Over the last few months, Patriots.com has started compiling a series of “Top 10 All-Time” lists, a series that has included the Top 10 personnel moves, draft classes, rookies and opponents in the history of the franchise.
Now, as their 50th season looms, the Patriots are asking their fans to put together their own list of the 10 greatest moments in franchise history. The voting began earlier this month and closes on Aug. 1, and the results will be announced starting in October with a series of features on “Patriots All Access” and in the pages of Patriots Football Weekly.
Here’s our Top 10:
10. The 1985 AFC Championship Game. The Patriots hadn’t won in the Orange Bowl since 1966, an 18-game losing skid in their own personal house of horrors. But six Miami turnovers helped New England knock off the Dolphins 31-14 and advance to the first Super Bowl in the history of the franchise. When you consider the emotional impact of the streak, as well as the idea of beating the defending AFC Champions in their own building in a conference title game, it was nothing less than a seismic victory for the Patriots.
9. Selecting Drew Bledsoe over Rick Mirer. He’s goofed on a lot around here for not being Tom Brady, but Bledsoe was the face of the franchise for several seasons, and was just as responsible as Bill Parcells and Robert Kraft when it came to making the franchise relevant in the mid-1990s. His signature game? A 1994 effort where he went 45-for-70 for 426 yards and three touchdowns in an overtime win over Minnesota.
8. Bill Belichick naming Tom Brady the starting quarterback in the fall of 2001. The decision to go with Brady over Bledsoe -- even after the veteran was pronounced ready to go after suffering a collapsed lung -- signified a major change in the culture of the franchise. The message was clear: No matter how much money you make, no matter how well established you may be within the confines of the locker room, you are replaceable.
7. Adam Vinatieri’s game-tying field goal against the Raiders in the 2001 AFC Divisional Game. While he has connected for field goals to win Super Bowls XXXVI and XXXVIII, this is the kick they’ll show over and over again when he goes into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. In a driving snowstorm, Vinatieri successfully booted a 45-yarder with 27 seconds left in regulation that tied the game at 13. Aesthetically, it wasn’t anything to write home about -- a low line drive through the snow that just barely wobbled over the crossbar. But given the overall situation, no kick was bigger, and it closed out Foxboro Stadium in style.
6. Hiring Bill Parcells in 1993. The hiring of Parcells gave a sense of legitimacy to the franchise. The team had just gone through its darkest days -- it had won just nine games the previous three seasons -- and was irrelevant on the NFL landscape. With the arrival of Parcells, things were different. There was suddenly a sincere belief the Patriots could consistently go toe-to-toe with the rest of the NFL
5. Robert Kraft purchasing the Patriots. The turnaround really started when James Busch Orthwein bought the team in 1992 and installed Parcells as the head coach a year later. But Kraft -- a local owner with deep pockets, a first for the franchise -- took the whole thing to another level in 1994 when he purchased the team. Fans responded by purchasing 5,958 season tickets the day after Kraft assumed ownership, a staggering display of faith.
4. Mary Sullivan’s decision to wait on her Cape house. Feels kind of low at No. 4 -- after all, there probably wouldn’t be football in New England if it wasn’t for Billy Sullivan. But after Sullivan convinced his wife to wait on the Cape house he had promised her, he took that dough and put that toward the AFL entrance fee. Fifty years later, the rest is history.
3. The Tuck Rule. When Walt Coleman returned from going under the hood late in the 2001 AFC Divisional Game between the Patriots and Raiders, he made the announcement: “After reviewing the play, the quarterback's arm was going forward…” The crowd drowned out the rest. After years of coming out on the raw end, New England finally got a makeup call. It set the tone for the next decade of good fortune for the franchise.
2. Super Bowl XXXVI. The first of the three championships, it is a watershed moment in the history of the franchise. Until the 2004 World Series, it was the New England sports equivalent of the Kennedy Assassination -- everyone had a story about where they were when Ty Law picked off Kurt Warner, when Brady found David Patten or when Vinatieri connected on the game-winner. Even now, seven-plus years later, a replay of the game is guaranteed to leave you shaking your head in disbelief.
