1979–84: Coaching Changes
For the next two years the Patriots would suffer late-season collapses that would deny them return trips to the playoffs. In 1979 after starting 7–3, the team would lose four out of their last six games, including three in a row to divisional rivals in December, to finish 9–7 and out of the playoffs. In 1980, with star running back Sam Cunningham holding out all season, the Patriots started 6–1 but finished 10–6, again out of the playoffs. With these performances in mind, a local sportswriter intimated that the team suffered from the "Bozo Syndrome," meaning that they played "like clowns in the clutch." The Patriots continued to slide in 1981, finishing 2–14, including two losses to the Baltimore Colts which were the only two games the Colts won that year. The Patriots would be outscored by only 48 points throughout the season, while the Colts allowed an NFL-record 533 points and finished with a minus-274 point differential, the second worst since the AFL-NFL merger.
Following the 1981 season Erhardt was fired and replaced by Ron Meyer, who had been the head coach at Southern Methodist University. The Patriots had the top draft pick overall in the 1982 NFL Draft and selected Kenneth Sims, a defensive end from the University of Texas at Austin, who would largely prove to be a disappointment in his seven seasons with the team.
In the strike-shortened year of 1982, the highlight of the Patriots season was the so-called "Snow Plow Game", a controversial 3–0 late-season win over the Miami Dolphins. The controversy came in the fourth quarter when the Patriots were preparing for a field goal attempt. Mark Henderson, a convict on work release, used a John Deere tractor with a rotating sweeper to clear a swath of field to aid the Patriots. Kicker John Smith's 33-yard attempt was good, and the points would prove to be the only points scored by either team that afternoon. The win would help put the Patriots in the playoffs, but the first-round rematch in Miami was easily won by the Dolphins.
In 1983 quarterback Tony Eason was drafted in the first round, the fourth of six quarterbacks drafted in the first round. Eason would play sparingly in 1983, but would become the Patriots' starting quarterback in 1984. Meanwhile, the team's pattern of not being able to finish seasons strong became apparent again. The team again lost some key games late, and finished out of the playoffs at 8–8. Also that year, the naming-rights deal with Schaefer expired, and Sullivan renamed the stadium Sullivan Stadium after himself.
The Patriots with the top draft pick overall for the 1984 NFL Draft and selected Irving Fryar, a wide receiver from the University of Nebraska. With Tony Eason starting at quarterback, the Patriots got off to a strong 5–2 start. However, after a pair of losses the Patriots fired head coach Ron Meyer, and replaced him with former Colts wide receiver Raymond Berry. The players initially responded well to Berry, winning three of their first four games under him. However, showing once again a failure to finish strong, the Patriots again lost three straight games in December, and again missed the playoffs at 9–7.
Read more about this topic: History Of The New England Patriots