A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | CH | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9
| 2005 New England Patriots season | |
|---|---|
| Owner | Robert Kraft |
| President | Jonathan Kraft |
| Head coach | Bill Belichick |
| Home field | Gillette Stadium |
| Results | |
| Record | 10–6 |
| Division place | 1st AFC East |
| Playoff finish | Won Wild Card Playoffs (vs. Jaguars) 28–3 Lost Divisional Playoffs (at Broncos) 13–27 |
| Pro Bowlers | QB Tom Brady DT Richard Seymour |
| AP All-Pros | DT Richard Seymour (1st team) QB Tom Brady (2nd team) |
| Uniform | |
 | |
The 2005 season was the New England Patriots' 36th in the National Football League (NFL), their 46th overall and their sixth under head coach Bill Belichick. With a Week 6 loss to the Denver Broncos, the Patriots failed to either improve or match their 14–2 record from last season; they finished with a 10–6 record and the division title before losing in the playoffs to the Broncos, ending their hopes of becoming the first NFL team to three peat in the Super Bowl.
Ten days after earning a victory in Super Bowl XXXIX, linebacker Tedy Bruschi suffered a stroke and initially planned on missing the entire season; Bruschi returned to the field against the Buffalo Bills on October 30. Cornerback Ty Law was released in the offseason, and injuries at cornerback, as well as a season-ending injury to safety Rodney Harrison in Week 3, forced the Patriots to start a number of players in the secondary early in the season. Overall, 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).[1]
Beginning the season with a 4–4 record, the Patriots lost their first game at home since 2002 against the San Diego Chargers in Week 4. The team ended the season on a 6–2 run to finish 10–6, earning their third straight AFC East title. (The Patriots were the first team in NFL history to alternate wins and losses in each of their first nine games.)[2]
With the fourth seed in the AFC playoffs, the Patriots defeated the Jacksonville Jaguars in the wild card round but fell to the Denver Broncos on the road in the divisional round, committing five turnovers in the game and marking the first playoff loss in the Brady/Belichick era and the first since 1998. They were the last defending champion to win a playoff game until the 2014 Seattle Seahawks. This would begin an 18-season stretch in which the defending NFL champions failed to defend their Super Bowl title before eventually being broken by the 2023 Kansas City Chiefs.
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.[3] Without any long-term effects, Bruschi underwent heart surgery to repair a congenital condition in his heart known as an atrial septal defect.[4]
Bruschi announced his intentions to sit out the 2005 season on July 20, while still citing his ongoing health improvement following the stroke.[5] 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.[6] 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.
Staff 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,[7] while defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel was named head coach of the Cleveland Browns.[8] Belichick only replaced Crennel for the 2005 season, promoting defensive backs coach Eric Mangini to defensive coordinator.[9] Assistant offensive line and tight ends coach Jeff Davidson followed Crennel to Cleveland,[9] and was replaced as tight ends coach by Pete Mangurian and as assistant offensive line coach by offensive coaching assistant Matt Patricia.[10] Also departing was assistant strength and conditioning coach Markus Paul,[9] who was replaced by former Canadian Football League star Harold Nash,[10] and defensive coaching assistant Cory Undlin, who followed Crennel to the Browns as a defensive quality control coach.[11] Undlin was replaced as a defensive coaching assistant by Mike Judge. Former assistant running backs/wide receivers coach Joel Collier rejoined the staff as an assistant defensive backs coach.[9]
In the front office, Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Andy Wasynczuk left the organization to join Harvard Business School.[12] 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,[13] while Kidd joined ESPN.com.[14]
Departures
Free agency saw the departure of only one full-time starter from 2004, offensive guard Joe Andruzzi, who signed with the Cleveland Browns.[10] However, three-time Pro Bowl defensive back Ty Law was released in a salary cap move[9] and would stay in the division, signing with the New York Jets.[15] Veteran linebacker Roman Phifer, who had started on all three of the Patriots' Super Bowl teams, was also released,[16] along with nose tackle Keith Traylor.[17] Long-time Patriot linebacker Ted Johnson was a surprise departure, retiring on the eve of training camp.[18] Other free agency departures were Adrian Klemm (Green Bay Packers) and David Patten (Washington Redskins).[10]
Arrivals
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,[19] but both were benched in favor of Mike Vrabel and Tedy Bruschi, after returning from his stroke.[20] Veteran quarterback and New England native Doug Flutie returned to the Patriots for the final season of his career, having last played for them in 1989.[21] In November, facing multiple injuries to their defensive backfield, the Patriots signed veteran cornerback Artrell Hawkins, who would go on to start six games, including both of the Patriots' playoff games.[22] Other arrivals were Chad Scott,[23] Wesly Mallard,[24] Tim Dwight,[25] Antuan Edwards,[26] Chad Morton,[27] and David Terrell,[28] but only Scott and Dwight finished the season with the Patriots.
Free agents or potential free agents Brandon Gorin,[10] Patrick Pass,[10] Stephen Neal,[10] Tom Ashworth,[10] Don Davis,[10] David Givens,[28] Jarvis Green,[28] and Troy Brown (after being released) were all re-signed,[29] while Tom Brady,[30] Mike Vrabel, and Green all received long-term contract extensions. Defensive end Richard Seymour held out for the first four days of training camp but returned after receiving a raise.[31] Kicker Adam Vinatieri signed and played the full season under his franchise tag tender.[28]
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 safety 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.[32] 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.[33]
2005 NFL draft
| Round | Overall | Player | Position | College |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 32 | Logan Mankins | Offensive guard | Fresno State |
| 3[34] | 84 | Ellis Hobbs | Cornerback | Iowa State |
| 3 | 100 | Nick Kaczur | Offensive tackle | Toledo |
| 4 | 133 | James Sanders | Safety | Fresno State |
| 5 | 170 | Ryan Claridge | Linebacker | UNLV |
| 7[35] | 230 | Matt Cassel | Quarterback | Southern California |
| 7 | 255 | Andy Stokes | Tight end | William Penn |
| compensatory selection |
Staff
| 2005 New England Patriots staff | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Front office
Head coaches
Offensive coaches
|
Defensive coaches
Special teams coaches
Coaching assistants
Strength and conditioning
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Opening training camp roster
As of the Patriots' first training camp practice at Gillette Stadium on July 29, they had 79 players signed to their roster, one short of the NFL maximum of 80 players. Richard Seymour did not count against the limit as he held out of the start of training camp and was placed on the Reserve/Did Not Report list. Michael McGrew also did not count against the limit after being waived/injured the day before training camp began. Finally, the Patriots received seven total roster exemptions for the NFL Europe allocations of Ricky Bryant, Kory Chapman, Joel Jacobs, Cedric James, and Grant Steen (one for each player, plus two bonus exemptions because of the time Chapman and James spent on practice squads in 2004).