But there was a brief lull in the doldrums of the mid-to-late 60’s and before the Super Bowl team of 1985 and that was during the tenure of Chuck Fairbanks. Fairbanks was lured away from Oklahoma where the Sooners had become a national power under his watch to take over the worst team in football. While at Norman, Fairbanks’ teams were 52-15-1 and had a couple of powerhouse teams that won back-to-back Sugar Bowls in 1971-72 before leaving for Foxboro. He coached Heisman Trophy winner Steve Owens during his tenure.

After Tom Brady threw touchdown pass number 400 to Danny Amendola on Sunday, the receiver mistakenly handed the historic ball of to a fan in the stands after the play was over.

Former Patriot Willie McGinest was honored on Wednesday night as the defensive end was enshrined into the team’s Hall of Fame in front of a big crowd outside the Hall At Patriot Place Presented by Ratheon.