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1997 New England Patriots
Franchise Index: Previous Season / Next Season
Record: 10-6-0, Finished 1st in AFC East Division
NFL Season Summary
Scored 369 points (23.1/g), 8th of 30 in the NFL.
Allowed 289 points (18.1/g), 8th.
Differential of 80 points (5.0/g), 5th.
Expected W-L: 10.3-5.7.
Takeaway/Giveaway Differential +10 (0.6/g), 4th.
Coached by Pete Carroll (10-6-0)
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1997 Statistics / Starters & Roster / Games & Schedule / Team Draftees
Starters
| Pos | Age | Yrs | GS | Summary of Player Stats | Drafted (tm/rnd/yr) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Offensive Starters | Complete Team Stats | |||||
| QB | Drew Bledsoe* | 25 | 4 | 16 | 314 for 522, 3,706 yards, 28 td, 15 int, & 28 rushes for 55 yards and 0 td | New England Patriots / 1st / 1st pick / 1993 |
| RB | Curtis Martin | 24 | 2 | 13 | 274 rushes for 1,160 yards, 4 td, & 41 catches for 296 yards and 1 td | New England Patriots / 3rd / 74th pick / 1995 |
| FB | Keith Byars | 34 | 11 | 8 | 11 rushes for 24 yards, 0 td, & 20 catches for 189 yards and 3 td | Philadelphia Eagles / 1st / 10th pick / 1986 |
| FB | Sam Gash | 28 | 5 | 5 | 6 rushes for 10 yards, 0 td, & 22 catches for 154 yards and 3 td | New England Patriots / 8th / 205th pick / 1992 |
| WR | Terry Glenn | 23 | 1 | 9 | 27 catches for 431 yards, 2 td | New England Patriots / 1st / 7th pick / 1996 |
| WR | Shawn Jefferson | 28 | 6 | 14 | 54 catches for 841 yards, 2 td | Houston Oilers / 9th / 240th pick / 1991 |
| WR | Troy Brown | 26 | 4 | 6 | 41 catches for 607 yards, 6 td, & 1 rush for -18 yards and 0 td | New England Patriots / 8th / 198th pick / 1993 |
| TE | Ben Coates* | 28 | 6 | 16 | 66 catches for 737 yards, 8 td | New England Patriots / 5th / 124th pick / 1991 |
| LT | Bruce Armstrong* | 32 | 10 | 16 | New England Patriots / 1st / 23rd pick / 1987 |
|
| LG | Max Lane | 26 | 3 | 16 | 1 fumble recovered | New England Patriots / 6th / 168th pick / 1994 |
| C | Dave Wohlabaugh | 25 | 2 | 14 | New England Patriots / 4th / 112th pick / 1995 |
|
| RG | Todd Rucci | 27 | 4 | 16 | New England Patriots / 2nd / 51st pick / 1993 |
|
| RT | Zefross Moss | 31 | 8 | 15 | ||
| Defensive Starters | ||||||
| LDE | Chris Sullivan | 24 | 1 | 10 | New England Patriots / 4th / 119th pick / 1996 |
|
| LDE | Ferric Collons | 28 | 2 | 5 | 1.0 sacks, 0 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | |
| LDE | Mike D. Jones | 28 | 6 | 7 | 4.0 sacks, 0 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | Phoenix Cardinals / 2nd / 32nd pick / 1991 |
| LDT | Mark Wheeler | 27 | 5 | 14 | 4.0 sacks, 0 interceptions, 0 fumbles recovered | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 3rd / 59th pick / 1992 |
| RDT | Henry Thomas | 32 | 10 | 16 | 7.0 sacks, 0 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | Minnesota Vikings / 3rd / 72nd pick / 1987 |
