Brady/Belichick Era Patriots

The Patriots ended their improbable 2001 season in unforgettable fashion, getting a last-second field goal from kicker Adam Vinatieri to upset the heavily favored St. Louis Rams 20-17 in Super Bowl XXXVI.

A Week 17 win over Miami wasn't enough to get the 9-7 Pats into the playoffs, as New England lost out on a tiebreaker to the AFC East champ Jets.

New England returned to prominence with another Super Bowl championship in the 2003 season. Vinatieri was the hero again, making a 41-yard field goal with four seconds left to give the Patriots a 32-29 win over the Panthers.

Brady and Co. made it two titles in a row and three championships out of four in 2004, beating the Donovan McNabb-led Eagles 24-21 in Super Bowl XXXIX.

The Patriots won the AFC East with a 10-6 record but turned in an absolutely miserable performance in the divisional round in Denver, turning the ball over five times to fall to the Broncos 27-13. The game was the first postseason loss of the Tom Brady/Bill Belichick era.

The Patriots jumped out to a 21-3 first half lead at Indianapolis but couldn't hold on, giving up 32 points in the second half to fall to Peyton Manning and the Colts 38-34. The comeback is still the largest in conference championship history.

Little-known Giants wide receiver David Tyree stunned the country -- and spoiled the Patriots' bid at a perfect season -- with his miraculous fourth quarter "helmet catch" to set up Eli Manning's Super Bowl-winning touchdown pass to Plaxico Burress. The massive 17-14 upset was the last time New England made the Super Bowl.

Backup quarterback Matt Cassel led the Patriots to an 11-5 record after Tom Brady went down for the season in Week 1, but the team didn't make the playoffs, losing out on tiebreakers to Miami and Baltimore.

The Pats won the AFC East title with a 10-6 record but couldn't get by Baltimore in the opening round of the playoffs, committing three first-quarter turnovers to lose 33-14

New England finished the regular season with a league-best 14-2 record only to fall in their playoff opener for the second consecutive season, losing to AFC East rival Jets 28-21.