1997 New England Patriots season

1997 New England Patriots season
Head Coach	Pete Carroll
Home Field	Foxboro Stadium
Results
Record	10–6
Place	1st AFC East
Playoff Finish	Won Wild Card Playoffs (Dolphins) 17–3 Lost Divisional Playoffs (Steelers) 7–6
Pro Bowlers	T Bruce Armstrong QB Drew Bledsoe TE Ben Coates LB Chris Slade SpT Larry Whigham
Uniform
Timeline
Previous season	Next season
1996	1998

The 1997 New England Patriots season was the 28th season for the team in the National Football League and 38th season overall. They finished the season with a 10–6 record and a division title but lost in the playoffs to the Pittsburgh Steelers.

In January, when the Patriots were preparing to face the Green Bay Packers in Super Bowl XXXI, it was suspected head coach Bill Parcells was looking to move to another team after the game where he would have more say over personnel matters. In the 1996 NFL Draft, Parcells' relationship with owner Robert Kraft soured when Kraft selected wide receiver Terry Glenn against Parcells' wishes. After the Patriots' loss in Super Bowl XXXI, Parcells resigned from the Patriots, using the phrase "If they want you to cook the dinner, at least they ought to let you shop for some of the groceries." Due to an earlier renegotiation that had eliminated the 1997 season from Parcells' contract, NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue ruled Parcells could not be a head coach for another team in 1997. Parcells instead moved to the New York Jets as a "consultant," taking assistant head coach Bill Belichick with him to be the Jets' head coach; Kraft called this a "transparent farce" and accused the Jets of tampering with Parcells. The NFL ruled in the Patriots' favor and the Patriots received third and fourth-round picks in the 1997 NFL Draft, a second-round pick in the 1998 NFL Draft, and a first-round pick in the 1999 NFL Draft in compensation for allowing Parcells to become the Jets' head coach.

Taking Parcells' place with the Patriots was Pete Carroll, who had coincidentally been the Jets' head coach in 1994. The Patriots began the season 5–1 but featured a 6–5 record later in the season. The Patriots managed to finish 10–6 and first in the AFC East for the second straight season. With the third seed in the AFC playoffs, the Patriots defeated the Miami Dolphins in the Wild Card Playoffs but were defeated by the Pittsburgh Steelers, 7–6, on the road the next week.

1997 NFL Draft

Main article: 1997 NFL Draft

1997 New England Patriots Draft Selections

Round	Overall	Player	Position	College
1	29	Chris Canty	Cornerback	Kansas State
2	59	Brandon Mitchell	Defensive tackle	Texas A&M
3	61	Sedrick Shaw	Running back	Iowa
3	89	Chris Carter	Safety	Texas
4	97	Damon Denson	Offensive guard	Michigan
4	125	Ed Ellis	Offensive tackle	Buffalo
5	159	Vernon Crawford	Linebacker	Florida State
6	192	Tony Gaiter	Wide receiver	Miami (FL)
7	230	Scott Rehberg	Offensive guard	Central Michigan

Staff

New England Patriots 1997 staff
Front Office Chairman/CEO – Robert Kraft Vice President – Jonathan Kraft Vice President of Business Operations – Andy Wasynczuk Vice President of Player Personnel – Bobby Grier Director of College Scouting – Larry Cook Director of Pro Scouting – Dave Uyrus Head Coaches Head Coach – Pete Carroll Assistant Head Coach/Quarterbacks – Carl Smith Offensive Coaches Offensive Coordinator – Larry Kennan Running Backs – Kirby Wilson Wide Receivers – Steve Walters Tight Ends – Jeff Davidson Offensive Line – Paul Boudreau			Defensive Coaches Defensive Coordinator – Steve Sidwell Defensive Line – Ray Hamilton Linebackers – Bo Pelini Defensive Backs – Ron Lynn Defensive Assistant – Andre Patterson Special Teams Coaches Special Teams – Dante Scarnecchia Strength and Conditioning Strength and Conditioning – Johnny Parker

