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1970 Boston Patriots season

1970 Boston Patriots season
OwnerBilly Sullivan
General managerGeorge Sauer
Head coachClive Rush
(quit, medical reasons; 1–6)
John Mazur (interim, 1–6)
Home fieldHarvard Stadium
Results
Record2–12
Division place5th AFC East
Playoff finishDid not qualify
Pro BowlersC Jon Morris
AP All-ProsNone
Uniform

The 1970 Boston Patriots season was the franchise's first season in the National Football League and eleventh overall. They ended the season with a record of two wins and twelve losses, fifth (last) in the AFC East Division.

This was the final season as the “Boston” Patriots, as they moved southwest to Foxborough, Massachusetts the next season and became the “New England” Patriots. The final season as Boston did not go as planned, as the Patriots struggled all season and finished 2–12, the worst record in the NFL. Home games in 1970 were played at Harvard Stadium, their fourth home venue and third in as many seasons.

After taking the season opener at home from the Miami Dolphins, Boston lost nine in a row before beating the Buffalo Bills on the road. The season concluded with an embarrassing 45–7 loss to the Bengals in Cincinnati.

Head coach Clive Rush, age 39, quit midway through the season because of medical reasons, with Boston's record at 1–6.[1][2][3] His replacement, offensive backfield coach John Mazur, did not do much better of a job, but he continued as head coach the next season. The Patriots scored the fewest points in the league in 1970 with 149, and allowed 361; they missed the playoffs for the seventh straight season.

Despite being a Super Bowl quarterback, no NFL team made contact with 32-year-old Joe Kapp until after the start of the regular season.[4] Prior to the 1969 season, the Minnesota Vikings had exercised the option clause of his contract, so Kapp had played the entire season without a new contract. It was unusual for teams to use the team's option and not to offer a new contract prior to a season. This dispute made him a free agent for the 1970 season, by the NFL's own rules. The Patriots signed him on October 2 to a four-year contract,[5][6][7] making him the highest paid player in the league. The Patriots had to give up strong safety John Charles and a first-round draft pick in 1972 (used to select Stanford linebacker Jeff Siemon).[8] Kapp's first appearance was on October 11 at Kansas City, relieving starter Mike Taliaferro in the third quarter of a 23–10 loss to the team which manhandled Kapp and the Vikings in the Super Bowl nine months prior.[9][10]

November losses vs. the Buffalo Bills (45–10) and St. Louis Cardinals (31–0) marked the last time the Patriots were beaten by 30 or more points in consecutive games until 2023.

The Vikings paid Kapp back in full in week 13, rolling to a 35–14 victory in the Patriots' final game at Harvard and in Boston prior to the move to Foxborough.[11]

The Patriots' poor record was the worst in the 26-team league, but gave them the first overall selection in the 1971 NFL draft. They took quarterback Jim Plunkett, the Heisman Trophy winner from Stanford, upset winner of the Rose Bowl.

Offseason

NFL draft

Main article: 1970 NFL Draft
1970 Boston Patriots draft
Round Pick Player Position College Notes
1 4 Phil Olsen  Defensive tackle Utah State Injured prior to the season
3 56 Mike Ballou  Linebacker UCLA
4 83 Eddie Ray  Running back LSU
5 107 Bob Olson  Linebacker Notre Dame
7 160 Odell Lawson  Running back Langston
9 212 Dennis Wirgowski  Defensive end Purdue
10 239 Henry Brown  Wide receiver Missouri
11 264 Dennis Bramlett  Tackle UTEP
12 291 Greg Roero  Defensive tackle New Mexico Highlands
13 316 Ronnie Shelley  Defensive back Troy State
14 343 Garvie Craw  Running back Michigan
15 368 Kent Schoolfield  Wide receiver Florida A&M
16 395 Otis McDaniel  Defensive end Tuskegee
17 420 Joe Killingsworth  Wide receiver Oklahoma
      Made roster    *   Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

[12]

Staff

1970 Boston Patriots staff

Front office

Head coaches

Offensive coaches

Defensive coaches




Source:

Roster

1970 Boston Patriots roster
Quarterbacks (QB)

Running backs (RB)

Wide receivers (WR)

Tight ends (TE)

Offensive linemen (OL)

Defensive linemen (DL)

Linebackers (LB)

Defensive backs (DB)

  • 26 Clarence Scott SS

Special teams

Reserve


Rookies in italics

Source:

Regular season

Schedule

Main article: 1970 NFL season
Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance Recap
1 September 20 Miami Dolphins W 27–14 1–0 Harvard Stadium 32,607 Recap
2 September 27 New York Jets L 21–31 1–1 Harvard Stadium 36,040 Recap
3 October 4 Baltimore Colts L 6–14 1–2 Harvard Stadium 38,235 Recap
4 October 11 at Kansas City Chiefs L 10–23 1–3 Municipal Stadium 50,698 Recap
5 October 18 New York Giants L 0–16 1–4 Harvard Stadium 39,091 Recap
6 October 25 at Baltimore Colts L 3–27 1–5 Memorial Stadium 60,240 Recap
7 November 1 Buffalo Bills L 10–45 1–6 Harvard Stadium 31,148 Recap
8 November 8 at St. Louis Cardinals L 0–31 1–7 Busch Memorial Stadium 46,466 Recap
9 November 15 San Diego Chargers L 14–16 1–8 Harvard Stadium 30,597 Recap
10 November 22 at New York Jets L 3–17 1–9 Shea Stadium 61,822 Recap
11 November 29 at Buffalo Bills W 14–10 2–9 War Memorial Stadium 31,427 Recap
12 December 6 at Miami Dolphins L 20–37 2–10 Miami Orange Bowl 51,032 Recap
13 December 13 Minnesota Vikings L 14–35 2–11 Harvard Stadium 37,819 Recap
14 December 20 at Cincinnati Bengals L 7–45 2–12 Riverfront Stadium 60,157 Recap
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Standings

AFC East
W L T PCT DIV CONF PF PA STK
Baltimore Colts 11 2 1 .846 6–1–1 8–2–1 321 234 W4
Miami Dolphins 10 4 0 .714 6–2 8–3 297 228 W6
New York Jets 4 10 0 .286 2–6 2–9 255 286 L3
Buffalo Bills 3 10 1 .231 3–4–1 3–7–1 204 337 L5
Boston Patriots 2 12 0 .143 2–6 2–9 149 361 L3
Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.

References

  1. ^ "Rush quits as Pats coach". The Day. (New London, Connecticut). Associated Press. November 4, 1970. p. 17.
  2. ^ "Patriots select Mazur". Nashua Telegraph. (New Hampshire). Associated Press. November 4, 1970. p. 38.
  3. ^ "Coach clarifies release; hands team resignation". The Bulletin. (Bend, Oregon). UPI. November 4, 1970. p. 11.
  4. ^ "Ex-player sees move to cool off Joe Kapp". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. October 1, 1970. p. 19.
  5. ^ "Patriots obtain Joe Kapp; terms being worked out". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. October 2, 1970. p. 3B.
  6. ^ "Patriots sign Kapp". The Bulletin. (Bend, Oregon). UPI. October 2, 1970. p. 7.
  7. ^ "Kapp says 'We'll be a winner' after signing with Patriots". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. October 3, 1970. p. 10.
  8. ^ "Kapp predicts Patriots are going to be winners". Toledo Blade. (Ohio). Associated Press. October 3, 1970. p. 20.
  9. ^ "Chiefs still bother Kapp; Patriots shattered, 23-10". Lawrence Daily Journal-World. (Kansas). Associated Press. October 12, 1970. p. 15.
  10. ^ "Kansas City stops Boston Pats, 23-10". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. October 12, 1970. p. 8.
  11. ^ O'Hara, Dave (December 14, 1970). "Student beats master in Vikings-Pats game". The Day. (New Haven, Connecticut). Associated Press. p. 28.
  12. ^ "1970 Boston Patriots Draftees". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved January 17, 2022.
Quelle: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1970_Boston_Patriots_season