# 1991 New England Patriots season

The 1991 New England Patriots season was the team's 32nd season, and the 22nd in the National Football League. The team finished the season with a record of six wins and ten losses, and finished fourth in the AFC East Division. Though the Patriots scored twenty or more points just five times during the season, they were able to upset playoff teams such as the Houston Oilers, Buffalo Bills and New York Jets.
It was the last season where the Patriots were owned by Victor Kiam, who was forced to sell the team to St. Louis businessman James Orthwein in order to settle a debt.

## Offseason
### NFL Draft

| Round | Pick | Player | Position | School/Club Team |
| 1 | 11 | Pat Harlow | Offensive tackle | Southern California |
| 1 | 14 | Leonard Russell | Running back | Arizona State |
| 2 | 41 | Jerome Henderson | Defensive back | Clemson |
| 3 | 56 | Calvin Stephens | Guard | South Carolina |
| 4 | 84 | Scott Zolak | Quarterback | Maryland |
| 5 | 112 | Jon Vaughn | Running back | Michigan |
| 5 | 124 | Ben Coates | Tight end | Livingstone |
| 6 | 140 | David Key | Defensive back | Michigan |
| 7 | 168 | Blake Miller | Center | Louisiana State |
| 8 | 196 | Harry Colon | Defensive back | Missouri |
| 9 | 224 | O'Neil Glenn | Guard | Maryland |
| 10 | 251 | Randy Bethel | Tight end | Miami (FL) |
| 11 | 279 | Vince Moore | Wide receiver | Tennessee |
| 11 | 303 | Paul Alsbury | Punter | Texas State |
| 12 | 307 | Tim Edwards | Defensive tackle | Delta State |

## Preseason

| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance |
| 1 | August 3 | at Green Bay Packers | L 7–28 | 0–1 | Lambeau Field | 52,852 |
| 2 | August 10 | Washington Redskins | L 6–27 | 0–2 | Foxboro Stadium | 16,757 |
| 3 | August 17 | at Phoenix Cardinals | L 0–46 | 0–3 | Sun Devil Stadium | 51,070 |
| 4 | August 24 | New York Giants | W 24–3 | 1–3 | Foxboro Stadium | 21,147 |

## Regular season
### Schedule

| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance |
| 1 | September 1 | at Indianapolis Colts | W 16–7 | 1–0 | Hoosier Dome | 49,961 |
| 2 | September 8 | Cleveland Browns | L 0–20 | 1–1 | Sullivan Stadium | 35,377 |
| 3 | September 15 | at Pittsburgh Steelers | L 6–20 | 1–2 | Three Rivers Stadium | 53,703 |
| 4 | September 22 | Houston Oilers | W 24–20 | 2–2 | Sullivan Stadium | 30,702 |
| 5 | September 29 | at Phoenix Cardinals | L 10–24 | 2–3 | Sun Devil Stadium | 26,043 |
| 6 | October 6 | Miami Dolphins | L 10–20 | 2–4 | Sullivan Stadium | 49,749 |
| 7 | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye |
| 8 | October 20 | Minnesota Vikings | W 26–23 (OT) | 3–4 | Sullivan Stadium | 45,367 |
| 9 | October 27 | Denver Broncos | L 6–9 | 3–5 | Sullivan Stadium | 43,994 |
| 10 | November 3 | at Buffalo Bills | L 17–22 | 3–6 | Rich Stadium | 78,278 |
| 11 | November 10 | at Miami Dolphins | L 20–30 | 3–7 | Joe Robbie Stadium | 56,065 |
| 12 | November 17 | New York Jets | L 21–28 | 3–8 | Sullivan Stadium | 30,743 |
| 13 | November 24 | Buffalo Bills | W 16–13 | 4–8 | Sullivan Stadium | 47,053 |
| 14 | December 1 | at Denver Broncos | L 3–20 | 4–9 | Mile High Stadium | 67,116 |
| 15 | December 8 | Indianapolis Colts | W 23–17 (OT) | 5–9 | Sullivan Stadium | 20,131 |
| 16 | December 15 | at New York Jets | W 6–3 | 6–9 | Giants Stadium | 55,689 |
| 17 | December 22 | at Cincinnati Bengals | L 7–29 | 6–10 | Riverfront Stadium | 46,394 |
| Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text. |||||||

### Standings

AFC East :
| viewtalkedit | W | L | T | PCT | DIV | CONF | PF | PA | STK |
| $^{(1)}$ Buffalo Bills | 13 | 3 | 0 | .813 | 7–1 | 10–2 | 458 | 318 | L1 |
| $^{(6)}$ New York Jets | 8 | 8 | 0 | .500 | 4–4 | 6–6 | 314 | 293 | W1 |
| Miami Dolphins | 8 | 8 | 0 | .500 | 4–4 | 5–7 | 343 | 349 | L2 |
| New England Patriots | 6 | 10 | 0 | .375 | 4–4 | 5–9 | 211 | 305 | L1 |
| Indianapolis Colts | 1 | 15 | 0 | .063 | 1–7 | 1–11 | 143 | 381 | L6 |