2005 New England Patriots season

Infobox NFL_season
team = New England Patriots
year = 2005
record = 10-6
division_place = 1st AFC East
coach = Bill Belichick
stadium = Gillette Stadium
playoffs = Won Wild Card Playoffs (Jaguars) 28-3
Lost Divisional Playoffs (Broncos) 27-13
pro bowlers = 2
uniform =

The 2005 New England Patriots season was the 36th season for the team in the National Football League and 46th season overall. The Patriots finished the regular season 10-6, failing to improve on their 14-2 record of 2004, when the team finished in first place in the AFC East and won Super Bowl XXXIX. Injuries caused the Patriots to start 45 different players at one point or another during the season, an NFL record for a division champion (breaking the record of 42 set by the Patriots in 2003). [ [http://www.patriots.com/team/index.cfm?ac=coachbio&bio=506 Bill Belichick Biography] New England Patriots. Accessed 23 April 2007.] With the fourth seed in the AFC playoffs, the Patriots fell to the Denver Broncos in the Divisional playoffs.

Offseason

Tedy Bruschi suffers a stroke

On February 16, 2005, three days after playing in the 2005 Pro Bowl in Honolulu, Hawaii, linebacker Tedy Bruschi suffered a mild stroke while at his home in North Attleborough, Massachusetts. Bruschi, who awoke to blurred vision and temporary numbness, was rushed to Massachusetts General Hospital after a 9-1-1 call by his wife, Heidi [ [http://football.about.com/b/a/147467.htm Patriots' Bruschi Suffers Stroke] About.com. Accessed 10 June 2007.] . Without any long-term effects, Bruschi underwent heart surgery to repair a congenital condition in his heart known as an atrial septal defect [ [http://www.kevinmd.com/blog/2005/02/tedy-bruschi-and-stroke.html Tedy Bruschi and stroke] Kevin, M.D. - Medical Weblog. Accessed 10 June 2007.] .

Bruschi announced his intentions to sit out the 2005 season on July 20, while still citing his ongoing health improvement following the stroke [ [http://www.patriots.com/news/index.cfm?ac=latestnewsdetail&pid=12160&pcid=41 Bruschi to sit out 2005] Patriots.com. Accessed 10 June 2007.] . Following this announcement, Bruschi was placed on the Physically Unable to Perform list, keeping him inactive for a minimum of six games to begin the 2005 campaign. This is particularly notable, as the Patriots decided to forgo placing Bruschi on the injured reserve list, which would have prohibited him from playing in any 2005 games. With the window left open for his return, Bruschi returned to the practice field on October 19, during the Patriots' bye week [ [http://www.boston.com/sports/articles/2005/10/18/ready_bruschi/ Ready Bruschi] Boston.com. Accessed 10 June 2007.] . Only three months after announcing his plans to sit out the entire season, Bruschi returned to the Patriots for their next game against the Buffalo Bills on October 30. Bruschi would go on to play the rest of the season, only missing the Patriots' final game of the regular season as well as their first playoff game due to a leg injury.

taff changes

Bill Belichick lost both of his coordinators following the 2004 season. Offensive coordinator Charlie Weis left to become head coach at the University of Notre Dame, [ [http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=1943710 Weis to be introduced as Irish coach Monday] ESPN.com. Accessed 8 November 2007.] while defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel was named head coach of the Cleveland Browns. [ [http://www.cbc.ca/sports/story/2005/02/08/crennel050208.html Browns hire Crennel as head coach] CBC Sports. Accessed 8 November 2007.] Belichick only replaced Crennel for the 2005 season, promoting defensive backs coach Eric Mangini to defensive coordinator. [http://www.profootballweekly.com/PFW/NFL/AFC/AFC+East/New+England/Transactions/2005/trans01.htm New England Patriots February 9-27, 2005 Transactions] Pro Football Weekly. Accessed 8 November 2007.] Assistant offensive line and tight ends coach Jeff Davidson followed Crennel to Cleveland, and was replaced as tight ends coach by Pete Mangurian and as assistant offensive line coach by offensive coaching assistant Matt Patricia. [http://www.profootballweekly.com/PFW/NFL/AFC/AFC+East/New+England/Transactions/2005/trans02.htm New England Patriots March, 2005 Transactions] Pro Football Weekly. Accessed 8 November 2007.] Also departing was assistant strength and conditioning coach Markus Paul, who was replaced by former Canadian Football League star Harold Nash, and defensive coaching assistant Cory Undlin, who followed Crennel to the Browns as a defensive quality control coach. [cite web|url=http://www.clevelandbrowns.com/team/coaches_detail.php?id=40|title=Cory Undlin biography|work=ClevelandBrowns.com|accessdate=2008-07-06] Former assistant running backs/wide receivers coach Joel Collier rejoined the staff as an assistant defensive backs coach.

