The 2013 season was the New England Patriots' 44th in the National Football League (NFL) and their 54th overall. The Patriots finished 12–4 and with the AFC's No. 2 seed for a second consecutive season. Along with their seeding, New England was awarded a first-round bye in the playoffs for the fourth season in a row, only the second such occurrence for any team since the league switched to a 6-team playoff format in 1990 (the other being the 1992–95 Dallas Cowboys). The Patriots defeated the Indianapolis Colts 43–22 in the divisional round of the playoffs, but lost in the AFC Championship game to the Denver Broncos by a score of 26–16. This was the sixth time in the span of eleven years that the Patriots would finish the regular season unbeaten at Gillette Stadium, with this feat not being achieved again until 2018.
Roster changes
Free agency Notable Departures RB Danny Woodhead (free agent, San Diego Chargers), WR Wes Welker (free agent, Denver Broncos), WR Brandon Lloyd (released), TE Aaron Hernandez (contract terminated), G Donald Thomas (free agent, Indianapolis Colts) G Brian Waters (contract terminated), DE Trevor Scott (free agent), S Patrick Chung (free agent, Philadelphia Eagles), DT Kyle Love (released), DT Brandon Deaderick (released, Jacksonville Jaguars)
Notable Additions: QB Tim Tebow (free agent, later cut), RB LeGarrette Blount (trade), WR Danny Amendola (free agent), WR Michael Jenkins (free agent, later released), WR Donald Jones (free agent, released shortly before announcing his retirement), OT Will Svitek (free agent), DT Tommy Kelly (free agent), DT Armond Armstead (free agent/CFL), S Adrian Wilson (free agent. later placed on IR), KR/RB Leon Washington (free agent, later released, later re-signed), WR Austin Collie (free agent, later released, later re-signed).
2013 draft class
The Patriots traded their fourth-round selection (No. 126 overall) to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in exchange for cornerback Aqib Talib and the Buccaneers' seventh-round selection (No. 226 overall). The Patriots traded their fifth-round selection (No. 162 overall) to the Washington Redskins in exchange for defensive end Albert Haynesworth, The Patriots also traded their sixth-round selection (No. 197 overall) and their 2012 fifth-round selection to the Cincinnati Bengals in exchange for wide receiver Chad Johnson. The Patriots traded their first-round selection (No. 29th overall) to the Minnesota Vikings in exchange for selections in rounds two, three, four, and seven (No. 52, 83, 102, and 229 overall). Then, New England proceeded to trade running back Jeff Demps and the second of their three picks in the seventh round (No. 229 overall) to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for running back LeGarrette Blount.
For the second time in five seasons, the Patriots elected not to choose a player in the first round of the draft.
+ 2013 New England Patriots Draft Selections Round Overall Player Position College 2 52 Jamie Collins Linebacker Southern Miss 59 Aaron Dobson Wide receiver Marshall 3 83 Logan Ryan Cornerback Rutgers 91 Duron Harmon Safety Rutgers 4 102 Josh Boyce Wide receiver TCU 7 226 Michael Buchanan Defensive end Illinois 235 Steve Beauharnais Linebacker Rutgers
Staff
Final roster
Schedule
Preseason Week Date Opponent Result Record Game site NFL.comrecap 1August 9 at Philadelphia Eagles W 31–22 1–0 Lincoln Financial Field Recap 2 August 16 Tampa Bay Buccaneers W 25–21 2–0 Gillette Stadium Recap 3 August 22 at Detroit Lions L 9–40 2–1 Ford Field Recap 4 August 29 New York Giants W 28–20 3–1 Gillette Stadium Recap
The performances of quarterback Tim Tebow during the preseason became a focal point of media coverage of the team. After connecting on two touchdowns to Quentin Sims in the game against the New York Giants, Tebow was released by the Patriots on August 31, 2013.
Regular season For the first time since the 2002 season, the Patriots did not play the Indianapolis Colts during the regular season, though the two teams met in the playoffs. The Colts–Patriots rivalry had become one of the most known in modern era sports. Week Date Opponent Result Record Game site NFL.comrecap 1 September 8 at Buffalo Bills W 23–21 1–0 Ralph Wilson Stadium Recap 2 New York Jets W 13–10 2–0 Gillette Stadium Recap 3 September 22 Tampa Bay Buccaneers W 23–3 3–0 Gillette Stadium Recap 4 September 29 at Atlanta Falcons W 30–23 4–0 Georgia Dome Recap 5 October 6 at Cincinnati Bengals L 6–13 4–1 Paul Brown Stadium Recap 6 October 13 New Orleans Saints W 30–27 5–1 Gillette Stadium Recap 7 October 20 at New York Jets L 27–30 5–2 MetLife Stadium Recap 8 October 27 Miami Dolphins W 27–17 6–2 Gillette Stadium Recap 9 November 3 Pittsburgh Steelers W 55–31 7–2 Gillette Stadium Recap 10 Bye 11 at Carolina Panthers L 20–24 7–3 Bank of America Stadium Recap 12 November 24 Denver Broncos W 34–31 8–3 Gillette Stadium Recap 13 December 1 at Houston Texans W 34–31 9–3 Reliant Stadium Recap 14 December 8 Cleveland Browns W 27–26 10–3 Gillette Stadium Recap 15 December 15 at Miami Dolphins L 20–24 10–4 Sun Life Stadium Recap 16 December 22 at Baltimore Ravens W 41–7 11–4 M&T Bank Stadium Recap 17 December 29 Buffalo Bills W 34–20 12–4 Gillette Stadium Recap Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.
