Game 172. New Orleans at New England
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Tag Archives: New England Patriots
Game 158. Denver at New England
Game 143. New England at N.Y. Jets
Game 133. New England at Baltimore
1997 Game 212 (Week 16) Pittsburgh at New England
Patriots secure AFC East!
The New England Patriots and the Pittsburgh Steelers hooked up Saturday afternoon at Foxboro Stadium in a game pitting divisional leaders against each other. The Patriots came away with a 10-6 hard-fought, hard-hitting victory and are now the AFC Champions.
The Patriots are still in contention for the #1 seed in the AFC and homefield advantage throughout. They trail the Chiefs by a ½ game. As for the Steelers, they had a chance to have their destiny in their own hands; however, with the loss, the Steelers need the Bengals to lose on Sunday against the Cowboys to keep ahold of the top spot in the AFC Central.
New England was without All-Pro running back Curtis Martin due to injury and his absence affected the Patriot offense. The Patriots could only rush for 21 yards on the day and had to rely on QB Drew Bledsoe’s right arm. Bledsoe did throw for 225 yards on 19 of 30 passing but could not come up with the play to separate themselves from the Steelers.
As for the Steelers, they got a poor performance from QB Kordell Stewart. He threw for 224 yards but tossed two costly interceptions to Patriot DB Lawyer Milloy that thwarted Steeler scoring opportunities.
The Patriots will end their regular season at Miami, while the Steelers will have one more opportunity to secure a playoff spot when they travel to Tennessee next Sunday.
Game 113. Buffalo at New England
Game 104. New England at Miami
1997 Game 200 (Week 15) New England at Jacksonville
Patriots take down the Jags in overtime
In a rematch of last year’s AFC Championship game, the New England Patriots and the Jacksonville Jaguars had to battle into overtime to decide a winner.
With the Patriots leading 23-20 with 15 seconds to go in regulation, the Jaguars miraculously blocked Tom Tupa’s punt and got the ball at the Patriot 25-yard line. After a completion, the Jaguars settled for a game-tying 30-yard Mike Hollis field goal to send the game into overtime.
On the first offensive play of overtime, Patriot DE Mark Wheeler sacked Jaguar QB Mark Brunell and caused him to fumble. LB Todd Collins hopped on the ball at the Jaguar 18-yard line! After a couple of running plays, Adam Vinatieri lined up and banged home a game-winning 37-yard field goal. The Patriots escaped with a 26-23 victory.
The Patriots were without their top running back Curtis Martin, and it showed. The Patriots rushed for just 28 yards on the day and had to rely on the arm of QB Drew Bledsoe, who finished 19 of 34 passing with 292 yards, two touchdowns and an interception. Bledsoe connected on a 42-yard Keith Byars touchdown and a 25-yarder to WR Shawn Jefferson.
As for the Jaguars, they got a huge game from QB Brunell. He threw for 371 yards on 26 of 41 passing with two touchdowns and an interception. He threw both touchdowns to Jimmie Smith, who caught 14 passes for 201 yards. WR Keenan McCardell had eight receptions for 138 yards on the day.
The Patriots are now 11-3 and have the lead in the AFC East. If the Jets lose later in the day, the Patriots will win the division. If they win any of their next two games against the Steelers and the Dolphins, then they will win the division. As for the Jaguars, their disappointing season continues as they are now 5-9. They will finish the season on the road in their final two games against Buffalo and Oakland.
