'd this game - it was a good tailgate!
1994 v Minnesotta - Bledsoe brings em back and throws 70 passes; an incredible game
2003 divisional v Tennessee - had a great tailgate complete w ez up, sides, propane heaters. it was a toasty 51 in our tailgate. But man, was it cold. Distinctly remember getting a couple beers in the game and they became Coors Light slushies in no time.
2003 AFC CHampionship vs Ind - not many people picked the Pats....and it snowed....
2015 vs Philadelphia - not a good outcome, but it was my son's first game.
2017 vs SD - my son's first win as a Pats fan in the stands
Many of the best memories aren't necessarily from the games; they're from the awesome tailgates my crew and I used to have and from spending time with family and friends. Back in the old stadium we'd always park in Lot A and it was a blast. And then in the new stadium we'd park around maybe where the movie theater is now because I don't think Patriot Place was built in the early existence of the stadium. Anyway, there was always this guy who had a full DJ set up and he parked up against the fence parallel to Rt 1 N. People would go crazy and migrate toward this group's tailgate - and it also helped that this guy put up stripper poles and after a long day of drinking several ladies were not "shy", so to speak.
Several years into Gillette we began going in a friends RV - 10-20 of us every game. It was crazy.
2010 vs Buffalo - the last great tailgate of my crew. It was my last year as a full season ticket holder (mightve actually just had a half season), but we had a great time. Amazing sunny weather, 1 pm kickoff and a victory. We tailgated after in the Winnebago lot with the RV. Lots of fun. Then we went back to my buddies place and we all cooked out and hung till pretty late. After this season everyone's kids were getting older and it was hard to be out at a Pats game from 8 am till 6 pm for a 1 oclock kick. I've pretty much been lucky enough to get to 1 game pretty much every season since we dumped our tickets back in 2011 or 2012. Last game we actually tailgated was the Jets game in 2019 - an incredible 82 at kickoff iirc.
 
I want to say we were Dolphins sidelines, lefthand endzone, low corner.......I think we got seats from a ticket service, and didn't realize it was a family section......it was cold......looking back it was actually a november 4:05 start, not december
We were section 105, right by the tunnel where the players came out. Got high fives from Chris Slade and Willie McGinest pre-game at the AFCCG when they played the Jags. That was kind of a big deal to me at 31 years old.
 
96 AFC Championship vs Jags. Freezing but nobody cared. I've never heard the place as loud as when Otis returned that fumble. Even had a power outage. Good times.

Jambalaya! lol


2:22:32. It was LOUD. TV doesn’t do it justice even though you could barely hear the broadcast. What a moment. That was one of my favorite Pats teams. Might have pulled off a monster upset in the SB too if Tuna’s head was still in this game and not somewhere else.
 
Might have pulled off a monster upset in the SB too if Tuna’s head was still in this game and not somewhere else.
I think the only place Tuna's head could have been that would have made a difference was inside Bledsoe's helmet.
 
I went to my first Pats game in the company of a certain well-known cap expert who was memorably "outed" on Patsfans as a Colts fan. You could have fooled me from the amount he was yelling! The team lost in the rain to Chad Pennington and the Jets and I loved it.

But my favourite has to be the first (and last) I went to with my daughter in 2014. The Patriots steamrollered the Bears and Gronk ran wild:



The excitement had really got to her by the time we took the train back to South Station.

Patriots Game 2014 1.jpg
 
A few for me:

- A win over the Dolphins in the '97 divisional round. Collins picked off Marino and ran it in for a score. It was cold AF that day...and we were all huddled together on those cold benches with blankets. Good times!

- Week 2 of the '01 season...inspiring pre-game activities...beautiful day....the game not so much...but for some reason at the end I felt that things were gonna change.

- Week 3 of the '01 season....Brady's first start. Bryant Cox's hit on Jerome Pathon was INSANE! The entire stadium exploded like I never saw before! Fun day!

For the road games:

- Week 2 of the '02 season I believe...we demolished the Jets @ the Meadowlands in the rain. I was soaked wet and didn't care....lovely 3 hour drive home!

- Close to Thanksgiving weekend of the 2016 season @ San Francisco......it rained again and there was a rainbow after the game over Levi Stadium....a part of the reason why I decided to go to..

- Superbowl 51.....never ever will forget that as long as I live....almost 4 years later and there isn't a single day I don't think, "Damn, 28-3 man......"
 
December 22nd, 1985. Win and they're in.

