The 2016 season was the New England Patriots ' 47th in the National Football League (NFL), their 57th overall and their 17th under head coach Bill Belichick . The Patriots ended the regular season with a league-best record of 14–2 and reached a number of milestones along the way: they became the first team originating in the American Football League to reach 500 franchise wins, set the record for most consecutive division titles at eight, became the seventh team to go 8–0 on the road, set the record for most pass attempts by a team without an interception to start a season, set the record for fewest interceptions thrown by a team with just 2, and led the league for fewest points allowed (250) for the first time since the 2003 season . Belichick moved into fourth place on the list for most wins as a head coach . Brady set the record for most wins by a starting quarterback and the record for the best touchdown–interception ratio in a single season.
57-745: The American Football Conference (AFC) is one of two conferences within the National Football League , the National Football Conference (NFC) being the other. The AFC has its roots in the American Football League (AFL), which began to play in 1960. In 1970, the AFL merged with the NFL. As part of the merger, the former AFL teams, plus three former NFL teams (the Baltimore Colts ,
114-517: A 28-point third-quarter deficit to just seven with 6:06 remaining in the game. The Patriots drove all the way to the Dolphins' 21 on their next drive, but Gostkowski missed a 39-yard field goal wide right that would have put the game away with 1:04 remaining. The Dolphins drove to the Patriots' 29 in the final moments, but Tannehill was intercepted by safety Duron Harmon in the end zone with 0:02 left to seal
171-404: A 3rd-and-6 with a 10-yard run and a 3rd-and-7 with a 28-yard completion to wide receiver Malcolm Mitchell , before running back LeGarrette Blount finished the drive with an 8-yard touchdown run, extending the lead to 17–7. The Cardinals punted on their next drive, but on the first play of the Patriots' next drive, Blount fumbled, with defensive end Calais Campbell recovering for Arizona at
228-401: A Dolphins three-and-out, the Patriots raced 75 yards in just 7 plays, on a nearly identical drive, and Garoppolo found Martellus Bennett on a 20-yard touchdown pass for a 14–0 lead. After the Dolphins failed to move the ball again, the Patriots marched 76 yards in over six minutes, with another Amendola touchdown catch extending the Patriots' lead to 21–0 a few plays into the second quarter. After
285-528: A battle of the two conference runners-up from the 2015 season , the New England Patriots entered their first game of the 2016 NFL season against the Arizona Cardinals with starting quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo replacing Tom Brady , who was serving his four-game suspension, also the first time since 2008 that Brady did not start a game. Following a Cardinals punt on the first possession of
342-463: A first down. "That's the play I remember", he later told Sports Illustrated . He completed a 3rd-and-3 7-yard pass to running back James White , Blount ran for 13 yards on 3rd-and-11 and the Patriots kicked a 32-yard field goal with 3:44 remaining to retake the lead, 23–21. Starting at their own 8, the Cardinals reached the Patriots' 33 where two costly mistakes occurred. Offensive guard Earl Watford
399-510: A low snap, causing Catanzaro to miss wide left. Garoppolo took a knee and the Patriots got their first win of the season. at Gillette Stadium , Foxborough, Massachusetts First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter Top passers Top rushers Top receivers After taking the opening kickoff, the Patriots stormed 75 yards in just 8 plays, scoring on Jimmy Garoppolo's 12-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Danny Amendola for an early 7–0 lead. After
456-433: A pass interference penalty on Logan Ryan , and scored on a 12-yard touchdown pass from Tannehill to Jordan Cameron , trimming the deficit to just 31–17 early in the fourth quarter. The Patriots drove to the Dolphins' 35 on their next possession, but a penalty and nearly lost fumble forced the Patriots to punt . The Dolphins then went 74 yards and scored on a 7-yard touchdown run by rookie running back Kenyan Drake , reducing
