1982 New England Patriots season

The 1982 New England Patriots season was the franchise's 13th season in the National Football League and 23rd overall. They finished the National Football League's strike-shortened season with a record of five wins and four losses and finished seventh in the American 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 28–13.

After firing Ron Erhardt after a dismal 2–14 season in 1981, the Patriots hired Southern Methodist University head coach Ron Meyer 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 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

New England Patriots 1982 staff
Front office President – Billy Sullivan Executive vice president – Chuck Sullivan General manager – Bucko Kilroy Assistant general manager – Patrick Sullivan Director of player development – Dick Steinberg Director of college scouting – Joe Mendes Director of pro scouting – Bill McPeak Head coaches Head coach – Ron Meyer Offensive coaches Offensive coordinator/quarterbacks – Lew Erber Offensive backs – Cleve Bryant Receivers – Steve Endicott Offensive line – Bill Muir			Defensive coaches Defensive coordinator – Jim Mora Defensive line – Tommy Brasher Linebackers – Steve Sidwell Secondary – Steve Walters Special teams coaches Special teams/tight ends – Dante Scarnecchia Strength and conditioning Strength and conditioning – LeBaron Caruthers

Regular season

Schedule

style="Template:NFLPrimaryStyle"| Week	style="Template:NFLPrimaryStyle"| Original Week	style="Template:NFLPrimaryStyle"| Date	style="Template:NFLPrimaryStyle"| Opponent	style="Template:NFLPrimaryStyle"| Result	style="Template:NFLPrimaryStyle"| Record	style="Template:NFLPrimaryStyle"| Venue	style="Template:NFLPrimaryStyle"| Recap
1	1	September 12	at Baltimore Colts	W 24–13	1–0	Memorial Stadium	Recap
2	2	September 19	New York Jets	L 7–31	1–1	Schaefer Stadium	Recap
—	3	Seattle Seahawks		Cancelled due to players’ strike
—	4	at Buffalo Bills
—	5	Cincinnati Bengals
—	6	at Miami Dolphins
—	7	St. Louis Cardinals
—	8	at New York Jets
—	9	Baltimore Colts
—	10	Buffalo Bills		Postponed due to players’ strike
3	11	November 21	at Cleveland Browns	L 7–10	1–2	Cleveland Stadium	Recap
4	12	November 28	Houston Oilers	W 29–21	2–2	Schaefer Stadium	Recap
5	13	December 5	at Chicago Bears	L 13–26	2–3	Soldier Field	Recap
6	14	December 12	Miami Dolphins	W 3–0	3–3	Schaefer Stadium	Recap
7	15	December 19	at Seattle Seahawks	W 16–0	4–3	Kingdome	Recap
8	16	December 26	at Pittsburgh Steelers	L 14–37	4–4	Three Rivers Stadium	Recap
9	17	January 2	Buffalo Bills	W 30–19	5–4	Schaefer Stadium	Recap
colspan="8" style="Template:NFLPrimaryStyle"|Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Playoffs

style="Template:NFLPrimaryStyle"| Round	style="Template:NFLPrimaryStyle"| Date	style="Template:NFLPrimaryStyle"| Opponent (seed)	style="Template:NFLPrimaryStyle"| Result	style="Template:NFLPrimaryStyle"| Record	style="Template:NFLPrimaryStyle"| Venue	style="Template:NFLPrimaryStyle"| Recap
AFC first round	January 8, 1983	at Miami Dolphins (2)	L 13–28	0–1	Miami Orange Bowl	Recap

See also

• New England Patriots seasons