[26] The Patriots subsequently traded Pro Bowl defensive end Chandler Jones to the Arizona Cardinals in exchange for guard Jonathan Cooper and a 2016 second-round draft pick.
[29] On October 26, 2016, the Patriots traded a 2017 seventh-round draft pick to the Detroit Lions and acquired linebacker Kyle Van Noy,[30] and in the process, released offensive guard Chase Farris, who was later signed to their practice squad.
On 2nd-and-8, Garoppolo was sacked by linebacker Markus Golden and fumbled, with ex-Patriot Chandler Jones recovering at the Patriots' 39, but a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty sent the Cardinals to their own 46.
The field position did not hurt Arizona, as they drove 54 yards in 11 plays, scoring on Palmer's 1-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald, trimming the deficit to 10–7.
He completed a 3rd-and-3 7-yard pass to running back James White, Blount ran for 13 yards on 3rd-and-11 and the Patriots kicked a 32-yard field goal with 3:44 remaining to retake the lead, 23–21.
After taking the opening kickoff, the Patriots stormed 75 yards in just 8 plays, scoring on Jimmy Garoppolo's 12-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Danny Amendola for an early 7–0 lead.
On the fifth play of the drive, Garoppolo was driven to the ground by Alonso on a completion to wide receiver Malcolm Mitchell and suffered a shoulder injury that required transportation to Massachusetts General Hospital;[65] he finished with 232 yards and three touchdowns.
With Tom Brady in his third game of suspension and Jimmy Garoppolo injured, the Patriots, wearing Color Rush uniforms,[69] started backup quarterback Jacoby Brissett.
The Patriots marched 71 yards in 13 plays to the Texans' 7-yard line on the opening drive of the second half, but the Houston defense kept them out of the end zone and Gostkowski kicked a 25-yard field goal for a 13–0 lead.
On the second play of the Browns' next drive, Kessler fumbled the snap and kicked the ball out of the end zone for a safety, extending the Patriots' lead to 16–7.
The Bengals took the opening possession of the second half and rushed 80 yards in 9 plays, ending with Dalton throwing a five-yard touchdown pass to former Patriot Brandon LaFell, giving Cincinnati a 14–10 lead.
The Bengals responded by driving 68 yards to the Patriots' 7, but settled for a 25-yard field goal by Mike Nugent, shrinking the deficit to just one score at 25-17 early in the fourth quarter.
In the game at Heinz Field, the Patriots faced off against the Pittsburgh Steelers, who started backup quarterback Landry Jones in place of Ben Roethlisberger, was out with a knee injury.
The Patriots countered with a 75-yard, 5-play drive ending with a 36-yard touchdown pass from Brady to Rob Gronkowski, increasing the lead to 20–13, but Stephen Gostkowski missed his second extra point of the season.
A two-yard run by Blount and incomplete pass brought up a 3rd-and-8 from the Bills 48, and Brady hit Edelman with a 47-yard bomb to the 1-yard line, but the gain was nullified on an ineligible man downfield penalty on Marcus Cannon moving the ball back to the Patriots 47.
After another Patriots three-and-out, the Seahawks 65 yards in 10 plays, this time reaching the end zone on quarterback Russell Wilson's 6-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Doug Baldwin, but the PAT was blocked, keeping the score 12–7.
After a disappointing loss to Seattle the Patriots traveled to Santa Clara, California to face Tom Brady's childhood team, the San Francisco 49ers, who were on an eight-game losing streak.
After swapping punts, the Jets covered 73 yards, not facing a single third down, regaining the lead with Fitzpatrick throwing a 22-yard pass to Quincy Enunwa with 10:17 remaining in the fourth quarter.
Additionally, Tom Brady won his 201st career game, surpassing Peyton Manning for the most combined regular season and postseason victories by a quarterback in NFL history.
But midway through the first quarter, Malcom Brown and Patrick Chung shared a tackle of Kenneth Dixon in the end zone for a safety(the third by the Patriots' defense on the season).
After forcing the Ravens to punt on the initial drive of the third quarter, the Patriots marched 65 yards to score on Brady's 19-yard pass to Bennett, increasing the lead to 23–3.
It took the Patriots a mere four plays to score on Brady's 18-yard touchdown pass to third-string tight end Matt Lengel, his first career catch, and the lead widened to 20–0.
The Patriots took the opening kickoff right down the field, marching 75 yards in 13 plays, taking seven-and-a-half minutes off the clock, to score on a two-yard touchdown pass from Brady to Bennett.
Beginning at their own 44 yard line, the Patriots managed to reach the Dolphins' 22, but were forced to settle for a 40-yard field goal, extending the lead to 17–0 on the first play of the second quarter.
The ensuing Patriots possession resulted in a 41-yard Stephen Gostkowski field goal with five seconds left in the first half, leaving the score 21–3 in favor of Atlanta at halftime.
With new life, Brady threw a 6-yard touchdown to Amendola, and James White took a direct snap into the end zone for a 2-point conversion to make the score 28–20 with 5:56 left.
The Falcons then drove to the New England 22-yard line, aided by a Devonta Freeman 39-yard catch-and-run and a 27-yard sideline catch by Julio Jones, and were in range to kick a field goal to go up by 11 points and virtually seal the win.
On the ensuing 2-point attempt, Danny Amendola took a Brady screen pass into the end zone to tie the game, completing a 25-point comeback, the largest in Super Bowl history.
After an incomplete pass intended for Martellus Bennett, James White took a toss to the right and dove at the goal line for a touchdown, winning Super Bowl LI for the Patriots, 34–28.
Quarterback Tom Brady, linebacker Dont'a Hightower, safety Devin McCourty, and special teamer Matthew Slater were all named as starters.