Gutsy call by Raymond Berry to go for it on 4th down with a toss-right play to Robert Weathers. All he did was scamper for 42 and the game-sealing TD.

Even though that year's Cinderella wound up with shards of glass in her foot from the broken slipper, it was still one hell of a run.

Edit: Remembered it as a toss ... but it was just a simple hand-off ...
 
A few for me:

- A win over the Dolphins in the '97 divisional round. Collins picked off Marino and ran it in for a score. It was cold AF that day...and we were all huddled together on those cold benches with blankets. Good times!

- Week 2 of the '01 season...inspiring pre-game activities...beautiful day....the game not so much...but for some reason at the end I felt that things were gonna change.

- Week 3 of the '01 season....Brady's first start. Bryant Cox's hit on Jerome Pathon was INSANE! The entire stadium exploded like I never saw before! Fun day!

For the road games:

- Week 2 of the '02 season I believe...we demolished the Jets @ the Meadowlands in the rain. I was soaked wet and didn't care....lovely 3 hour drive home!

- Close to Thanksgiving weekend of the 2016 season @ San Francisco......it rained again and there was a rainbow after the game over Levi Stadium....a part of the reason why I decided to go to..

- Superbowl 51.....never ever will forget that as long as I live....almost 4 years later and there isn't a single day I don't think, "Damn, 28-3 man......"
Road games?!?!? I forgot. Easily my favorite road game was the 2007 game at Buffalo. Randy and Brady went off. The Bills fans all left. I can remember telling the stragglers that we'd get the lights for them.
 
December 22nd, 1985. Win and they're in.

Gutsy call by Raymond Berry to go for it on 4th down with a toss-right play to Robert Weathers. All he did was scamper for 42 and the game-sealing TD.

Even though that year's Cinderella wound up with shards of glass in her foot from the broken slipper, it was still one hell of a run.

Edit: Remembered it as a toss ... but it was just a simple hand-off ...

What a pass Eason to Morgan too !
 
In Miami. Dolphins kicker missed two winnable field goals because he had to kick from the dirt baseball infield.

Game went into overtime and Brady hit Troy Brown in stride; where the catch was made was directly below my mid-level seats. Troy ran it in for the TD of about 80 yards; game over. Dolphins and their fans were stunned.

 
In Miami. Dolphins kicker missed two winnable field goals because he had to kick from the dirt baseball infield.

Game went into overtime and Brady hit Troy Brown in stride; where the catch was made was directly below my mid-level seats. Troy ran it in for the TD of about 80 yards; game over. Dolphins and their fans were stunned.


Probably my favorite throw of Brady's career.
 
I used to go to one game a year with my uncle, Zip for those who are familiar, fan of the year 2001. In 2003 my game was going to be the Buffalo game that ended up being the bookend revenge 31-0 but Mrs B won fan of the year and was being honored that game and needed extra tickets for family. So my uncle said if I gave up my spot I had first choice of playoff games, which being full of confidence took me .000002 seconds to say the AFCCG. Yeah the one where Ty Law picked Peyton 3 times and the defense in general made sure it was known this is NOT Peytons place. I remember how hot that offense was coming in and how the media gave the Pats a small chance cuz it was at home. Screaming my head off and laughing so loud at the Manning face. Got a high five from Bruschi as he ran past after the game. It’s probably weird now that the offense gets so much attention but I actually enjoyed watching the defense more back then and boy did they make a statement with that win.
 
Only game in person was 2008 in Seattle. Merriweather with the force fumble late in the game to seal the win. Had seats on the 50 yard line, 10 rows up in the upper deck. Wheatley actually looked like he could play in that game.
 
Best home game memory....the special needs adult sitting in my row at old Schaefer mooing like a cow for 3 hours.

Guy was born that way - help him as much as you can.

The 20k other adults mooing like cows as they took heart to the Schaeffer slogan "The beer to have when you're having more than one." - not so much.
 
Tuna Bowl

Return of Parcells to Foxboro Stadium in 1997 for a primetime Sunday Night matchup. Probably the loudest Foxboro Stadium ever got. All of the twists and turns in the 4th-quarter and OT were exhausting. A Bledsoe TD pass to some dude named Lovett Purnell put the Patriots in front 24-17. After the Jets tied the score, the Patriots fumbled the ensuing KO return. With under a minute left the Patriots blocked a chip shot FG that sent the game into overtime. Bledsoe promptly threw a pick in OT but the Patriots defense held up. After a lengthy drive mostly featuring Curtis Martin, Vinatieri made a game-winning FG. The general feeling at that point was just relief that they had won the game.