513-533: A record ninth Super Bowl appearance. In Super Bowl LI , the Patriots rallied from a 28–3 deficit – with 2:12 left in the third quarter – to win in overtime , with a score of 34–28 against the Atlanta Falcons . This was the first Super Bowl to be decided in overtime, and was the first time that the winner erased a deficit higher than ten points. It was the franchise's fifth Super Bowl title , where Belichick and Brady set record appearances (7) and wins (5) in
570-654: A result of losing the AFL or AFC Championship Game, a record nine times. The Steelers have been the runner up eight times, while the Los Angeles/San Diego Chargers have been the runner up seven times. The record for the most regular-season wins by an AFL or AFC champion is 16, by the 2007 New England Patriots , with a perfect 16–0 record. No AFL or AFC champion has won exactly 15 games. Nine AFL or AFC champions have won 14 games, including two Miami Dolphins teams, two Kansas City Chiefs teams, and three New England Patriots teams (2003, 2004, 2016). Seven of
627-459: A series of punts, the Patriots reached their 43, but Amendola fumbled at the Dolphins' 42 after a 15-yard reception, and linebacker Kiko Alonso recovered at the Dolphins' 42. However, two plays later wide receiver Jarvis Landry lost a fumble , with defensive end Chris Long recovering at the Patriots' 48. On the fifth play of the drive, Garoppolo was driven to the ground by Alonso on a completion to wide receiver Malcolm Mitchell and suffered
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#1733085428059684-463: A shoulder injury that required transportation to Massachusetts General Hospital ; he finished with 232 yards and three touchdowns. Rookie quarterback Jacoby Brissett took over, and running back LeGarrette Blount drove the Patriots to the Dolphins' 16. Kicker Stephen Gostkowski finished the drive with a 34-yard field goal for a 24–0 lead. Four plays into the Dolphins' next possession, Jamie Collins intercepted quarterback Ryan Tannehill and returned
741-525: A trade that involved the Patriots giving the Philadelphia Eagles a conditional draft pick in the 2018 NFL draft . On October 26, 2016, the Patriots traded a 2017 seventh-round draft pick to the Detroit Lions and acquired linebacker Kyle Van Noy , and in the process, released offensive guard Chase Farris , who was later signed to their practice squad. Furthermore, during the month of October,
798-608: Is eleven, by the Patriots. The Pittsburgh Steelers and Denver Broncos have each won eight AFC championships, the Dallas Texans/Kansas City Chiefs have won seven AFL or AFC championships, the Buffalo Bills have won six AFL or AFC championships, and the Miami Dolphins and Oakland/Los Angeles/Las Vegas Raiders have each won five AFL or AFC championships. The Raiders have also been the AFL or AFC runner up, as
855-499: Is the only defensive player to be named as a 1st team All-Pro for four AFC champions. Ham was a 1st team All-Pro for the 1974, 1975, 1978 and 1979 Pittsburgh Steelers. Troy Polamalu was a defensive 1st team All-Pro for three AFC champions with the Steelers between 2005 and 2010. Larry Little is the only offensive lineman to be named as a 1st team All-Pro for three AFC champions, the 1971–1973 Miami Dolphins. Rob Gronkowski
912-502: Is the only tight end to be named a 1st team All-Pro for three AFC champions, for the Patriots between 2011 and 2017. Garo Yepremian is the only kicker to be named as a 1st team All-Pro for two AFC champions, the 1971 and 1973 Miami Dolphins. At the end of the 1966 season, the Super Bowl began to be played between the AFL champion and the NFL champion. After the AFL/NFL merger in 1970,
969-645: The Cincinnati Bengals in 1968) before the merger. Modell was in the hospital for internal bleeding around the time negotiations were still going. When he was visited by Art Rooney (owner of the Pittsburgh Steelers ) and Wellington Mara (owner of the New York Giants ), Modell made the suggestion that his franchise would move to the AFC if the Steelers and Baltimore Colts did so as well. In order to equalize
1026-598: The Cleveland Browns and the Pittsburgh Steelers ), were placed into the AFC. The remaining former NFL teams were placed in the NFC. As of the 2023 season only the Cleveland Browns , Jacksonville Jaguars , and Houston Texans have not won an AFC championship. The AFC champion is not necessarily the team with the best record in the regular season. Rather, the champion is decided by the AFC Championship Game (formerly
