1999 New England Patriots season

The 1999 New England Patriots season was the franchise's 30th season in the National Football League and the 40th overall. They finished with an 8–8 record and tied for fourth place in the division. They did not qualify for the playoffs.

1999 New England Patriots season
OwnerRobert Kraft
Head coachPete Carroll
Home fieldFoxboro Stadium
Results
Record8–8
Division placeT-4th AFC East
Playoff finishDid not qualify
Pro BowlersWR Terry Glenn
SS Lawyer Milloy
AP All-ProsSS Lawyer Milloy (1st team)

In May, the Patriots announced their intention to pull out of a publicly financed stadium deal in Hartford, Connecticut, and instead work towards building a privately financed new stadium. This became the Gillette Stadium at the site of the existing Foxboro Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts.[1] The Patriots came into the 1999 season without second-year running back Robert Edwards due to a serious knee injury, after rushing for over 1,100 yards in 1998.[2] Taking Edwards' place were veteran Terry Allen and rookie Kevin Faulk, but neither player was able to eclipse 1,000 yards rushing and overall the Patriots' rushing offense was 23rd in the NFL. After beginning the season with a 6–2 record the team slowed down and finished 8–8, missing the playoffs for the first time since 1995. Following the season finale third year head coach Pete Carroll was fired,[3] while vice president of player personnel Bobby Grier was retained until the 2000 NFL draft.[4] This would be the Patriots' last season without Bill Belichick until 2024.

Offseason

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Additions Subtractions
QB John Friesz (Seahawks) P Tom Tupa (Jets)
RB Terry Allen (Redskins) LB Todd Collins (Rams)
P Lee Johnson (Bengals)

1999 NFL draft

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1999 New England Patriots Draft Selections
Round Overall Player Position College
1[5] 17 Damien Woody Center Boston College
1[a] 28 Andy Katzenmoyer Linebacker Ohio State
2[7] 46 Kevin Faulk Running back LSU
3[8] 91 Tony George Safety Florida
5 154 Derrick Fletcher Offensive guard Baylor
6[9] 180 Marcus Washington Safety Colorado
7 227 Michael Bishop Quarterback Kansas State
7 241 Sean Morey Wide receiver Brown
compensatory selection
1999 New England Patriots Supplemental Draft Selections
Round Overall Player Position College
4 J'Juan Cherry Cornerback Arizona State

Staff

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1999 New England Patriots staff
Front office

Head coaches

Offensive coaches

 

Defensive coaches

Special teams coaches

Strength and conditioning

Schedule

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Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Recap
1 September 12 at New York Jets W 30–28 1–0 Giants Stadium Recap
2 September 19 Indianapolis Colts W 31–28 2–0 Foxboro Stadium Recap
3 September 26 New York Giants W 16–14 3–0 Foxboro Stadium Recap
4 October 3 at Cleveland Browns W 19–7 4–0 Cleveland Browns Stadium Recap
5 October 10 at Kansas City Chiefs L 14–16 4–1 Arrowhead Stadium Recap
6 October 17 Miami Dolphins L 30–31 4–2 Foxboro Stadium Recap
7 October 24 Denver Broncos W 24–23 5–2 Foxboro Stadium Recap
8 October 31 at Arizona Cardinals W 27–3 6–2 Sun Devil Stadium Recap
9 Bye
10 November 15 New York Jets L 17–24 6–3 Foxboro Stadium Recap
11 November 21 at Miami Dolphins L 17–27 6–4 Pro Player Stadium Recap
12 November 28 at Buffalo Bills L 7–17 6–5 Ralph Wilson Stadium Recap
13 December 5 Dallas Cowboys W 13–6 7–5 Foxboro Stadium Recap
14 December 12 at Indianapolis Colts L 15–20 7–6 RCA Dome Recap
15 December 19 at Philadelphia Eagles L 9–24 7–7 Veterans Stadium Recap
16 December 26 Buffalo Bills L 10–13 (OT) 7–8 Foxboro Stadium Recap
17 January 2 Baltimore Ravens W 20–3 8–8 Foxboro Stadium Recap
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Standings

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AFC East
W L T PCT PF PA STK
(2) Indianapolis Colts 13 3 0 .813 423 333 L1
(5) Buffalo Bills 11 5 0 .688 320 229 W3
(6) Miami Dolphins 9 7 0 .563 326 336 L2
New York Jets 8 8 0 .500 308 309 W4
New England Patriots 8 8 0 .500 299 284 W1

Notable games

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The Jets lost quarterback Vinny Testaverde in the second quarter when he ruptured his left Achilles tendon, and backup Tom Tupa (a former Patriots punter) was put in; regular backup Rick Mirer was listed as emergency quarterback and was not eligible to enter the game until the fourth quarter. The Patriots rallied from down 16–10 at the half with 17 points scored in the third quarter, but the Jets stormed back themselves with two touchdowns on a Tupa throw to Fred Baxter and a Bryan Cox interception return; both times the Jets went for two-point conversions but failed. Mirer was put in late in the fourth and a throw was deflected by Ty Law and recovered by Chris Slade. Drew Bledsoe completed key first downs to Terry Glenn and Troy Brown, setting up the game-winning Adam Vinatieri field goal of a 30–28 Patriots win. Kevin Faulk made his Patriots debut in this game, rushing ten times for 17 yards and catching one pass for eight yards.

