Super Bowl XX: Chicago 46-10 New England
The NFC champion Chicago Bears, seeking their first NFL title since 1963, score a Super Bowl-record 46 points in downing AFC champion New England 46-10 in Super Bowl XX. The previous record for most points in a Super Bowl was 38, shared by San Francisco in XIX and the Los Angeles Raiders in XVIII.
Super Bowl XXXI: Green Bay 35-21 New England
Desmond Howard returns a kickoff 99 yards for a touchdown and Brett Favre passes for two touchdowns and runs for a score as the Packers win their first Super Bowl in twenty-nine years.
Super Bowl XXXVI: New England 20-17 St. Louis
Adam Vinatieri’s 48-yard field goal as time expires gives the New England Patriots their first Super Bowl title.
Super Bowl XXXVIII: New England 32-29 Carolina
Adam Vinatieri kicks a 41-yard field goal with four seconds remaining as the Patriots win their second Super Bowl in three seasons.
Super Bowl XXXIX: New England 24-21 Philadelphia
Deion Branch has11 receptions for 133 yards and the Patriots’ defense forces four turnovers en route to becoming the eighth team to post consecutive Super Bowl titles. The Patriots match the Dallas Cowboys (XXVII, XXVIII, and XXX) as the only teams with three Super Bowl victories in the span of four seasons.
Super Bowl XLII: New York 17-14 New England
History repeats itself in incredible fashion as the Giants ride another amazing fourth-quarter comeback by Eli Manning to win their second Super Bowl championship in four years.
Super Bowl XLVI: New York 21-17 New England
Eli Manning and the Giants one-up Tom Brady and the Patriots again, coming back with a last-minute score to beat New England 21-17 for New York’s fourth Super Bowl title.
Ice Bucket Challenge: Robert Kraft, Patriots
Kraft and The Patriots accept the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge and nominate The Bills, The Dolphins and The NY Jets.
Jets 25 – 27 Patriots
The Patriots secure a home victory in a game that was closer than many expected. On the final play of the game a Jets field goal was blocked. This play is controversial because Patriots player Dont’a Hightower was initially lined up illegally, but one of the officials informed him of that, and he moved to avoid a penalty. The NFL defends the incident:
Because it’s a player safety rule we’re trying to avoid a situation before it happens, so the umpires will get in there and move that player out of there. More often you see it when a player is in a three-point stance and he’s down on the line of scrimmage, you’ll see the umpire tap the player to move him out of that, because we have to be outside the framework of the center.
NFL investigates Patriots
The NFL is investigating whether or not the Patriots have intentionally let some air out of footballs which were used by their offense during the AFC Championship Game victory over the Colts. The league has determined that 11 of the 12 balls used by the Patriots were significantly underinflated. The NFL:
We are not commenting at this time.
Patriots win Super Bowl XLIX
The New England Patriots rally from a ten-point deficit to beat the Seattle Seahawks, 28-24, in Super Bowl XLIX. Coach Belichick:
I couldn’t be prouder of this team. These guys have been counted out many times through the course of the year by a lot of people but they always believed in themselves and just kept fighting. This is a great team — a great group of competitors who never gave in, never lost their will. Mentally and physically, as tough of a group as I’ve been around, and I’ve been around some. These guys are really special.
Super Bowl XLIX MVP
Brady is named MVP of Super Bowl XLIX after completing 37 of 50 passes for 328 yards, four of which result in touchdowns. Brady is intercepted twice, but completes eight of eight passes in a drive with two minutes left on the clock leading to the touchdown that gives the New England Patriots the lead.
It wasn’t the way we drew it up. Certainly, throwing a couple of picks didn’t help. It was a lot of mental toughness. Our team has had it all year. We never doubted each other, so that’s what it took. That was a great football team we beat. I’m just so happy for our team.
Pay cut
Brady signs a, salary-cap-friendly, $27 million three year extension designed to help the Patriots put together another championship run. The $43.6 million Brady would be owed over the next two years benefits the Patriots, giving flexibility within the cap.
Re-signs
McCourty re-signs with the Patriots. The deal is for five years and $47.5 million, with $28.5 million guaranteed.
I’m blessed to say we had other teams that were interested, but I said all along that I knew in my heart that I wanted to be back in New England. But I also knew the business side of football, and I had to do what I had to do. I’m back, but I’d be lying if I said there wasn’t possibilities over the last two days that I was going to be somewhere else. I’m happy it all worked out.
Signs five-year, $70m deal
The Jets sign Revis to a five-year deal worth $70 million. The money is guaranteed during the first two years: $16 million and $17 million, respectively. In 2017, $6 million of Revis’s $17 million salary is guaranteed. The deal came about after the Patriots declined to exercise Revis’s $20 million option for 2015.
I want to thank the Pats and Pats Nation for an unbelievable year. NEW YORK I’m coming home.
Jets file tampering charge
The Jets file a tampering charge against the Patriots after Kraft made the following comment about Revis:
I speak as a fan of the New England Patriots, we wanted to keep him.
Guilty of first-degree murder
A Massachusetts Grand Jury convicts Hernandez, with first degree murder in the killing of Lloyd in June 2013. Hernandez’s lawyer acknowledged during closing arguments that he was there when Lloyd was killed. But he pinned the shooting on Hernandez’s two friends, saying his client was a 23-year-old kid who didn’t know what to do. He is also found guilty on firearm and ammunition charges. The conviction carries a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Suspended
The NFL suspends Brady for four games for having allegedly participated in a scheme to deflate footballs during the AFC Championship game against the Colts. Brady will miss games against the Steelers, Bills, Jaguars and Cowboys. NFL Executive President Vincent states that Brady’s unwillingness to cooperate factored into his punishment:
The report documents your failure to cooperate fully and candidly with the investigation, including by refusing to produce any relevant electronic evidence (emails, texts, etc.), despite being offered extraordinary safeguards by the investigators to protect unrelated personal information, and by providing testimony that the report concludes was not plausible and contradicted by other evidence.
Highest-paid NFL kicker
Patriots kicker Gostkowski signs a four-year $17.2 million contract and becomes the highest-paid kicker in the League.
Retires
Connolly retires from the NFL.
It’s important to me to leave the game healthy. I’m able to be here for my kids and walk away on my own terms. I feel like I got everything I could out of football in playing ten years, winning a Super Bowl, and playing alongside some truly great players.