1. Hiring Bill Belichick in 2000. Of course, it took a month of legal wrangling involving the Jets (as well as the surrender of a first-round pick), but the arrival of Belichick was the first move in a four-month process that laid the groundwork for an unparalleled run of success. Shortly after Belichick was hired, Scott Pioli was brought on board as the de facto GM, and a couple of months after that, Tom Brady was drafted. Not a bad few months.
CHRISTOPHER PRICE
In the latest edition of the "It Is What It Is" podcast, Chris Price and CSNNE's Mike Giardi take a look at the Patriots offseason on both sides of the ball, try and get a handle on which new guys will make an impact first, and whether or not the Patriots have altered their style when it comes to drafting and developing wide receivers.
Mike Florio joined the program to discuss the Jets decision to release Tim Tebow, he said the situation is as disaster all around for the Jets and that the problems begins with owner Woody Johnson. Mike also said that he was disappointed with the Pats moving back in the first round.
One of the hardest working men in the biz, Mike Petraglia aka "Trags", sits down with Butch Stearns live in Foxborough to help break down all the latest Pats moves. He discusses his reaction to the trade in Round 1 and the guys those picks produced. Also, the boys talk about the decent trade the Pats made in acquiring LeGarrette Blount from Tampa Bay for Jeff Demps and a 7th rounder.
We check in with Danny Ainge for our first talk to him since the Celtics season ended last weekend. We talk about the future of the team, KG, Pierce, Doc Rivers and more, as Danny directly answers the rumors being floated by ESPN's Stephen A. Smith.
Jackie Mac joins the show to discuss the trade rumors swirling around Paul Pierce, KG, Doc Rivers and the Celtics. She also discusses the future of the Celtics head coach.
Stephen A. joined the program to discuss the trade rumors he has reported regarding a possible trade including Doc Rivers and the Clippers. Stephen A. also told the guys that he has heard that Danny and Doc may be tiring of working together.
Salty spoke with Joe Castiglione & Dave O'Brien after he helped his team to a 6-2 victory over the Chicago White Sox tonight. The Red Sox return to Fenway after going 6-3 on the road trip.
We check in with Red Sox Manager John Farrell live from Chicago and get his take on a good week for the Sox, a tough series since then in Chicago, and other team related notes.
Buster Olney joins Mut and Merloni to talk about the struggling Ellsbury and what that is doing to his contract value when he becomes a free agent.
McGuire joins Mut and Merloni to discuss the Bruins game 3 win, the Rangers awful power play, and the Shawn Thornton Derek Dorsett altercation.
Shawn joined the program to discuss his big night at MSG. He told the guys that it is not Marchand's job to fight and that he needs to be on the ice and out of the penalty box.
Cleveland Indians hottest team in baseball, yet remain last in attendance May 19, 2013 By AJ Kaufman 6 Comments There’s a scene in Major League where Bob Uecker, portraying the radio voice of the Indians, bemoans, “In case you haven’t noticed, and judging by the attendance you haven’t, the Indians have managed to win a few here and there, and are threatening to climb out of the cellar.” Well, that was nearly 25 years ago and fictional, but today’s reality is that Cleveland has won 17 of its last 21, and currently tops the AL Central with a mark of 25-17. No one in the majors is better than the Indians in the past month (20-7). That’s great news. The bad news, however, is the Tribe somehow remain in the MLB cellar when it comes to attendance. How can this be? The fact that I wrote on this same topic almost to the day last year – when only Tampa Bay drew fewer fans than Cleveland - may be even more troubling. Though roughly 34,000 watched a walk-off win Friday night against Seattle, perfect weather and free caps weren’t enough to draw more than 36,000 Saturday and Sunday combined. What did the Indians do in those tilts? They nabbed another walk-off win on Saturday, then the Indians crushed the great Felix Hernandez Sunday behind Justin Masterson, arguably the AL’s best pitcher right now. Fun fact: The Indians have already faced eight Cy Young Award winners in 2013: Bartolo Colon, R.A. Dickey, Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee, Jake Peavy, David Price, Justin Verlander and Hernandez. They have won seven out those eight matchups. Simply astounding. This offseason, the much-maligned Indians front office finally made a legitimate attempt to improve the team through free agency. I’m not talking an Ubaldo Jimenez-like trade, but rather smart acquisitions that brought veterans Mike Aviles, Michael Bourn, Jason Giambi, Scott Kazmir, Brett Myers, Mark Reynolds, Drew Stubbs and Nick Swisher to Cleveland. In