Established: 1959
Home Field: Gillette Stadium – Foxborough, Massachusetts
Owner(s): Robert Kraft
General Manager: None
Head Coach: Bill Belichick

The New England Patriots were established in 1959 as the Boston Patriots. Originally the team was part of the AFL, though joined the NFL in 1970 as part of the AFL-NFL Merger. In 1971, the team changed their name to the New England Patriots after moving from Boston to Foxbourough. They currently play in the AFC East.

Upon starting out, the Patriots were mostly unsuccessful. They played in only one AFL championship game, which they lost, and would not make another appearance in an AFL or NFL postseason game in 13 years. 1976 marked the first time the team made it to the playoffs, which was done on a wild card. They lost in the first round. The team continued to struggle through the 70s and 80s, though they did make it to the Super Bowl in 1985. During this time, the team changed ownership three times.

In 1993, Bill Parcells was hired as the head coach and the team went though some major changes, including a new team logo and team colors. Parcells led the team to the playoffs two times as well as a Super Bowl appearance. They lost 35-21 to the Green Bay Packers. Pete Carroll was hired in 1997. He also led the team to the playoffs twice.

In 2000, current head coach Bill Belichick took over. This began an era in which the team would see it’s greatest success. During the 00s, the team has drastically improved, posting a perfect 16-0 record in 2007 and winning three Super Bowls.

Championships

League Championships
Super Bowl: 2001, 2003, 2004

Conference Championships
AFC: 1985, 1996, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2007

Division Championships
AFL East: 1963
AFC East: 1978, 1986, 1996, 1997, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007

Patriots Trivia

• The team is commonly referred to as the Pats.
• Before taking the job as head coach for the Patriots, Bill Belichick was the head coach for the New York Jets for one day.
• For a time the Pats were the only football team in the NFL that had a picture of a football in their logo.