| 2001 New England Patriots season | |
|---|---|
| Owner | Robert Kraft |
| Head coach | Bill Belichick |
| Offensive coordinator | Charlie Weis |
| Defensive coordinator | Romeo Crennel |
| Home field | Foxboro Stadium |
| Results | |
| Record | 11–5 |
| Division place | 1st AFC East |
| Playoff finish | Won Divisional Playoffs (vs. Raiders) 16–13 (OT) Won AFC Championship (at Steelers) 24–17 Won Super Bowl XXXVI (vs. Rams) 20–17 |
| Pro Bowlers | QB Tom Brady WR Troy Brown CB Ty Law SS Lawyer Milloy |
| AP All-Pros | None |
| Uniform | |
 | |
The 2001 season was the New England Patriots' 32nd in the National Football League (NFL) and their 42nd season overall. They finished with an 11–5 record and a division title before advancing to and winning Super Bowl XXXVI.
Coming off a fifth-place finish in the AFC East during head coach Bill Belichick's first season in 2000, the Patriots were not expected to fare much better in 2001.[1][2] On August 6, quarterbacks coach Dick Rehbein died of cardiomyopathy at the age of 45. In the second game of the regular season, nine-year starting quarterback Drew Bledsoe, who had received a 10-year contract extension in March,[2] was injured on a hit by New York Jets linebacker Mo Lewis, causing backup Tom Brady, a sixth-round draft pick in 2000, to enter the game after serving as the Patriots' 4th string rookie the season before. The Patriots lost the game to fall to 0–2, but Brady started the final 14 games of the season and compiled an 11–3 record as a starter, helping the Patriots clinch the 2nd seed in the AFC playoffs and a first round bye; their first playoff berth since 1998. As a result, the Patriots became the first team in NFL history to win the Super Bowl after starting the season 1–3, and only the 2nd team in NFL history to win the Super Bowl after starting the season 2–3, after the 1980 Oakland Raiders.[3]
This was the first season since 1986 that Bruce Armstrong was not on the opening-day roster
With the second seed in the AFC playoffs, the Patriots faced the Oakland Raiders at home following a first-round bye in the final game at Foxboro Stadium; in a snowstorm, a Patriots drive late in the fourth quarter was kept alive in an application of the now-infamous tuck rule that was used in overturning a Brady fumble into an incomplete pass. Shortly after, a 45-yard Adam Vinatieri field goal through the snow, considered one of the most clutch field goals in NFL history,[4] sent the game into overtime, when Vinatieri scored another field goal to win the game 16–13. After defeating the top-seeded Pittsburgh Steelers 24–17 in the AFC Championship Game, the Patriots faced the heavily favored St. Louis Rams, known as "The Greatest Show on Turf", in Super Bowl XXXVI. Once again, Vinatieri kicked a game-winning field goal; the 48-yard kick sailed through the uprights as time expired, and gave the Patriots the win 20–17, and their first ever Super Bowl championship in what has been considered by many to be a "Cinderella" season.[5]
The 2001 season served as a launching pad for the team. Over the next 18 seasons, they would win 16 more division titles, eight more AFC Championships in 12 appearances, five more Super Bowl titles in eight appearances, and achieve an undefeated regular season in 2007.[6][7][8][9][10]
- ^ "SI Scouting Reports 2001". Sports Illustrated. September 3, 2001. Retrieved June 15, 2009.
- ^ a b Zimmerman, Paul (September 5, 2001). "5: New England Patriots". Sports Illustrated. Archived from the original on January 2, 2013. Retrieved June 6, 2009.
- ^ "Mind-blowing stats for Week 5 of the 2013 NFL season". National Football League. October 2, 2013. Retrieved October 3, 2013.
- ^ MacMullan, Jackie (February 2, 2004). "Mr. Clutch, no doubt about it". The Boston Globe. Retrieved June 15, 2009.
- ^ Longo, Hector (February 1, 2008). "Breaking down the Patriots and Giants". The Eagle-Tribune. Retrieved June 15, 2009.
- ^ Gleason, Mike. "The Most Improbable Championship: The 2001 New England Patriots". Bleacher Report. Retrieved June 19, 2022.
- ^ "New England Patriots: Rise and fall of the Brady-Belichick dynasty". NFL Spin Zone. January 20, 2021. Retrieved June 19, 2022.
- ^ Faris, Nick. "New England was a pitiable franchise until the 2001 Patriots went on a roll". theScore.com. Retrieved June 19, 2022.
- ^ Cafardo, Nick (January 29, 2012). "In 2001, Patriots authored a season full of dreams". The Boston Globe. Retrieved June 19, 2022.
- ^ Buchmasser, Bernd (February 3, 2022). "20 years ago, a dynasty was born". Pats Pulpit. Retrieved June 19, 2022.
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