In the front office, Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Andy Wasynczuk left the organization to join Harvard Business School. [cite web|url=http://www.patriots.com/news/index.cfm?ac=latestnewsdetail&pid=10776&pcid=47|title=Patriots Exec to join Harvard Business School faculty|work=Patriots.com|date=2005-02-11|accessdate=2008-05-31] Assistant Director of College Scouting Lionel Vital and Assistant Director of Pro Scouting Keith Kidd also departed; Vital became a national scout with the Baltimore Ravens, [cite web|url=http://www.atlantafalcons.com/People/Staff/Scouting/Lionel_Vital.aspx|title=Lionel Vital biography|work=AtlantaFalcons.com|accessdate=2008-07-06] while Kidd joined ESPN.com. [cite web|url=http://sports.espn.go.com/keyword/search?searchString=keith_kidd|title=Keith Kidd story archive|work=ESPN.com|accessdate=2008-07-06]

Departures

Free agency saw the departure of only one full-time starter from 2004, offensive guard Joe Andruzzi, who signed with the Cleveland Browns. However, three-time Pro Bowl defensive back Ty Law was released in a salary cap move and would stay in the division, signing with the New York Jets. [ [http://www.profootballweekly.com/PFW/NFL/AFC/AFC+East/NY+Jets/Transactions/2005/trans08.htm New York Jets August 8-21, 2005 Transactions] Pro Football Weekly. Accessed 8 November 2007.] Veteran linebacker Roman Phifer, who had started on all three of the Patriots' Super Bowl teams, was also released, [ [http://www.cbc.ca/sports/story/2005/02/28/phifer050228.html Phifer sent packing by Patriots] CBC Sports. Accessed 8 November 2007.] along with nose tackle Keith Traylor. [ [http://www.profootballweekly.com/PFW/NFL/AFC/AFC+East/New+England/Transactions/2005/trans04.htm New England Patriots May, 2005 Transactions] Pro Football Weekly. Accessed 8 November 2007.] Long-time Patriot linebacker Ted Johnson was a surprise departure, retiring on the eve of training camp. [ [http://www.profootballweekly.com/PFW/NFL/AFC/AFC+East/New+England/Transactions/2005/trans07.htm New England Patriots July 25-August 8, 2005 Transactions] Pro Football Weekly. Accessed 8 November 2007.] Other free agency departures were Adrian Klemm (Green Bay Packers) and David Patten (Washington Redskins).

ignings

Unlike past Patriots offseasons, the 2005 offseason did not bring the arrival of any would-be full-time starters. Linebackers Chad Brown and Monty Beisel started six games together to begin the season, [ [http://www.patriots.com/team/index.cfm?ac=playerbio&bio=31001 Chad Brown Biography] New England Patriots. Accessed 8 November 2007.] but both were benched in favor of Mike Vrabel and Tedy Bruschi, after returning from his stroke. [ [http://www.patriots.com/team/index.cfm?ac=playerbio&bio=30936 Monty Beisel Biography] New England Patriots. Accessed 8 November 2007.] Veteran quarterback and New England native Doug Flutie returned to the Patriots for the final season of his career, having played for them last in 1989. [ [http://www.patriots.com/alumni/index.cfm?ac=alumnibiosdetail&bio=11532 Doug Flutie Biography] Accessed 8 November 2007.] In November, facing multiple injuries to their defensive backfield, the Patriots signed veteran defensive back Artrell Hawkins, who would go on to start six games, including both of the Patriots' playoff games. [ [http://www.patriots.com/team/index.cfm?ac=playerbio&bio=31641 Artrell Hawkins Biography] New England Patriots. Accessed 8 November 2007.] Other arrivals were Chad Scott, [ [http://www.patriots.com/team/index.cfm?ac=playerbio&bio=30945 Chad Scott Biography] New England Patriots. Accessed 8 November 2007.] Wesly Mallard, [ [http://www.patriots.com/team/index.cfm?ac=playerbio&bio=30937 Wesly Mallard Biography] New England Patriots. Accessed 8 November 2007.] Tim Dwight, [ [http://www.patriots.com/alumni/index.cfm?ac=alumnibiosdetail&bio=30934 Tim Dwight Biography] New England Patriots. Accessed 8 November 2007.] Antuan Edwards, [ [http://www.patriots.com/team/index.cfm?ac=playerbio&bio=31004 Antuan Edwards Biography] New England Patriots. Accessed 8 November 2007.] Chad Morton, [http://www.profootballweekly.com/PFW/NFL/AFC/AFC+East/New+England/Transactions/2005/trans06.htm New England Patriots June 27-July 24, 2005 Transactions] Pro Football Weekly. Accessed 8 November 2007.] and David Terrell, [http://www.profootballweekly.com/PFW/NFL/AFC/AFC+East/New+England/Transactions/2005/trans03.htm New England Patriots April, 2005 Transactions] Pro Football Weekly. Accessed 8 November 2007.] but only Scott and Dwight finished the season with the Patriots.