1083-502: The NFC has sent 13 of the 16 NFC teams during that same time frame with only the Detroit Lions , Minnesota Vikings , and Washington Commanders missing out on an appearance in the Super Bowl . 17 of the 19 AFC champions from 2001 to 2019 have started one of just three quarterbacks - Tom Brady , Peyton Manning and Ben Roethlisberger - in the Super Bowl. The AFC has started 7 quarterbacks in
1140-563: The Super Bowl . With the impending merger with the American Football League (AFL) for the 1970 NFL season , the league had careful discussion over the nature of which teams would play in the newly instituted conferences. Then-NFL President and owner of the Cleveland Browns Art Modell had suggested of a format in which three teams from the NFL would move to the AFC to create two thirteen-team conferences. But negotiations between NFL commissioner Pete Rozelle and other owners
1197-717: The Tennessee Titans . The NFL would again expand in 2002, adding the Houston Texans to the AFC. With the exception of the aforementioned relocations since that time, the divisional setup has remained static ever since. Between 1995 and 2022, the AFC has sent only 9 of its 16 teams to the Super Bowl : New England Patriots (10 times), Pittsburgh Steelers (4 times), Denver Broncos (4 times), Baltimore Ravens (2 times), Indianapolis Colts (2 times), Kansas City Chiefs (3 times), Cincinnati Bengals (1 time), Las Vegas Raiders (1 time), Tennessee Titans (1 time). By contrast,
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#17330854280591254-414: The 1984 AFC champion Miami Dolphins through the 1996 AFC champion New England Patriots. Overall, the AFL or AFC champion has won 29 of the 58 Super Bowls played through the end of the 2023 season. American Football Conference The American Football Conference ( AFC ) is one of the two conferences of the National Football League (NFL), the highest professional level of American football in
1311-682: The 1997 season. From 1998 to 2013, CBS was the primary broadcast rightsholder to the AFC; in those years, all interconference games in which the AFC team was the visiting team were broadcast on either NBC or CBS. Since 2014, the cross-flex policy allows select AFC games (that involve them playing an NFC team at home or intraconference games) to be moved from CBS to Fox. Since 1990, select AFC playoff games have been seen on ABC or ESPN. AFC Divisions AFC Division Rivals AFC East AFC North AFC South Rivals AFC West Rivals AFC Interdivisional Rivals AFC Television Network 2016 New England Patriots season Patriots starting quarterback Tom Brady
1368-542: The AFC and two have left, thus making the current total 16. When the Seattle Seahawks and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers joined the league in 1976, they were temporarily placed in the NFC and AFC respectively. This arrangement lasted for one season only before the two teams switched conferences. The Seahawks eventually returned to the NFC as a result of the 2002 realignment . The expansion Jacksonville Jaguars joined
1425-550: The AFC in 1995. There have been five teams that have relocated at least once. In 1984, the Baltimore Colts relocated to Indianapolis. In 1995, the Cleveland Browns had attempted to move to Baltimore; the resulting dispute between Cleveland and the team led to Modell establishing the Baltimore Ravens with the players and personnel from the Browns, while the Browns were placed in suspended operations before they were reinstated by
1482-582: The AFL Championship Game) as part of the post-season playoffs involving the teams with the best regular season records. The Houston Oilers won the first two AFL championships, in 1960 and 1961 . The only other team to win two consecutive AFL championships prior to the merger was the Buffalo Bills , who won in 1964 and 1965 with future United States Congressman , HUD Secretary and Vice-Presidential nominee Jack Kemp at quarterback . After
1539-556: The Conference). The AFC logo basically remained unchanged from 1970 to 2009. The 2010 NFL season introduced an updated AFC logo, with the most notable revision being the removal of two stars (leaving four representing the four divisions of the AFC), and moving the stars inside the letter, similar to the NFC logo, which itself was updated at the same time to add a fourth star. NBC aired the AFC's Sunday afternoon and playoff games from 1970 through
1596-505: The NFL to become the new AFC Central. Upon the completion of the merger of the AFL and NFL in 1970, the newly minted American Football Conference had already agreed upon their divisional setup along mostly geographical lines for the 1970 season ; the National Football Conference, however, could not agree upon their setup, and one was chosen from a fishbowl on January 16, 1970. Since the merger, five expansion teams have joined
