By the numbers: A look at the Patriots’ 11-year playoff streak that came to an end Sunday
The Buffalo Bills have won the AFC East.
The Patriots’ 11-year streak of making the playoffs came to an end Sunday following a 22-12 loss to the Dolphins.
Over those 11 seasons, the Patriots won the AFC East each and every year. They also won three Super Bowls and five AFC titles in that span. Let’s put in perspective how unique the 11-year run was by the numbers.
23: While the Patriots were hogging all the AFC East titles from 2009-19, 23 other teams won a division title at some point during that span. All four teams in the NFC East and NFC West actually won a division title over those 11 seasons. While parity was prevalent through the rest of the league, it definitely wasn’t in the AFC East.
5: There are just four quarterbacks starting for the same team now that were also their team’s starting quarterback in 2009. Ben Roethlisberger is still trekking along with the Steelers in his 17th season in the league. Matt Ryan’s spent his entire 13-year career in Atlanta, while Drew Brees would win a Super Bowl with the Saints that season. The Lions drafted Matthew Stafford with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2009 NFL Draft, and he’s still the team’s starter 11 years later. The Packers still have Aaron Rodgers under center, who’s looking to win a second Super Bowl in Green Bay in 2020.
6: With the Patriots’ playoff streak over, the Kansas City Chiefs now hold the longest active playoff streak. They’ve made the playoffs for the sixth straight season after a 13-1 start. The defending Super Bowl champs appear to be in a good spot to potentially match the Patriots’ record with 25-year-old quarterback Patrick Mahomes under contract for years to come.
5: There are just five players from the Patriots’ 2009 roster that are still in the NFL. Tom Brady is of course the most notable name as he returned to action in 2009 following a torn ACL injury the year prior. Julian Edelman was drafted by the Patriots that spring and went on to become one of the top receivers in franchise history. Matthew Slater was in his second season back in 2009, while Stephen Gostkowski was in his fourth. The fifth player is Brian Hoyer, who the Patriots brought on as an undrafted rookie that year. After making several stops around the league, Hoyer found his way back to New England in 2018 and again in 2020.
12: Bill Belichick has been the Patriots’ head coach since 2000. None of the Patriots’ divisional rivals have had anywhere near that same stability at head coach over that time span. From the time the Patriots’ division title streak started in 2009, the other three AFC East teams employed 12 head coaches. Rex Ryan (Jets and Bills) and Adam Gase (Dolphins and Jets) have coached multiple teams in the division during that span. Sean McDermott, who’s been the Bills’ head coach since 2017, is the answer to the future trivia question of “Who was the head coach of the team that ended the Patriots’ 11-year reign as AFC East champions?”
36: For how unstable the head coaching position has been for the Patriots’ divisional rivals, the quarterback spot has been even worse. The Bills, Dolphins, and Jets have started a combined 36 quarterbacks since 2009. Ryan Fitzpatrick has actually started several games for all three of those teams. In that span, the Patriots have only started five different quarterbacks. Prior to this season, it was only three. The four games that Brady didn’t start in the 11-year span? The suspension he received for “Deflate-Gate.”
14: The Patriots’ 11 AFC East titles in 11 seasons nearly matches the combined total of division titles from the other Boston teams. The Bruins, Celtics, and Red Sox have won a combined 14 division titles since 2009. The Bruins and Celtics have each won five while the Red Sox have won four division titles. While those teams have had a decent amount of success since 2009, they still pale in comparison to the Patriots’ dominance.
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