The Patriots committed 15 penalties eating up 135 yards and trailed 28–7 at halftime in Peyton Manning's second career trip to Foxboro. But Bledsoe answered with touchdowns to Terry Allen and Ben Coates to tie the game late in the fourth; the two Coates scores came off a Marcus Pollard fumble and a Manning three-and-out forced by Ty Law. Edgerrin James was then stripped by Tebucky Jones, setting up the game-winning Vinatieri field goal of a 31–28 Patriots comeback. Coates's fourth-quarter scores turned out to be the last of his career.

The Patriots trailed the Browns 6-7 at halftime with only two field goals. The Browns only score being a Kevin Johnson 64 yard touchdown reception from Tim Couch. Bledsoe amassed 393 yards passing and a 54 yard touchdown pass to Terry Glenn having a career day breaking a team record with 13 receptions and 214 receiving yards. Terry Allen also scored on a 3 yard touchdown run.

Trailing 7–3 at the half, the Chiefs behind Elvis Grbac scored 13 points in the second half. The Patriots scored in the fourth on a Shawn Jefferson touchdown catch, then in the final minute the Patriots stormed down field, but a 32-yard Vinatieri field goal try on the final play bounced off the right upright, securing a 16–14 Chiefs win.

Dan Marino was injured after throwing an interception returned by Andy Katzenmoyer for a 57-yard touchdown and was replaced by future Patriots backup quarterback Damon Huard. Huard was picked off by Ty Law for a 27-yard touchdown, but from there, the Dolphins clawed back into contention and Huard won the game in the final seconds on a short touchdown toss to Stanley Pritchett and a 31–30 Dolphins win.

The Patriots defeated the Broncos for the first time since 1980 after going 0–11 lifetime against John Elway. Both teams rushed for 133 yards while Brian Griese of the Broncos threw for 309 yards compared to a modest 192 passing yards for Drew Bledsoe. Kevin Faulk scored on a 15-yard rushing touchdown as the Patriots rushed to a 24–13 third-quarter lead and sweated out a Broncos rally to win 24–23; the margin of victory turned out to be set by a missed 59-yard field goal try by Jason Elam.

The Patriots mopped the floor of Sun Devil Stadium as Bledsoe threw four touchdowns in a 27–3 runaway. The win, however, proved costly, for Ben Coates was held without a catch for the second time that season, a fact Coates took the media during the ensuing bye week to considerable effect. The game marked a fatal turning point to the Patriots season as Coates' public protest soured his relationship with Bledsoe and coach Pete Carroll; the Patriots fell from 6–2 to finish a dismal 8–8; Coates for his part had only sixteen catches the remainder of the season before he was let go and joined the Baltimore Ravens.

The Patriots entered this game on a three-game losing streak and having never beaten the Cowboys in their history; this was the eighth career meeting between the two clubs. Both Patriot slumps ended as the two defenses kept offense to a premium; Troy Aikman and Drew Bledsoe combined for just 336 passing yards; it was the Patriots ground game that took over to the tune of 116 rushing yards led by Terry Allen's 53 yards and a touchdown in a 13–6 Patriots win. Rookie Kevin Faulk had his most productive game of the season with 36 rushing yards and three catches for 43 yards.

Final roster

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New England Patriots 1999 final roster
Quarterbacks

Running backs

Wide receivers

Tight ends

Offensive linemen

Defensive linemen

Linebackers

Defensive backs

Special teams

Reserve lists


Practice squad


53 active, 9 inactive, 5 practice squad


Notations

Notes

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  1. ^ The Patriots received third- and fourth-round picks in 1997, a second-round pick in 1998, and a first-round pick in 1999 from the New York Jets as compensation for the Jets' 1997 signing of Bill Parcells as head coach.[6]

References

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  1. ^ Mcmillan, Jean (May 1, 1999). "Pats call off Hartford move". The Standard-Times (New Bedford). Associated Press. Retrieved June 16, 2009.
  2. ^ "Edwards Misses 1999 Season". www.cbsnews.com. Retrieved February 13, 2023.
  3. ^ "Pats fire Pete Carroll". Sports Illustrated. Associated Press. January 3, 2000. Archived from the original on June 1, 2009. Retrieved June 16, 2009.
  4. ^ "Patriots fire Grier". The Standard-Times (New Bedford). May 2, 2000. Retrieved June 16, 2009.
  5. ^ "Draft pick received in a trade from the Seattle Seahawks for the Patriots' 1999 first-round pick, 1997 third-round pick, and 1997 sixth-round pick". Archived from the original on May 19, 2011. Retrieved December 1, 2007.
  6. ^ "Patriots.com summary". Archived from the original on May 19, 2011. Retrieved December 1, 2007.
  7. ^ "Draft pick received in a trade from the Detroit Lions for the Patriots' 1999 second-round pick and 1999 fourth-round pick". Archived from the original on May 19, 2011. Retrieved December 1, 2007.
  8. ^ "Draft pick received in a trade from the Minnesota Vikings for Jimmy Hitchcock in 1998". Archived from the original on May 19, 2011. Retrieved December 1, 2007.
  9. ^ "Draft pick received in a trade from the Baltimore Ravens for Lovett Purnell". Archived from the original on May 19, 2011. Retrieved December 1, 2007.
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