The 1974 New England Patriots season was the franchise's 5th season in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

and 15th overall. The Patriots ended the season with a record of seven wins and seven losses and finished tied for third in the AFC

East East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the fa ...

Division. The Pats stunned the Super Bowl Champion

Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member team of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The team pla ...

in Week 1 at Schaffer Stadium. The Pats went on to win their first five games on their way to a 6–1 start. However, they struggled in the second half, winning only one game before finishing with a 7–7 record.

Offseason

NFL Draft

Staff

Roster

Regular season

The Patriots posted their first non-losing season since 1966, finishing 7–7. They erupted to a 5–0 start before losing seven of their last nine games due to injuries and rising strength of opponents as the season went on. A league-wide player strike during training camp and preseason allowed a large number of new players to make the squad, as coach

Chuck Fairbanks Charles Leo Fairbanks (June 10, 1933 – April 2, 2013) was a football coach who was a head coach at the high school, college and professional levels. He served as the head coach at the University of Oklahoma from 1967 to 1972 and at the Universi ...

was installing a new offensive system.

Schedule

Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Standings

Notable games

* September 15 vs.

: The Patriots ended a four-game losing streak to Miami, erupting to a 31–10 third quarter lead and cruising home 34–24.

Mack Herron Mack Willie Herron (July 24, 1948 – December 6, 2015) was a professional American football running back who played in the National Football League from 1973 to 1976. He played college football at Kansas State, where he finished second in the na ...

opened the season for the Patriots with a fourteen-yard rushing touchdown in the first quarter, while

Jim Plunkett James William Plunkett (born December 5, 1947) is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for sixteen seasons. He achieved his greatest professional success during his final eight seasons with the ...

had a touchdown throw to

Reggie Rucker Reginald Joseph Rucker (born September 21, 1947) is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL) for the Dallas Cowboys, New York Giants, New England Patriots and Cleveland Browns ...

and a five-yard rushing score to go with

Sam Cunningham Samuel Lewis Cunningham Jr (August 15, 1950 – September 7, 2021), nicknamed "Bam", was an American football fullback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 10 seasons with the New England Patriots. He played college football at ...

's 13-yard rushing score. * September 22 vs.

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. ...

Yale Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wor ...

: The Patriots traveled to New Haven, Connecticut to face the Giants.

Norm Snead Norman Bailey Snead (born July 31, 1939) is a former American football quarterback in the National Football League (NFL) for the Washington Redskins, Philadelphia Eagles, Minnesota Vikings, New York Giants, and San Francisco 49ers. He played coll ...

of the Giants opened the scoring with a 21-yard touchdown to Ron A. Johnson; the Patriots answered with a 12-yarder from

, both scores coming in the first quarter. In the second Joe Dawkins of the Giants punched the ball in from one yard out, and the Patriots tied the game as Plunkett found

Randy Vataha Randel Edward Vataha, (born December 4, 1948) is a former American football player, a wide receiver for seven seasons in the National Football League (NFL), the first six with the New England Patriots. Early years Born in Santa Monica, California ...

from 38 yards out. New England then took over as

caught a 14-yard Plunkett pass and Herron later ran in a four-yard score. Johnson caught another touchdown from Snead in the fourth quarter but the PAT was stopped and the Patriots ended the game 28–20 winners. * October 20 at

Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. ...

: The Bills ended the Patriots' five-game winning streak 30–28.

O. J. Simpson Orenthal James Simpson (born July 9, 1947), nicknamed "Juice", is an American former football running back, actor, and broadcaster who played for the Buffalo Bills and San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League. Once a popular figure ...

had one rushing touchdown and a catch from

Joe Ferguson Joseph Carlton Ferguson Jr. (born April 23, 1950) is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 17 seasons, primarily with the Buffalo Bills. He played college football at Arkansas. Early years ...

, who also completed touchdown throws to Paul Seymour.

had three rushing scores and

fired a 12-yard touchdown bullet to

with nine seconds left. The Bills recovered the ensuing onside kick to preserve the win. * October 27 at

Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. Founded in 1960 as an expansion ...

: With both teams entering the game at 5–1, turnovers plagued the day at

Metropolitan Stadium Metropolitan Stadium (often referred to as "the Met", "Met Stadium", or now "the Old Met" to distinguish from the Metrodome) was an outdoor sports stadium in the north central United States, located in Bloomington, Minnesota, a suburb of Minneap ...

was picked off twice and the Patriots fumbled twice, while

Fran Tarkenton Francis Asbury Tarkenton (born February 3, 1940) is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback in the National Football League (NFL) for 18 seasons, primarily with the Minnesota Vikings. He played college football at ...

had three picks. The Patriots also had nine penalties eating up 122 yards as the Vikings erased an early 10–0 New England lead and led 14–10 in the final minute; Tarkenton ran in a late touchdown, then threw the ball into the face of

Ron Bolton Ronald Clifton Bolton (born April 16, 1950, in Petersburg, Virginia) is a former National Football League defensive back and current college football coach. He is an alumnus of Norfolk State University Norfolk State University (NSU) is a public ...

after he tripped on a camera cable and mistakenly believed Bolton tripped him; a brief brawl ensued and both Bolton and Tarkenton were ejected.This Week In The NFL 1974: Patriots at Vikings
/ref> But

drove the Pats down field and fired a ten-yard game-winning touchdown to

Bob Windsor Robert Edward Windsor (born December 19, 1942 in Washington, D.C.) is a former tight end in the National Football League. Windsor played a total of nine seasons in the NFL, five with the San Francisco 49ers and four with the New England Patriot ...

on the final play; Windsor had to break numerous tackles to reach the endzone and was injured for the season as a result. * November 3 vs.

: The Patriots and Bills squared off in another hard-fought affair as

threw for 247 yards and a touchdown to

Ahmad Rashad Ahmad Rashad (born Robert Earl Moore; November 19, 1949) is an American sportscaster and former professional football player. He was the fourth overall selection of the 1972 NFL Draft, taken by the St. Louis Cardinals. He was known as Bobby Moor ...

while

was held in check until late in the first half with a touchdown.

threw two touchdowns to

and

rushed in another score for a 21–19 Patriots half time lead, but the Bills struck first in the third quarter when

Dave Washington Dave Washington, Jr. (September 12, 1948 – October 11, 2021) was an American football linebacker who played for five teams in an eleven-year career that lasted from 1970 to 1980 in the National Football League. Washington played college footba ...

picked off Plunket and ran back 72 yards for the score. Another

score and

John Leypoldt John Howard Leypoldt (March 31, 1946 – February 7, 1987) was an American football placekicker who played eight seasons in the National Football League. Leypoldt died of a heart attack at St. Joseph Intercommunity Hospital in Cheektowaga, New Y ...

's third field goal of the day left the score 29–28 in the final minute when the Patriots drove down field for a field goal, but the kick was blocked by Jeff Yeates of the Bills, preserving the win.

References

{{1974 NFL season by team

New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East divisio ...

New England Patriots seasons

20th century in Foxborough, Massachusetts