Snow Bowl

Last game at the old Foxboro Stadium. Came back from a 10-point deficit in the 4th-quarter in the snow. Brady was sensational in the 4th-quarter and that first FG by Vinatieri is still unbelievable.

2002 Opener against the Steelers

First game at the new Gillette Stadium (Monday Night matchup). The crowd was fired up as this was the first of many to follow celebrations of a Super Bowl title. As always Brady dominated the Steelers defense in the blowout win. After a tremendous 3-0 start to the season, they inexplicably went 0-for-October and never recovered.

2007 Week 8 against the Redskins

By this point the 2007 offense had been ridiculously unstoppable. They completely toyed with the Redskins defense all night. The undefeated season was seemingly attainable at this stage of the season.

2007 Divisional Round against the Jaguars

Brady was 26-28 in this game and the two incompletions were drops. The Jaguars kept it surprisingly close until the Patriots pulled away late in the 3rd quarter. This was a reaffirming start to the postseason as the perfect season was very much on everyone's mind.

2009 Week 1 (Brady returns from torn ACL)

Brady struggled for most of the game but he caught fire in the 4th quarter which he capped off with two TD passes to Ben Watson in the final 2:05 for the 25-24 victory.

2009 Week 6 against the Titans (fun in the October snow)

5! touchdown passes from Brady in the 2nd quarter alone to build a 45-0 lead by halftime. Brady promptly threw TD #6 on the opening drive of the second half. Belichick took him out with 10 minutes still left in the 3rd quarter. At the time Brady was 29-34 for 380 and 6 TD's.

2010 Week 12 against the Jets

Monday Night trouncing of the Jets in the midst of Brady's second MVP season. Brady finished 21-29 for 326 and 4 TD's. Brady was on a run of 26 TD's and 0 INT's by the end of the regular season.

2013 Week 6 against the Saints

One of five 4th quarter comebacks of the season. Brady to Kenbrell Thompkins with 0:10 left in the game to stun the previously unbeaten Saints.

2014 Divisional Round against the Ravens

Patriots erased two 14-point deficits and a 4th quarter deficit to advance to the AFCCG. Patriots trashed the run game early and went exclusively with the passing game for most of the night. This was the eligible / ineligible receiver gimmick game (where Belichick borrowed a play out of Nick Saban's playbook). The Patriots completed three plays of 10+ yards with the trickery which comically infuriated John Harbaugh. The single thing I remember most is the referee literally announcing over the stadium PA: "number 77 is reporting as ineligible, don't cover him." The Ravens still f*cked it up.

2016 AFCCG against the Steelers

The Steelers came into this one red hot and still got spanked. The Patriots offense had the Steelers thoroughly confused all night. Chris Hogan eclipsed his career high in receiving yards by 50+. This was a very enjoyable laugher.

2017 AFCCG against the Jaguars

The Malcolm Butler benching almost wasn't a thing as it took two 4th quarter TD passes from Brady to Danny playoff Amendola to come from behind against an outstanding Jaguars defense.

2018 Week 6 against the Chiefs

First matchup with Brady and Mahomes was a memorable one... the two quarterbacks combined for 700 yards and 6 TD's. Mahomes and Tyreek Hill hooked up for three TD's in one 15-minute span of the second half. Patriots ultimately won 43-40 with a FG as time expired.

2019 Week 1 against the Steelers

Having won their 6th Super Bowl the previous season, the Patriots in typical fashion tuned up the Steelers in Gillette. 33-3 final score with Antonio Brown still waiting in the wings, there was legitimate talk of an undefeated season. Well, the Patriots dumped Brown after one game, the offense never looked explosive again, and defense got exposed by the end of the season as well. This Steelers game was a good time though.
 
December 22nd, 1985. Win and they're in.

Gutsy call by Raymond Berry to go for it on 4th down with a toss-right play to Robert Weathers. All he did was scamper for 42 and the game-sealing TD.

Even though that year's Cinderella wound up with shards of glass in her foot from the broken slipper, it was still one hell of a run.

Edit: Remembered it as a toss ... but it was just a simple hand-off ...


This is one of my best memories for any game I've attended. I ended up with and still have sealed the end of the north goal post flag from the east post. That was a wild game, a wild finish and the memory of the goal posts being led out of the stadium is something I still picture today.
 


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