| RDE | Willie McGinest | 26 | 3 | 11 | 2.0 sacks, 0 interceptions, 3 fumbles recovered | New England Patriots / 1st / 4th pick / 1994 |
| LLB | Chris Slade* | 26 | 4 | 16 | 9.0 sacks, 1 interception, 0 fumbles recovered | New England Patriots / 2nd / 31st pick / 1993 |
| MLB | Ted Johnson | 25 | 2 | 16 | 4.0 sacks, 0 interceptions, 0 fumbles recovered | New England Patriots / 2nd / 57th pick / 1995 |
| RLB | Todd F. Collins | 27 | 5 | 15 | 1.5 sacks, 0 interceptions, 0 fumbles recovered | New England Patriots / 3rd / 64th pick / 1992 |
| LCB | Ty Law | 23 | 2 | 16 | 0.5 sacks, 3 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | New England Patriots / 1st / 23rd pick / 1995 |
| RCB | Jimmy Hitchcock | 27 | 2 | 15 | 0.0 sacks, 2 interceptions, 0 fumbles recovered | New England Patriots / 3rd / 88th pick / 1995 |
| SS | Lawyer Milloy | 24 | 1 | 16 | 0.0 sacks, 3 interceptions, 2 fumbles recovered | New England Patriots / 2nd / 36th pick / 1996 |
| FS | Willie Clay | 27 | 5 | 16 | 0.0 sacks, 6 interceptions, 2 fumbles recovered | Detroit Lions / 8th / 221st pick / 1992 |
| Special Teams Starters | ||||||
| K | Adam Vinatieri | 25 | 1 | 0 | 25 of 29 field goals & 40 of 40 extra points | |
| P | Tom Tupa | 31 | 9 | 0 | 78 punts for a 45.8 average, 1 blocked | Phoenix Cardinals / 3rd / 68th pick / 1988 |
| PR | Dave Meggett | 31 | 8 | 2 | 45 punt returns for a 10.4 average and 0 td | New York Giants / 5th / 132nd pick / 1989 |
| KR | Dave Meggett | 31 | 8 | 2 | 33 kick returns for a 24.7 average and 0 td | New York Giants / 5th / 132nd pick / 1989 |
| No. | Age | Pos | G | GS | Wt | Ht | College/Univ | BirthDate | Yrs | Drafted (tm/rnd/yr) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 78 | Bruce Armstrong* | 32 | T-G | 16 | 16 | 295 | 6-4 | Louisville | 9/7/1965 | 10 | New England Patriots / 1st / 23rd pick / 1987 |
| 86 | Mike Bartrum | 27 | TE-C | 9 | 0 | 245 | 6-4 | Marshall | 6/23/1970 | 4 | |
| 11 | Drew Bledsoe* | 25 | QB | 16 | 16 | 238 | 6-5 | Washington State | 2/14/1972 | 4 | New England Patriots / 1st / 1st pick / 1993 |
| 82 | Vincent Brisby | 26 | WR | 16 | 4 | 190 | 6-3 | La-Monroe | 1/25/1971 | 4 | New England Patriots / 2nd / 56th pick / 1993 |
| 80 | Troy Brown | 26 | WR | 16 | 6 | 196 | 5-10 | Marshall | 7/2/1971 | 4 | New England Patriots / 8th / 198th pick / 1993 |
| 54 | Tedy Bruschi | 24 | LB | 16 | 1 | 247 | 6-1 | Arizona | 6/9/1973 | 1 | New England Patriots / 3rd / 86th pick / 1996 |
| 41 | Keith Byars | 34 | RB-TE | 16 | 8 | 245 | 6-1 | Ohio State | 10/14/1963 | 11 | Philadelphia Eagles / 1st / 10th pick / 1986 |
| 26 | Chris Canty | 21 | DB | 16 | 1 | 185 | 5-9 | Kansas State | 3/30/1976 | Rook | New England Patriots / 1st / 29th pick / 1997 |
| 42 | Chris Carter | 23 | DB | 16 | 0 | 201 | 6-1 | Texas | 9/27/1974 | Rook | New England Patriots / 3rd / 89th pick / 1997 |
| 32 | Willie Clay | 27 | DB | 16 | 16 | 193 | 5-10 | Georgia Tech | 9/5/1970 | 5 | Detroit Lions / 8th / 221st pick / 1992 |