1653-609: The NFL's 16-game regular season format. The 2016 Patriots ranked #21 on the 100 greatest teams of all time presented by the NFL on its 100th anniversary. For the first time since the 2002 NFL season , the Patriots did not play their intra-conference rival Indianapolis Colts at all during this season. Two-time Pro Bowl linebacker and 2008 AP NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Jerod Mayo announced his retirement in February 2016. Linebacker Dane Fletcher also retired. In March,
1710-669: The NFL. The Ravens were treated as an expansion team. In California , the Oakland Raiders relocated to Los Angeles in 1982, back to Oakland in 1995, and then to Las Vegas in 2020, while the San Diego Chargers returned to Los Angeles in 2017 after 56 years in San Diego . The Houston Oilers moved to Tennessee in 1997, where they were renamed the Tennessee Oilers. The team would change its name again, two years later, to
1767-461: The Patriots cashed in again. Despite only reaching the Cardinals' 29-yard line, placekicker Stephen Gostkowski nailed a 47-yard field goal for a 10–0 Patriots lead. The Cardinals drove to the Patriots' 31, but on 3rd-and-2, Palmer was sacked for an 8-yard loss. Rather than attempt a 57-yard field goal, the Cardinals punted. On 2nd-and-8, Garoppolo was sacked by linebacker Markus Golden and fumbled , with ex-Patriot Chandler Jones recovering at
List of AFC champions - Misplaced Pages Continue
1824-487: The Patriots released wide receiver Brandon LaFell and tight end Scott Chandler . The Patriots subsequently traded Pro Bowl defensive end Chandler Jones to the Arizona Cardinals in exchange for guard Jonathan Cooper and a 2016 second-round draft pick. Days later the Patriots acquired tight end Martellus Bennett from the Chicago Bears via trade. On September 7, the Patriots gained cornerback Eric Rowe in
1881-433: The Patriots settled for 53-yard field goal two plays later. Andre Ellington returned the ensuing kickoff 16 yards to the Cardinals 16. This sparked a 79-yard, 7-play drive, aided by a 45-yard run by Johnson, with Palmer finding Fitzgerald on another 1-yard touchdown pass, giving the Cardinals their first lead at 21–20. Marching 61 yards, Garoppolo converted a 3rd-and-15 with a 32-yard pass to wide receiver Danny Amendola for
1938-952: The Patriots traded linebacker Jamie Collins to the Cleveland Browns for a 2017 third round draft pick. Additionally, the Patriots signed wide receiver Michael Floyd on December 15, 2016, after he was released by the Arizona Cardinals because of his DUI incident. Notes All undrafted free agents were signed just after the 2016 NFL draft concluded on April 30, 2016. Front office Head coaches Offensive coaches Special teams coaches Coaching assistants Strength and conditioning Running backs (RB) Wide receivers (WR) Tight ends (TE) Defensive linemen (DL) Defensive backs (DB) Special teams Reserve Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text. at University of Phoenix Stadium , Glendale, Arizona First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter Top passers Top rushers Top receivers In
1995-417: The Patriots' 33. With the good field position, Arizona marched 33 yards in just five plays and running back David Johnson scored on a 1-yard touchdown run, trimming the score to 17–14. The Patriots countered with a 50-yard drive to the Cardinals 25. On 3rd-and-4, Garoppolo hit wide receiver Julian Edelman for a first down, but the play was nullified for a holding penalty on tight end Martellus Bennett and
2052-442: The Patriots' 39, but a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty sent the Cardinals to their own 46. The field position did not hurt Arizona, as they drove 54 yards in 11 plays, scoring on Palmer's 1-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald , trimming the deficit to 10–7. Neither team got a first down for the rest of the half. The Patriots kicked off the second half by storming 75 yards in 9 plays, with Garoppolo converting
2109-430: The Patriots. The Patriots then raced 68 yards in just five plays to score on a 9-yard touchdown run by Blount, increasing their lead to 31-3 and seemingly put the game away. The Dolphins responded with a 7-play, 75-yard drive capped off by Tannehill's 24-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Kenny Stills , trimming the deficit to 31–10. After a Patriots three-and-out, the Dolphins stormed 88 yards in just five plays, aided by
