Schedule Note: Intra-division opponents are in
bold text.
Game summaries Week 1: vs. Kansas City Chiefs NFL Kickoff Game The Patriots started their season at home on Thursday, September 7 as the defending Super Bowl champion. They would strike first in the first quarter when
Mike Gillislee ran for a 2-yard touchdown for a 7–0 lead. The Chiefs however tied it later on in the quarter at 7–7 when
Alex Smith found Demetrius Harris on a 7-yard pass. In the second quarter, the Pats moved ahead by double digits as
Stephen Gostkowski kicked a 25-yard field goal followed up by Gillislee running for another 2-yard touchdown to make the score 10–7 and increased it to 17–7. The Chiefs came within 3 before halftime when Smith found
Kareem Hunt on a 3-yard pass for a 17–14 game. In the third quarter, the Chiefs took the lead as Smith found
Tyreek Hill on a 75-yard pass to make it 21–17. Though the Pats moved back into the lead when Gillislee ran for a 1-yard touchdown to make it 24–21. They then closed out the quarter with a 27–21 lead when Gostowski kicked a 32-yard field goal. In the fourth quarter, it was all Chiefs. It all started with Smith finding Hunt again this time on a 78-yard pass to retake the lead 28–27. This was followed by Hunt's 4-yard run for a touchdown to make it 35–27. Finally, they closed the scoring of the game with
Charcandrick West's 21-yard run for a touchdown for the final score of 42–27. This game was the Chiefs' first win in Foxborough since 1990. Additionally, the Patriots defense allowed 537 total yards which is the most yardage ever given up by a
Bill Belichick team during a single game as the Patriots began 0–1 for the first time since 2014. This was the first Patriots game to air on new NBC affiliate
WBTS-TV in Boston.
Week 2: at New Orleans Saints The Patriots rebounded from their opening week loss by establishing an early insurmountable lead against the New Orleans Saints in their week 2 matchup for their first visit to Mercedes-Benz Superdome since the Saints' Super Bowl winning
2009 season.
Brandin Cooks returned to the Bayou while the controversy for the Saints was around backs
Adrian Peterson and
Mark Ingram II competing for touches. (
Alvin Kamara, who would go on to win 2017 NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year, was not yet getting significant playing time in week 2.) Peterson would later be shipped to the
Cardinals in an ironic turn of events for
Chris Johnson.
Tom Brady completed three first-quarter touchdown passes to
Rex Burkhead,
Rob Gronkowski, and
Chris Hogan. The three touchdowns marked a personal record for Brady, who had never in his career had so many scores in the first quarter of any game.
Mike Gillislee added a running touchdown in the second quarter, and the Patriots played a conservative second half to seal the 36–20 victory. This would be the only home loss the Saints would have this season. Grownkowski injured his groin in the third quarter, causing him to leave the game.
Week 3: vs. Houston Texans The week 3 matchup vs. the Texans proved to be a greater challenge for the Patriots than the Saints had been in week 2. The Patriots scored first on a 7-play drive ending with a
Tom Brady 5-yard throw to
Rob Gronkowski, who was playing with a groin injury that took him out of the previous week's game. The game would progress through seven lead changes, as Texans rookie quarterback
Deshaun Watson would go drive-for-drive against Brady. Watson threw two touchdowns, one of which to his tight end
Ryan Griffin, who attended college in New England at
UConn. Two field goals late in the game would give the Texans their final lead at 33–28. With less than 2:25 remaining in the game, Brady led the Patriots on a frantic 8-play 71-yard drive that culminated in a 25-yard reception by
Brandin Cooks to give the Patriots the 36–33 win.
Week 4: vs. Carolina Panthers The Patriots' third game at home this season was their second loss of the season. Tom Brady's attempted comeback in the fourth quarter was not enough to beat Cam Newton and the Panthers as Carolina upset New England 33–30 with a last second 48-yard field goal courtesy of Graham Gano. At the end of Week 4, the Patriots' defense was ranked last in the entire NFL. In this rematch of
Super Bowl XXXVIII, this was the second consecutive time, after the 2013 season, that the Pats lost a heartbreaker to Cam Newton. This was the last time the Patriots lost a home game until Week 14 of 2019. With the loss, the Pats fell to 2–2. Brady's record against the Panthers overall also fell to 2–3.
Week 5: at Tampa Bay Buccaneers For the first time since
2009, the Patriots wore an all-white ensemble for this game, against the Buccaneers. For the first time this season, the Patriots were held to just a single touchdown on offense. Buccaneers place kicker
Nick Folk missed all three field goal attempts in this game, which proved fatal to any chance they had at a comeback. After the conclusion of Week 5, the Patriots claimed a share in a three-way tie for the division lead. Star tight-end Rob Gronkowski did not play in the game, after being listed on the injury report for suffering from a thigh injury suffered at practice the previous day.