| 87 | Ben Coates* | 28 | TE | 16 | 16 | 245 | 6-5 | Livingstone | 8/16/1969 | 6 | New England Patriots / 5th / 124th pick / 1991 |
| 59 | Todd F. Collins | 27 | LB | 15 | 15 | 248 | 6-2 | Carson-Newman,Georgia,Tennessee | 5/27/1970 | 5 | New England Patriots / 3rd / 64th pick / 1992 |
| 92 | Ferric Collons | 28 | DE | 5 | 5 | 290 | 6-7 | California | 12/4/1969 | 2 | |
| 99 | Vernon Crawford | 23 | LB | 16 | 0 | 245 | 6-4 | Florida State | 6/25/1974 | Rook | New England Patriots / 5th / 159th pick / 1997 |
| 29 | Derrick Cullors | 25 | RB | 15 | 1 | 195 | 6-0 | Murray State,TCU | 12/26/1972 | Rook | |
| 61 | Damon Denson | 22 | G | 1 | 0 | 305 | 6-4 | Michigan | 2/8/1975 | Rook | New England Patriots / 4th / 97th pick / 1997 |
| 90 | Chad Eaton | 25 | DT-NT | 16 | 1 | 303 | 6-5 | Washington State | 4/6/1972 | 1 | Arizona Cardinals / 7th / 241st pick / 1995 |
| 66 | Ed Ellis | 22 | T | 1 | 0 | 325 | 6-5 | Buffalo | 10/13/1975 | Rook | New England Patriots / 4th / 125th pick / 1997 |
| 17 | Tony Gaiter | 23 | WR | 1 | 0 | 169 | 5-8 | Miami (FL) | 7/15/1974 | Rook | New England Patriots / 6th / 192nd pick / 1997 |
| 33 | Sam Gash | 28 | FB | 16 | 5 | 242 | 6-0 | Penn State | 3/7/1969 | 5 | New England Patriots / 8th / 205th pick / 1992 |
| 67 | Mike Gisler | 28 | C-G | 16 | 2 | 295 | 6-4 | Houston | 8/26/1969 | 4 | New Orleans Saints / 11th / 303rd pick / 1992 |
| 88 | Terry Glenn | 23 | WR | 9 | 9 | 195 | 5-11 | Ohio State | 7/23/1974 | 1 | New England Patriots / 1st / 7th pick / 1996 |
| 35 | Marrio Grier | 26 | RB | 16 | 0 | 229 | 5-10 | Clemson,Tennessee-Chattanooga | 12/5/1971 | 1 | New England Patriots / 6th / 195th pick / 1996 |
| 31 | Jimmy Hitchcock | 27 | DB | 15 | 15 | 190 | 5-10 | North Carolina | 11/9/1970 | 2 | New England Patriots / 3rd / 88th pick / 1995 |
| 63 | Heath Irwin | 24 | G | 16 | 1 | 300 | 6-4 | Colorado | 6/27/1973 | Rook | New England Patriots / 4th / 101st pick / 1996 |
| 21 | Steve Israel | 28 | DB | 5 | 0 | 194 | 5-11 | Pittsburgh | 3/16/1969 | 5 | Los Angeles Rams / 2nd / 30th pick / 1992 |
| 84 | Shawn Jefferson | 28 | WR | 16 | 14 | 185 | 5-11 | Central Florida | 2/22/1969 | 6 | Houston Oilers / 9th / 240th pick / 1991 |
| 83 | Dietrich Jells | 25 | WR | 11 | 0 | 186 | 5-10 | Pittsburgh | 4/11/1972 | 1 | Kansas City Chiefs / 6th / 176th pick / 1996 |
| 52 | Ted Johnson | 25 | LB | 16 | 16 | 253 | 6-4 | Colorado | 12/4/1972 | 2 | New England Patriots / 2nd / 57th pick / 1995 |
| 96 | Mike D. Jones | 28 | DE | 16 | 7 | 290 | 6-4 | North Carolina State | 8/25/1969 | 6 | Phoenix Cardinals / 2nd / 32nd pick / 1991 |
| 68 | Max Lane | 26 | T-G | 16 | 16 | 315 | 6-6 | Navy | 2/22/1971 | 3 | New England Patriots / 6th / 168th pick / 1994 |
| 24 | Ty Law | 23 | DB | 16 | 16 | 200 | 5-11 | Michigan | 2/10/1974 | 2 | New England Patriots / 1st / 23rd pick / 1995 |
| 38 | Steve Lofton | 29 | DB | 4 | 0 | 180 | 5-9 | Texas A&M | 11/26/1968 | 6 | |
| 28 | Curtis Martin | 24 | RB | 13 | 13 | 210 | 5-11 | Pittsburgh | 5/1/1973 | 2 | New England Patriots / 3rd / 74th pick / 1995 |