2166-408: The Super Bowl continued to be played between the AFC champion and the NFC champion . The AFL champion lost the first two Super Bowls. The 1968 AFL champion New York Jets with Joe Namath at quarterback became the first AFL team to win the Super Bowl. Starting with that Super Bowl, the AFL or AFC champion won 11 out of 13 Super Bowls. However, the AFC champion lost 13 consecutive Super Bowls, from
2223-434: The Super Bowl for a head coach and a quarterback respectively. Including the playoffs, the 2016 Patriots had an average per-game point differential of 12 points, still the largest for any of New England's six Super Bowl-winning teams. They also became the first Super Bowl champions with more than 13 regular season wins since their 2004 team . They were the final team to win at least 17 games (regular season and playoffs) under
2280-600: The United States. The AFC and its counterpart, the National Football Conference (NFC), each contain 16 teams with 4 divisions. Both conferences were created as part of the 1970 merger between the National Football League, and the American Football League (AFL). All ten of the AFL teams, and three NFL teams, became members of the new AFC, with the remaining thirteen NFL teams forming the NFC. A series of league expansions and division realignments have occurred since
2337-462: The ball 13 yards to the Dolphins' 49. However, the Dolphins' defense forced the Patriots to go three-and-out and the Dolphins finally got on the board following a quick 77-yard drive that ended with kicker Andrew Franks ' 27-yard field goal just before halftime, trimming the deficit to 24–3. The Dolphins stormed out of the gate in the second half, reaching the Patriots' 34, but running back Jay Ajayi fumbled and linebacker Jonathan Freeny recovered for
List of AFC champions - Misplaced Pages Continue
2394-445: The fourteen opponents each team faces over the 17-game regular season schedule are set using a predetermined formula: Each AFC team plays the other teams in their respective division twice (home and away) during the regular season, in addition to eleven other games assigned to their schedule by the NFL: three games are assigned on the basis of a particular team's final divisional standing from
2451-449: The game, the Patriots took their first possession of the season for a touchdown. Garoppolo completed 4 of 5 passes for 75 yards on a 10-play drive, ending with a 37-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Chris Hogan . On the Cardinals' next drive, aided by a 39-yard completion from quarterback Carson Palmer to wide receiver John Brown , the Cardinals reached Patriots territory, but were forced to punt . Starting from their own 8-yard line,
2508-474: The head coach of five AFC championship teams. Shula coached the Miami Dolphins to AFC championships in 1971 , 1972 , 1973 , 1982 and 1984 . Chuck Noll , Marv Levy and Andy Reid each coached four AFC champions. Hank Stram and Dan Reeves each coached three AFL or AFC champions. Tom Brady has been the starting quarterback for nine AFC championship teams, more than any other quarterback. Brady
2565-409: The last 20 Super Bowls, while the NFC has started 16. The merged league created a new logo for the AFC that took elements of the old AFL logo, specifically the "A" and the six stars surrounding it. The NFC also adopted a logo in 1970 which like the AFL and AFC logos also contained only the first letter as opposed to a full abbreviation, but with only three stars (to represent the then-three divisions of
2622-464: The leader in receiving yards for an AFC champion three times. The 1973 Miami Dolphins had seven first-team All-Pros, more than any other AFC champion since the AFL/NFL merger. The 1971 Miami Dolphins , 1979 Pittsburgh Steelers and 2007 New England Patriots each had five 1st team All-Pros. The 1970 Baltimore Colts , 1982 Miami Dolphins , 1987 Denver Broncos and 1996 and 2001 New England Patriots did not have any 1st team All-Pros. Jack Ham
2679-428: The merger, the first team to win three consecutive AFC championships was the Miami Dolphins in 1971 through 1973 . The only team to win four consecutive AFC championships was the Buffalo Bills in 1990 through 1993 . The New England Patriots are the only other AFC team to win three consecutive championships, from 2016 through 2018 . Through the 2023 season, the most AFL or AFC championships won by any team
