The 1982 New England Patriots season was the franchise's 13th 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 majo ...

and 23rd overall. They finished the

's strike-shortened season with a record of five wins and four losses and finished seventh in the

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 the United States. The AFC and its counterpart, the National Football Conference ...

. Due to the format of the playoffs adopted for the season due to the strike, the Patriots qualified as the #7 seed and were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs by the eventual conference 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 p ...

. After firing Ron Erhardt after a dismal 2-14 season in 1981, the Patriots hired

Southern Methodist University , mottoeng = " The truth will make you free" , established = , type = Private research university , accreditation = SACS , academic_affiliations = , religious_affiliation = United Methodist Church , president = R. Gerald Turner , p ...

head coach

Ron Meyer Ronald Shaw Meyer (February 17, 1941 – December 5, 2017) was an American college and professional football coach. He is best known for having been the head coach of Southern Methodist University, the New England Patriots and Indianapolis Colts ...

to be their new coach. Meyer led the Patriots to the playoffs for the first time since 1978, where they won the division under

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 ...

but were defeated in their opening playoff game. One of the most notable games in NFL history occurred during the season, when the Patriots hosted the Dolphins in a game played in frozen conditions and under a blanket of snow at Schaefer Stadium. The Patriots won the game 3-0, doing so after a stadium worker used a snowplow to assist kicker John Smith in making the winning field goal.

Staff

Roster

Regular season

Schedule

Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Standings

Playoffs

References

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 {{Massachusetts-sport-stub