Schedule

Week	Location	Opponent	Result	Record	TV Time	Attendance
1	Foxboro Stadium	San Diego Chargers	W 41–7	1–0	NBC 1:00 pm	60,190
2	RCA Dome	Indianapolis Colts	W 31–6	2–0	NBC 1:00 pm	53,632
3	Foxboro Stadium	New York Jets	W 27–24 (OT)	3–0	TNT 8:00 pm	60,072
4	Foxboro Stadium	Chicago Bears	W 31–3	4–0	FOX 1:00 pm	59,873
5	Mile High Stadium	Denver Broncos	L 13–34	4–1	ABC 9:00 pm	75,821
6	Foxboro Stadium	Buffalo Bills	W 33–6	5–1	NBC 1:00 pm	59,802
7	The Meadowlands	New York Jets	L 19–24	5–2	NBC 1:00 pm	71,061
8	Foxboro Stadium	Green Bay Packers	L 10–28	5–3	ABC 9:00 pm	59,972
9	Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome	Minnesota Vikings	L 18–23	5–4	NBC 1:00 pm	62,917
10	Rich Stadium	Buffalo Bills	W 31–10	6–4	NBC 4:00 pm	65,783
11	Houlihan's Stadium	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	L 7–27	6–5	NBC 1:00 pm	70,479
12	Foxboro Stadium	Miami Dolphins	W 27–24	7–5	NBC 1:00 pm	59,002
13	Foxboro Stadium	Indianapolis Colts	W 20–17	8–5	NBC 4:00 pm	58,507
14	Jacksonville Municipal Stadium	Jacksonville Jaguars	W 26–20	9–5	NBC 1:00 pm	73,446
15	Foxboro Stadium	Pittsburgh Steelers	L 21–24 (OT)	9–6	NBC 4:00 pm	60,013
16	Joe Robbie Stadium	Miami Dolphins	W 14–12	10–6	ABC 9:00 pm	74,379
AFC Wildcard Playoff	Foxboro Stadium	Miami Dolphins	W 17–3	1–0	NBC 12:30 pm	60,041
AFC Divisional Playoff	Three Rivers Stadium	Pittsburgh Steelers	L 6–7	1–1	NBC 12:30 pm	61,228

Standings

AFC East
	W	L	T	PCT	PF	PA	STK
New England Patriots	10	6	0	.625	369	289	W-1
Miami Dolphins	9	7	0	.563	339	327	L-2
New York Jets	9	7	0	.563	348	287	L-1
Buffalo Bills	6	10	0	.375	255	367	L-3
Indianapolis Colts	3	13	0	.188	313	401	L-1

Notable games

• September 14 vs. New York Jets:

The first game against former Patriots coach Bill Parcells came on Sunday Night Football with the Patriots 2–0 and the Jets 1–1. The game became a grinder in which the lead tied or changed seven times. Drew Bledsoe threw touchdowns to Ben Coates and Lovett Purnell but threw two picks (one returned by Mo Lewis for a touchdown) and was limited to just 162 passing yards. His Jets counterpart Neil O'Donnell ran in one touchdown and threw another to Keyshawn Johnson that tied the game in the fourth, but was sacked seven times; the Jets also coughed up three fumbles. Curtis Martin's running game erupted to 199 yards and a touchdown, but the Patriots faced Jets kicker John Hall in the final sixteen seconds with the game tied at 24. Hall's field goal try was blocked and in overtime the Patriots drove down field and Adam Vinatieri nailed a 34-yard field goal for the 27–24 Patriots win.

Final roster

New England Patriots 1997 final roster
Quarterbacks 11 Drew Bledsoe 16 Scott Zolak Running Backs 41 Keith Byars FB/TE 29 Derrick Cullors UR 33 Sam Gash FB 35 Marrio Grier FB 28 Curtis Martin 29 Dave Meggett KR 23 Sedrick Shaw R Wide Receivers 82 Vincent Brisby 80 Troy Brown 17 Tony Gaiter R 88 Terry Glenn 84 Shawn Jefferson 83 Dietrich Jells Tight Ends 87 Ben Coates 85 Lovett Purnell		Offensive Linemen 78 Bruce Armstrong T 61 Damon Denson G R 66 Ed Ellis T R 67 Mike Gisler C 63 Heath Irwin G 68 Max Lane G 77 Zefross Moss T 71 Todd Rucci G 60 Scott Rehberg T R 64 Dave Wohlabaugh C Defensive Linemen 90 Chad Eaton DT 96 Mike D. Jones DE 55 Willie McGinest DE 98 Brandon Mitchell DT R 74 Chris Sullivan DE 95 Henry Thomas DT 97 Mark Wheeler DT 72 Devin Wyman DT		Linebackers 54 Tedy Bruschi OLB 59 Todd Collins OLB 99 Vernon Crawford OLB R 52 Ted Johnson ILB 58 Marty Moore ILB 51 Bernard Russ LB UR 53 Chris Slade OLB Defensive Backs 26 Chris Canty CB R 42 Chris Carter FS R 32 Willie Clay FS 31 Jimmy Hitchcock CB 21 Steve Israel CB 24 Ty Law CB 36 Lawyer Milloy SS 25 Larry Whigham FS Special Teams 19 Tom Tupa P 75 Danny Villa LS/G  4 Adam Vinatieri K		Reserve Lists data possibly incomplete 86 Mike Bartrum TE/LS (IR) File:Injury icon.svg 92 Ferric Collons DE (IR) File:Injury icon.svg 38 Steve Lofton CB (IR) File:Injury icon.svg Practice Squad data incomplete Notations R: 1997 Rookie UR: 1997 Undrafted Rookie Italicized players are not on the 53-man roster.

External links

• Season page on Pro Football Reference