Free agents or potential free agents Brandon Gorin, Patrick Pass, Stephen Neal, Tom Ashworth, Don Davis, David Givens, Jarvis Green, and Troy Brown (after being released) were all re-signed, [ [http://www.patriots.com/team/index.cfm?ac=playerbio&bio=142 Troy Brown Biography] New England Patriots. Accessed 8 November 2007.] while Tom Brady received a long-term contact extension. [ [http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/columns/story?columnist=pasquarelli_len&id=2054072 Brady finally agrees to long-awaited contract extension] ESPN.com. Accessed 8 November 2007.] Defensive lineman Richard Seymour held out for the first four days of training camp but returned after receiving a raise. [ [http://www.boston.com/sports/football/patriots/articles/2005/08/03/seymour_ends_holdout_after_reaching_agreement/ With a 40 percent raise, Seymour comes to camp] The Boston Globe. Accessed 8 November 2007.] Kicker Adam Vinatieri signed and played the full season under his franchise tag tender.

Trades

On March 4, the Patriots traded a third-round pick and a fifth-round pick in the 2005 NFL Draft to the Arizona Cardinals for defensive back Duane Starks and a fifth-round pick in the 2005 Draft. Starks started six-straight games for the Patriots before being placed on injured reserve in November. [ [http://www.patriots.com/team/index.cfm?ac=playerbio&bio=30922 Duane Starks Biography] New England Patriots. Accessed 8 November 2007.]

Also, during the preseason, the Patriots traded their fifth-round pick in the 2006 NFL Draft to the Cleveland Browns for wide receiver André Davis, who started four games for the Patriots in 2005 after being released and re-signed. [ [http://www.patriots.com/alumni/index.cfm?ac=alumnibiosdetail&bio=31152 Andre' Davis Biography] New England Patriots. Accessed 8 November 2007.]

2005 NFL Draft

Opening training camp roster

The following is the Patriots' roster at the time of the first public training camp practice at Gillette Stadium on July 29:

Week 1 roster

Postseason results

Wild Card Round vs. Jacksonville Jaguars

Linescore Amfootball
Road = Jaguars
R1 = 0
R2 = 3
R3 = 0
R4 = 0
RT = 3
Home = Patriots
H1 = 0
H2 = 7
H3 = 14
H4 = 7
HT = 28"at Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, Massachusetts"
*Game time: 8:00 p.m. EST
*Game weather: convert|24|°F|°C, clear, cold
*TV announcers (ABC): Al Michaels (play-by-play), John Madden (color commentator), and Michele Tafoya (field reporter)
*Referee: Walt Anderson
*Game attendance: 68,756

The three-time Super Bowl champion Patriots, who for the first time in their previous three playoff trips would have to win three games to advance to the Super Bowl, defeated the Jaguars 28-3. Linebacker Willie McGinest set NFL playoff records for sacks in a game (4.5, 1 sack ahead of the old record held by Richard Dent and Rich Milot) and career postseason sacks (16, two ahead of the old record held by Bruce Smith), while quarterback Tom Brady threw for 201 yards and three touchdown passes.