addition to being a fantastic place to watch a game due to great egress and ingress, with extremely affordable tickets, the best promo lineup anywhere, Jacobs Field boasts overall, cooler, less muggy summer weather than most Midwestern locales. The team also lowered beer and hot dog prices to $4 and $3 respectively. What other professional stadium in any sport offers that? I have visited 28 of the 30 current Major League Baseball stadia, and few top The Jake when all angles are considered. I say that as a baseball fan, not an Indians fan. As for the putative “economic” angle, these are the same people who spend insane amounts of money to watch terrible football every fall and show up in decent numbers for putrid basketball in the winter. Irrespective of season length, those sports charge up to 10 times the price for a ticket, and the atmosphere isn’t half as fan-friendly as baseball. I understand fans’ lack of willingness to get on board to some degree. A decent recap of Cleveland’s decade of “rebuilding” can be read here and the team suffered a horrific collapse last August. However, in addition to all the benefits of attending games at Jacobs (now Progressive) Field, fans should also realize the team has potential and often exceeds preseason aspirations at any point without warning. Cleveland hosts the rival Detroit Tigers — heavy favorites to repeat as AL Central champs — Tuesday and Wednesday nights before hitting the road. The temperature should be pleasant at first pitch each evening so you’d expect The Jake to be full to watch the best hitter on the planet right now — but don’t count on it.
Terry Francona joins the Dennis and Callahan Show to discuss his first-place Indians team as well as his time in Boston. The former Boston manager also touches on his recent book co-authored by Dan Shaughnessy and Shaughnessy's recent dust-up with David Ortiz.
Shawn joined the program to discuss his big night at MSG. He told the guys that it is not Marchand's job to fight and that he needs to be on the ice and out of the penalty box.
Our afternoon host Mike Salk was offended at Gerry and Kirk's conversation on his favorite band Rush, the guys responded.
McGuire joins Mut and Merloni to discuss the Bruins game 3 win, the Rangers awful power play, and the Shawn Thornton Derek Dorsett altercation.
Buster Olney joins Mut and Merloni to talk about the struggling Ellsbury and what that is doing to his contract value when he becomes a free agent.
Mut and Merloni discuss the Derek Dorsett, Brad Marchand, and Shawn Thornton altercation and how great it was.
With the Bruins up 3-0 in the series, we talk to Jack Edwards and take your calls. We touch on all things B's-Rangers and also focus on the future of the Bruins three promising young defensemen.
We touch on four topics we haven't talked about today... topics today include: Brian Urlacher retires, NFL schedule expansion, Sergio Garcia and more...
We discuss Spain's Sergio Garcia and his ignorant, racist comments against Tiger Woods.
The Bruins look to take a 3-0 series lead, Jon Lester gets his first loss, Dwight Howard has options in free agency.
Today on the Daily Planet the Bruins have a 2-0 lead over the New york Rangers, the Red Sox are back on the winning sde of things, and the noteable birthdays of the day.
The Bruins have almost finished raking the Leafs, the Red Sox struggle from the mound, Miami Heat fans show their level of class.
The Jerks are joined by another, Jerk Minihane.
They're like a ray of morning sunshine on an otherwise gloomy day.
....uhhhh.....a bunch of bombs over there....
Linda explains how the shootout transpired in Watertown during the early morning hours. She saw the first suspect mortally wounded and police beginning the manhunt for the second suspect.
More from this showJeff Bauman, a victim of the Boston Marathon bombing, joined the show to give the guys an update of his condition and a first-hand account of that terrible day. Jeff told the guys how he wrote the description of the bomber as soon as he could. Mr. Bauman added that he is aided every day with the knowledge that he is alive and the terrorist that detonated the bomb is dead.
More from this showElliotte Friedman joined the show to discuss the Bruins domination of the series thus far. He said that while nothing is certain he cannot see a way in which the Rangers come back and win the series.
More from this showTerry Francona joins the Dennis and Callahan Show to discuss his first-place Indians team as well as his time in Boston. The former Boston manager also touches on his recent book co-authored by Dan Shaughnessy and Shaughnessy's recent dust-up with David Ortiz.
More from this showSteve joined the show to discuss the Rangers and their coach John Tortorella. Steve said that the Bruins have been the far better team thus far in the series.
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