Game summaries
Regular season
Week 1: at Buffalo Bills
In the season opener, both teams featured key new players to their franchises: the Bills' rookie quarterback EJ Manuel and the Patriots' new wide receiver Danny Amendola. Tom Brady struggled as the chemistry between him and his receivers was not great and as a result, Brady was inaccurate throughout the game. The Bills managed to take the lead in the 3rd quarter, but Brady mounted a masterful 4th quarter comeback by throwing quick, accurate passes to an injured Amendola to set up Gostowski for a game-winning field goal. The Patriots began their season 1–0 for the 10th straight year.
Week 2: vs. New York Jets
The Patriots home opener featured the long-time division rival Jets and their new rookie quarterback Geno Smith. The Patriots struck first with Tom Brady hitting a wide open Aaron Dobson for a 39-yard touchdown pass, his first of the year. Because It rained heavily throughout the game, it resulted in poor offenses from both teams. Brady failed to complete even 50% of his passes on the day. The lone bright spot on the Patriots offense was Julian Edelman, who caught 13 passes for 78 yards. After leading 13–3 at halftime, the Jets would try to rally with a 3-yard touchdown run by Bilal Powell, however the Pats' defense made a critical stop as the team improved to 2–0.
Week 3: vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Patriots rolled through the struggling Buccaneers to improve to 3–0. Although the Patriots struggled early, they finally flexed their muscles on offense with an equally as impressive show of force on defense. On the first play of the game, Tom Brady hit Brandon Bolden for 11 yards and a first down. After an incomplete pass, Brady hit receiver Julian Edelman for 8 yards, but on 3rd-and-2, Brady was sacked by Lavonte David and Mark Barron and the Patriots punted. Josh Freeman drove the Buccaneers 50 yards in 8 plays, but Rian Lindell missed a 38-yard field goal. The Patriots punted again on their next drive. This time the Buccaneers drove 71 yards aided by 35 yards in Patriots penalties before Rian Lindell hit a 30-yard field goal, giving the Buccaneers a 3–0 lead. An 8-yard sack by Adrian Clayborn doomed the Patriots next drive as they punted again. With the drive starting at their own 45, the Bucs drove to the Patriots 34, but on 4th-and-5, rather than attempt a 52-yard field goal, they went for the first down, but Freeman's pass was incomplete. The Patriots' offense finally got going on the succeeding drive. Brady completed two passes to rookie receiver Aaron Dobson, including a 4-yard catch on 4th-and-2. Then hit Kenbrell Thompkins for a 16-yard touchdown pass as the Patriots marched 66 yards to take a 7–3 lead early in the 2nd quarter. The Bucs drove to the Patriots 38-yard line on their next drive once again turned it over on downs when Doug Martin was tackled for no gain by Brandon Spikes on 4th-and-1. This time Brady commandeered a 61-yard drive and hit Thompkins for a 5-yard touchdown pass, extending the lead 14–3. Josh Freeman was intercepted by ex-Buc Aqib Talib on the next drive and Stephen Gostkowski hit a 53-yard field goal right before halftime. Tom Brady threw an interception on the Patriots first drive after halftime, but the Buccaneers punted on their first two after halftime. Gostkowski later kicked a 46-yard field goal for the only scoring of the 3rd quarter as the Patriots defense shut down the Buccaneers. The Buccaneers turned it over for the third time on downs early in the fourth-quarter. The Patriots took it and kicked a 33-yard field-goal for the final score of 23–3. Tom Brady had his best game of the season so far going 25/36 for 225 yards and 2 touchdowns with 1 interception despite 3 sacks. Running back Doug Martin could not reach the end zone for Tampa Bay despite running for 88 yards and Josh Freeman could not lead the Buccaneers offense to a touchdown. Tampa Bay's starting quarterback Josh Freeman would be released in the week following the game.
Week 4: at Atlanta Falcons
In their first strong test of the season, the Patriots defeated Matt Ryan and the Falcons in a close battle on Sunday Night Football to go 4–0. In what was billed a potential Super Bowl preview before the season, the Falcons limped to a 1–3 start after their defeat to New England.