In the first half, the Jaguars recorded four sacks and held New England to 126 yards, while the Patriots defense recorded two sacks, gave up only 115 yards, and didn't allow a first down until 9:40 remained in the second period. Neither team could score in the first quarter, but early in the second, New England receiver Tim Dwight returned Chris Hanson's 46-yard punt 27 yards to the Jaguars 37-yard line. Two 4-yard runs by Corey Dillon and an 18-yard burst from Kevin Faulk then moved the ball to the 11-yard line, and Brady capped off the drive with an 11-yard touchdown pass to Troy Brown. On Jacksonville's ensuing possession, Jimmy Smith's 19-yard reception his team a first down for the first time in the game and moved the ball to the Patriots 44-yard line. But on the next play, a tackle from safety Eugene Wilson caused Alvin Pearman to fumble the ball, and defensive lineman Richard Seymour recovered it. However, the Patriots could not take advantage of the turnover; Jacksonville managed to force a punt and then drove into scoring range for the first time in the game. Quarterback Byron Leftwich completed five passes for 59 yards on the drive, and Josh Scobee finished it with a 36-yard field goal, cutting their deficit to 7-3. After the kickoff, Faulk's 21-yard reception moved the ball to midfield and gave the Patriots a chance to increase their lead before halftime, but receiver Deion Branch dropped a pass from Brady at the Jaguars 10-yard line with 19 seconds left.After forcing Jacksonville to punt on the opening drive of the second half, Brady led the Patriots 81-yards in 12 plays. On the 11th play, they nearly turned the ball over when tight end Benjamin Watson fumbled the ball on the Jaguars 5-yard line, but receiver André Davis recovered the ball, and Brady threw a 3-yard touchdown pass to David Givens on the next play. Then after forcing a punt, Brady threw a short pass to Watson who broke several tackles en route to a 63-yard score, increasing New England's lead to 21-3. After the kickoff, Leftwich led his team to the Patriots 32-yard line, but on the first play of the fourth quarter, defensive back Asante Samuel intercepted Leftwich's pass and took off for 73-yard touchdown return, making the score 28-3. After that, Jacksonville mounted two more drives, but could not come away with any points. First they drove to the Patriots 8-yard line. But on third down and 2, McGinest sacked Leftwich for a 15-yard loss and Scobee missed a 41-yard field goal attempt on the next play. Then after forcing a punt, they drove to the Patriots 6-yard line, but ended up turning the ball over downs with 5 minutes left in the game.

This game also marked three career playoff records: Brady and Patriots head coach Bill Belichick set records for 10 straight postseason victories, eclipsing Vince Lombardi's run with the Green Bay Packers in the 1960s.

*Scoring
**1st Quarter
***"None."
**2nd Quarter
***NE - Troy Brown 11 yard pass from Tom Brady (Adam Vinatieri kick), 12:08. "Patriots 7-0. Drive: 6 plays, 37 yards, 2:05"
***JAX - Josh Scobee 36 yard field goal, 1:05. "Patriots 7-3. Drive: 12 plays, 56 yards, 5:45."
**3rd Quarter
***NE - David Givens 3 yard pass from Tom Brady (Adam Vinatieri kick), 7:13. "Patriots 14-3. Drive: 12 plays, 81 yards, 6:42."
***NE - Benjamin Watson 63 yard pass from Tom Brady (Adam Vinatieri kick), 3:03. "Patriots 21-3. Drive: 5 plays, 71 yards, 2:53."
**4th Quarter
***NE - Asante Samuel 73 yard interception return (Adam Vinatieri kick), 14:46. "Patriots 28-3."

Divisional Round at Denver Broncos

Linescore Amfootball
Road = Patriots
R1 = 0
R2 = 3
R3 = 3
R4 = 7
RT = 13
Home = Broncos
H1 = 0
H2 = 10
H3 = 7
H4 = 10
HT = 27"at INVESCO Field at Mile High, Denver, Colorado"
*Game time: 8:00 p.m. EST/6:00 p.m. MST
*Game weather: convert|51|°F|°C, clear
*TV announcers (CBS): Jim Nantz (play-by-play), Phil Simms (color commentator), and Bonnie Bernstein (field reporter)
*Referee: Jeff Triplette
*Game attendance: 76,238

The Broncos converted four out of five turnovers into 24 points as they eliminated the two-time defending Super Bowl champion Patriots, 27-13, and won their first playoff game since defeating the Atlanta Falcons in Super Bowl XXXIII. This game also ended New England's league-record ten-game postseason winning streak and gave quarterback Tom Brady his first ever postseason loss.

Early in the second quarter, the Broncos drove to the Patriots 3-yard line, only to turn the ball over on downs after failing to convert a fourth down and 1 on New England's 3-yard line. Then after forcing a punt, Broncos quarterback Jake Plummer threw a pass that was intercepted by Asante Samuel. On the next play, Patriots quarterback Tom Brady threw a 51-yard completion to Andre Davis setting up Adam Vinatieri's 40-yard field goal to give New England a 3-0 lead.