2736-650: The merger, thus making the current total of 16 teams in each conference. The current AFC champions are the Kansas City Chiefs , who defeated the Baltimore Ravens in the 2023 season 's AFC Championship Game for their fourth conference championship and went on to win Super Bowl LVIII against the San Francisco 49ers . Like the NFC, the conference has 16 teams organized into four divisions each with four teams: East , North , South and West . Currently,
2793-400: The number of teams in each conference, three NFL teams that predated the AFL's launch (the Cleveland Browns , Pittsburgh Steelers , and the then- Baltimore Colts ) joined the ten former AFL teams to form the AFC. The two AFL divisions AFL East and AFL West were more or less intact, while the NFL's Century Division , in which the Browns and the Steelers had played since 1967, was moved from
2850-512: The previous season, and the remaining eight games are split between the roster of two other NFL divisions. This assignment shifts each year and will follow a standard cycle. Using the 2023 regular season schedule as an example, each team in the AFC West plays against every team in the AFC East and NFC North. In this way, non-divisional competition will be mostly among common opponents – the exception being
2907-611: The starting quarterback for four AFC champions. Manning started in five championships for two different franchises, the Indianapolis Colts and the Broncos. Franco Harris and Thurman Thomas were each the leader in rushing yards for an AFC champion four times. Larry Csonka was the leader in rushing yards for an AFC champion three times. Andre Reed and Travis Kelce were the leader in receiving yards for an AFC champion four times. Paul Warfield and Julian Edelman have been
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#17330854280592964-512: The teams that won 14 games did so in a 16-game season and one in a 17-game season. Only the 1972 Miami Dolphins won 14 games in a 14-game season, with their perfect 14–0 record. Bill Belichick has been the head coach for nine AFC championship teams, which is a record. Belichick coached the New England Patriots to AFC championships in 2001 , 2003 , 2004 , 2007 , 2011 , 2014 , 2016 , 2017 and 2018 . Don Shula has been
3021-469: The three games assigned based on the team's prior-season divisional standing. At the end of each season, the four division winners and three wild cards (non-division winners with best regular season record) in the AFC qualify for the playoffs . The AFC playoffs culminate in the AFC Championship Game , with the winner receiving the Lamar Hunt Trophy. The AFC champion then plays the NFC champion in
3078-432: Was flagged for holding, moving the ball back to the 43. On the next play, Palmer attempted a screen pass to Andre Ellington , for a four-yard loss, but on 3rd-and-23 at the Patriots 47, Palmer threw a clutch 18-yard pass to Brown to the Patriots' 29-yard line, setting up a game-winning 47-yard field-goal attempt by placekicker Chandler Catanzaro with 36 seconds left. However, rookie long snapper Kameron Canaday delivered
3135-401: Was rampant in who would move (for his part, Modell had first thought the three most recent expansion NFL teams - Minnesota Vikings , Atlanta Falcons , New Orleans Saints should be the ones to move to the AFC), since others wanted to simply have no realignment of NFL teams. The AFL had begun play in 1960 with eight teams before adding two more expansion clubs (the Miami Dolphins in 1966 and
3192-469: Was suspended for the first four games of the season due to his alleged role in the Deflategate scandal, marking the first time since 2008 that Brady didn't start in a game. Under backup quarterbacks Jimmy Garoppolo and Jacoby Brissett , the team went 3–1 during Brady's suspension. In the playoffs, the Patriots appeared in the AFC Championship Game for a record sixth consecutive year and advanced to
3249-539: Was the starting quarterback for the 2001 , 2003 , 2004 , 2007 , 2011 , 2014 , 2016 , 2017 and 2018 New England Patriots. In addition, he was the starting quarterback for one NFC championship team , the 2020 Tampa Bay Buccaneers , for a total of 10 conference championships. John Elway was the starting quarterback for five AFC champions. Elway was the starring quarterback for the 1986 , 1987 , 1989 , 1997 and 1998 Denver Broncos. Terry Bradshaw , Jim Kelly , Peyton Manning and Patrick Mahomes were each
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