| 55 | Willie McGinest | 26 | DE-LB | 11 | 11 | 270 | 6-5 | USC | 12/11/1971 | 3 | New England Patriots / 1st / 4th pick / 1994 |
| 27 | Michael McGruder | 33 | DB | 3 | 0 | 185 | 5-11 | Kent State | 5/6/1964 | 8 | |
| 22 | Dave Meggett | 31 | RB | 16 | 2 | 190 | 5-7 | Morgan State,Towson State | 4/30/1966 | 8 | New York Giants / 5th / 132nd pick / 1989 |
| 36 | Lawyer Milloy | 24 | DB | 16 | 16 | 210 | 6-0 | Washington | 11/14/1973 | 1 | New England Patriots / 2nd / 36th pick / 1996 |
| 98 | Brandon Mitchell | 22 | DE-DT | 12 | 0 | 290 | 6-3 | Texas A&M | 6/19/1975 | Rook | New England Patriots / 2nd / 59th pick / 1997 |
| 58 | Marty Moore | 26 | LB | 16 | 0 | 244 | 6-1 | Kentucky | 3/19/1971 | 3 | New England Patriots / 7th / 222nd pick / 1994 |
| 77 | Zefross Moss | 31 | T | 15 | 15 | 325 | 6-6 | Alabama State | 8/17/1966 | 8 | |
| 85 | Lovett Purnell | 25 | TE | 16 | 2 | 245 | 6-3 | West Virginia | 4/7/1972 | 1 | New England Patriots / 7th / 216th pick / 1996 |
| 60 | Scott Rehberg | 24 | G-T | 6 | 0 | 325 | 6-8 | Central Michigan | 11/17/1973 | Rook | New England Patriots / 7th / 230th pick / 1997 |
| 71 | Todd Rucci | 27 | G-T | 16 | 16 | 296 | 6-5 | Penn State | 7/14/1970 | 4 | New England Patriots / 2nd / 51st pick / 1993 |
| 51 | Bernard Russ | 24 | LB | 2 | 0 | 238 | 6-1 | West Virginia | 11/4/1973 | Rook | |
| 23 | Sedrick Shaw | 24 | RB | 1 | 0 | 214 | 6-0 | Iowa | 11/16/1973 | Rook | New England Patriots / 3rd / 61st pick / 1997 |
| 53 | Chris Slade* | 26 | LB | 16 | 16 | 245 | 6-5 | Virginia | 1/30/1971 | 4 | New England Patriots / 2nd / 31st pick / 1993 |
| 74 | Chris Sullivan | 24 | DE | 16 | 10 | 279 | 6-4 | Boston College | 3/14/1973 | 1 | New England Patriots / 4th / 119th pick / 1996 |
| 95 | Henry Thomas | 32 | DT-NT | 16 | 16 | 277 | 6-2 | LSU | 1/12/1965 | 10 | Minnesota Vikings / 3rd / 72nd pick / 1987 |
| 19 | Tom Tupa | 31 | QB-P | 16 | 0 | 225 | 6-4 | Ohio State | 2/6/1966 | 9 | Phoenix Cardinals / 3rd / 68th pick / 1988 |
| 75 | Danny Villa | 33 | T-C-G | 7 | 0 | 304 | 6-5 | Arizona State | 9/21/1964 | 10 | New England Patriots / 5th / 113th pick / 1987 |
| 4 | Adam Vinatieri | 25 | K | 16 | 0 | 202 | 6-0 | South Dakota State | 12/28/1972 | 1 | |
| 97 | Mark Wheeler | 27 | DT-NT | 14 | 14 | 285 | 6-3 | Texas A&M | 4/1/1970 | 5 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 3rd / 59th pick / 1992 |
| 25 | Larry Whigham* | 25 | DB | 16 | 0 | 205 | 6-2 | La-Monroe | 6/23/1972 | 3 | Seattle Seahawks / 4th / 110th pick / 1994 |
| 64 | Dave Wohlabaugh | 25 | C | 14 | 14 | 296 | 6-3 | Syracuse | 4/13/1972 | 2 | New England Patriots / 4th / 112th pick / 1995 |
| 72 | Devin Wyman | 24 | DT | 6 | 0 | 290 | 6-7 | Kentucky State | 8/29/1973 | 1 | New England Patriots / 6th / 206th pick / 1996 |
| 16 | Scott Zolak | 30 | QB | 4 | 0 | 230 | 6-5 | Maryland | 12/13/1967 | 5 | New England Patriots / 4th / 84th pick / 1991 |
| Team Total | 26.3 | 16 | 243.8 | 6-2.0 | 3.3 |