With New England leading 3-0 with less than two minutes left in the first half, Broncos linebacker Ian Gold recovered a fumble from Kevin Faulk on the Patriots 40-yard line. After that, a pass interference penalty on Samuel moved the ball to the 1-yard line, and then Mike Anderson scored a 1-yard touchdown run on the next play. On the ensuing kickoff, Ellis Hobbs fumbled that and kicker Todd Sauerbrun recovered the ball on the Patriots 39-yard line, setting up kicker Jason Elam's 50-yard field goal to give Denver a 10-3 halftime lead.

Early in the third quarter, the Patriots drove 58 yards in 11 plays and scored with a 32-yard field goal from Vinatieri, cutting their deficit to 10-6. With less than a minute to go in the third quarter, New England reached the Denver 5-yard line. However, Brady was intercepted for the first time in the playoffs since Super Bowl XXXVIII. The interception was returned by Champ Bailey for 101 yards before New England tight end Benjamin Watson knocked the ball out of bounds at the New England 1-yard line. The Patriots challenged whether the ball was actually knocked through and out of the end zone (which would have been a touchback and given the Patriots the ball at their own 20-yard line), but the original call stood. Mike Anderson then ran for another one-yard touchdown on the next play to increase Denver's lead, 17-6. Then on New England's next drive, the usually accurate Vinatieri missed a 42-yard field goal, his first in 21 field goal attempts in the playoffs. Later in the fourth quarter, Troy Brown muffed a Denver punt and the Broncos recovered it on New England's 15-yard line, setting up Rod Smith's four-yard touchdown pass from Plummer.

With 8:33 left in the game, Brady completed a 73-yard pass to Deion Branch and then followed it up with a 4-yard touchdown pass to David Givens, cutting the score to 24-13. But on the Broncos ensuing possession, Plummer's 42-yard completion to Smith set up another Elam field goal. Denver then all but clinched the game when safety John Lynch intercepted a Brady pass with less than 3 minutes remaining.

Brady finished the game completing 20 out of 36 passes for 341 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions, but lost his first NFL postseason game. Also, Patriots head coach Bill Belichick lost his first postseason game since taking over the team in 2000. Branch caught 8 passes for 153 yards, while Rod Smith caught 6 passes for 96 yards and a touchdown.

*Scoring
**1st Quarter
***"None."
**2nd Quarter
***NE - Adam Vinatieri 40 yard field goal, "Patriots 3-0. Drive: Seven plays, 67 yards, 2:22."
***DEN - Mike Anderson 1 yard run (Jason Elam kick), "Broncos 7-3. Drive: Two plays, 40 yards, 18 seconds."
***DEN - Jason Elam 50 yard field goal, "Broncos 10-3. Drive: Four plays, seven yards, 59 seconds."
**3rd Quarter
***NE - Adam Vinatieri 32 yard field goal, "Broncos 10-6. Drive: 11 plays, 58 yards, 5:31."
***DEN - Mike Anderson 1 yard run (Jason Elam kick), "Broncos 17-6. Drive: One play, one yard, four seconds."
**4th Quarter
***DEN - Rod Smith 4 yard pass from Jake Plummer (Jason Elam kick), "Broncos 24-6. Drive: Three plays, 15 yards, 1:32."
***NE - David Givens 4 yard pass from Tom Brady (Adam Vinatieri kick), "Broncos 24-13. Drive: Two plays, 77 yards, 33 seconds."
***DEN - Elam 34 yard field goal, "Broncos 27-13. Drive: Eight plays, 61 yards, 4:45."

Final roster

Awards and honors

Numerous players were the recipients of awards for their performances in the 2005 regular season:

Pro Bowl selections

Patriots quarterback Tom Brady and defensive end Richard Seymour were both named to the AFC team in the 2006 Pro Bowl. Neither participated in the game due to injuries. [cite web|url=http://www.boston.com/sports/football/patriots/reiss_pieces/2006/01/seymour_out_too.html|title=Seymour out too|work=Boston.com Reiss' Pieces|first=Mike|last=Reiss|date=2006-01-27|accessdate=2008-06-16]

Records

* With his 10-point performance in the Patriots' Week 13 win over the New York Jets, kicker Adam Vinatieri became the Patriots' all-time leading leading scorer, [ [http://www.boston.com/sports/football/patriots/reiss_pieces/2005/12/adams_feat.html Adam's feat] Boston.com Reiss' Pieces. Accessed 8 November 2007.] breaking Gino Cappelletti's mark of 1,130 points.

Notes and references