2002 New England Patriots
The 2002 New England Patriots went 9–7, finishing 2nd in the AFC East, and missed the playoffs. They scored 381 points and allowed 346.
- Record
- 9–7
- Home
- 5–3
- Road & neutral
- 4–4
- Points
- 381–346
- AFC East
- Place 2 of 4
- Postseason
- Did not qualify
Where the season ranked
They scored 381 points, the tenth-most among the 32 teams, and allowed 346, the 16th-most. Their point differential was +35.
How the season unfolded
The Patriots started 3–1 and were 4–4 after eight games. They went 2–2 over the final four weeks to finish 9–7.
Their longest winning streak was three games, from Week 1 to Week 3.
Their longest losing streak was four games, from Week 4 to Week 8.
Best and worst games
Their biggest win was 44–7 over the New York Jets in Week 2 (September 15, 2002).
Their heaviest loss was 28–10 to the Green Bay Packers in Week 6 (October 13, 2002).
In games decided by eight points or fewer, they went 5–3.
They played two games that went to overtime and went 2–0 in them.
Division and playoff opponents
They went 4–2 against the AFC East, sweeping the Bills and splitting with the Jets and the Dolphins.
Against teams that reached the playoffs, they went 2–4 in the regular season.
Postseason
They missed the playoffs. The lowest record among AFC playoff teams was 9–7.
Before and after
That was two wins fewer than in 2001, when they went 11–5.
In 2003, they went 14–2 and returned to the playoffs.
2002 schedule and results
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | Sep 9, 2002 | vs Pittsburgh Steelers | W 30–14 |
| Week 2 | Sep 15, 2002 | at New York Jets | W 44–7 |
| Week 3 | Sep 22, 2002 | vs Kansas City Chiefs | W 41–38 (OT) |
| Week 4 | Sep 29, 2002 | at San Diego Chargers | L 14–21 |
| Week 5 | Oct 6, 2002 | at Miami Dolphins | L 13–26 |
| Week 6 | Oct 13, 2002 | vs Green Bay Packers | L 10–28 |
| Week 8 | Oct 27, 2002 | vs Denver Broncos | L 16–24 |
| Week 9 | Nov 3, 2002 | at Buffalo Bills | W 38–7 |
| Week 10 | Nov 10, 2002 | at Chicago Bears | W 33–30 |
| Week 11 | Nov 17, 2002 | at Oakland Raiders | L 20–27 |
| Week 12 | Nov 24, 2002 | vs Minnesota Vikings | W 24–17 |
| Week 13 | Nov 28, 2002 | at Detroit Lions | W 20–12 |
| Week 14 | Dec 8, 2002 | vs Buffalo Bills | W 27–17 |
| Week 15 | Dec 16, 2002 | at Tennessee Titans | L 7–24 |
| Week 16 | Dec 22, 2002 | vs New York Jets | L 17–30 |
| Week 17 | Dec 29, 2002 | vs Miami Dolphins | W 27–24 (OT) |
Counted by WHYNFL from the final score of every 2002 game. Division place uses win percentage, then point differential; the NFL's full tiebreaker procedure is not applied.