Week 6: at New York Jets Another interesting chapter was added to the Patriots-Jets rivalry at MetLife. With this victory over the Jets,
quarterback Tom Brady earned his 187th regular season win. Brady surpassed
Brett Favre and
Peyton Manning as the
NFL's sole
all-time leader in regular season wins. While missing two key components of their defensive secondary, the Patriots were able to overcome a two touchdown deficit in the first half and were able to hold on to secure the victory on a final drive surge from the Jets. Star tight end
Rob Gronkowski made his return to the lineup, and contributed two touchdowns as well as several other key catches in the victory. This game also marked the first time since Week 1 that Brady did not throw for 300 yards in addition to the Pats third win in a row against the Jets since
2016. During this game, in the 4th quarter, a controversial play caused a Jets touchdown to be reversed by official review when it was found that Jets tight end
Austin Seferian-Jenkins juggled the ball after being hit, resulting in a fumble, and didn't regain control until he was out of bounds which, by rule, is enforced as a turnover and a touchback.
Week 7: vs. Atlanta Falcons For the first time since Week 3 of
last season, the Patriots wore their all-blue
Color Rush uniforms, for this
Super Bowl LI rematch. and 2017 was no exception. The Patriots opened the game with a 3-and-out, but on the ensuing punt, Denver returner
Isaiah McKenzie muffed the return, and it was recovered by the Patriots. Brady capitalized quickly, as two quick completions to
Rex Burkhead gave the Pats the lead at 12:43 in the first quarter, a lead they would not relinquish. The Broncos answered with a field goal, and on the ensuing kickoff, Pats special teams came through again with a
Dion Lewis kick return for a touchdown. The Broncos added a second field goal in the first quarter, while the Patriots responded with one of their own at the start of the second quarter. The Broncos next drive stalled out short of midfield, and Burkhead found a hole in the line to block the
Riley Dixon punt, once again giving the Patriots good field position. The Patriots and Broncos traded field goals, and the Patriots closed out the first half with a Brady-to-
Dwayne Allen touchdown, his first reception of the season. The Broncos only sustained touchdown drive came at the start of the second half, ending in a
Brock Osweiler-to-
Demaryius Thomas seven-yard pass. Two more touchdowns by the Patriots (a run by Lewis and a reception by
James White) would seal the deal, with Brady taking a rest at the end of the game to give new acquisition
Brian Hoyer some game-time reps. For his performance, Brady was named the AFC Offensive Player of the Week, his third this season and the 30th of his career. In addition, running back Dion Lewis also earned honors, receiving the AFC Special Teams Player of the Week award.
Week 11: at Oakland Raiders NFL International Series Tom Brady became the first player to pass for 300 yards in three different countries: USA, Mexico, and the United Kingdom.
Week 12: vs. Miami Dolphins Week 13: at Buffalo Bills Rob Gronkowski was suspended for one game after a late hit on Bills defensive back
Tre'Davious White.
Week 14: at Miami Dolphins The Pats' 14-game road win streak ended in Miami, the same place where they suffered their last regular season road loss on January 3, 2016. Rob Gronkowski missed this game due to suspension.
Week 15: at Pittsburgh Steelers The return of Rob Gronkowski, and a late-game interception resulted in the Patriots defeating the Steelers. The Pats won the AFC East for the 9th straight year. The Patriots trailed 24–16 at the end of the third quarter. They scored on a 46-yard field goal with 4:00 left in the game to pull within 24–19. Then, with 56 seconds remaining, Dion Lewis scored on an 8-yard run and the Patriots added a two-point conversion to go ahead 27–24. JuJu Smith-Schuster set the Steelers up deep in Patriots territory with a 69-yard reception from Ben Roethlisberger. It looked like Pittsburgh regained the lead on a 10-yard touchdown pass from Roethlisberger to tight end Jesse James. However, the play was overturned and the Steelers couldn't find the end zone. The game ended on a Roethlisberger interception. With this win, the Patriots improved to 11–3 and clinched the
AFC East division title for the 9th consecutive season. Steelers wide receiver
Antonio Brown left in the first half with a bruised calf. He was taken to the hospital and didn't return.
Week 16: vs. Buffalo Bills Tom Brady passed for a pair of touchdowns and the New England Patriots stayed on track to claim home-field advantage throughout the AFC playoffs with a 37–16 win over the Buffalo Bills on Sunday and also with the
Jacksonville Jaguars losing late in the day, the Patriots clinched a first round bye for the 8th consecutive season. Dion Lewis caught a touchdown pass and rushed for a 4-yard score. He carried 24 times for career-high 129 yards. It was just his second-career 100-yard game. Mike Gillislee (former Bill himself), active for the first time in six games, added a 1-yard rushing touchdown.
Week 17: vs. New York Jets With the win, the New England Patriots gained the #1 seed and home-field advantage throughout the entire AFC playoffs for the second year in a row.
Standings Division Conference ==Postseason==