FOXBORO — Before Sunday’s matchup with the Las Vegas Raiders, the Patriots celebrated the most important team in franchise history.
More than two dozen members of New England’s 2001 championship squad returned to Foxboro to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Patriots’ first Super Bowl title.
They were, naturally, “introduced as a team” in a pregame ceremony at Gillette Stadium, taking the field to the familiar chords of U2’s “Beautiful Day.”
Richard Seymour, Ty Law and the recently inducted Adam Vinatieri wore their gold Pro Football Hall of Fame jackets, with Seymour also sporting a cowboy hat and boots. Willie McGinest, Kevin Faulk and Dante Scarnecchia wore the red versions given to Patriots Hall of Famers.
A total of 32 players and coaches attended, ranging from franchise icons like Tedy Bruschi, Troy Brown and Lawyer Milloy to more obscure Patriots alumni like Kole Ayi, a linebacker from UMass who appeared in one game for the ’01 Pats, and Drew Inzer, a Rhode Island-raised guard who spent time on New England’s practice squad.
Rushing leader Antowain Smith was there. So was cornerback Antwan Harris, whose claim to fame was returning Brown’s blocked field goal for a touchdown in the 2001 AFC Championship Game. Safety Tebucky Jones, whose would-be Super Bowl scoop-and-score was negated by a penalty, also was among the honorees.
If you include current Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel, who had more important matters to attend to before kickoff, 10 of the Patriots’ 11 starting Super Bowl XXXVI defenders made the trip. Vrabel met his former teammates for dinner Saturday night.
The full roster of ex-Patriots present: Joe Andruzzi, Kole Ayi, Troy Brown, Tedy Bruschi, Matt Chatham, Marc Edwards, Kevin Faulk, Ivan Fears, Bobby Hamilton, Antwan Harris, Drew Inzer, Ted Johnson, Tebucky Jones, Andy Katzenmoyer, Ty Law, Matt Light, Willie McGinest, Lawyer Milloy, Brandon Mitchell, Marty Moore, Stephen Neal, David Nugent, Patrick Pass, Lonie Paxton, Anthony Pleasant, Dante Scarnecchia, Richard Seymour, Antowain Smith, Otis Smith, Adam Vinatieri, Ken Walter and Charlie Weis.
It was a fitting setting for the quarter-century reunion. The Raiders were the final team the 2001 Patriots faced in the old Foxboro Stadium, with New England’s dramatic victory that snowy night serving as the springboard for the dynasty that followed.
Former New England Patriots kicker Adam Vinatieri, right, shows off his Patriots Hall of Fame ring presented to him by team owner Robert Kraft, left, in a half time ceremony during a football game against the Las Vegas Raiders, Sunday, in Foxborough. (Mark Stockwell/Boston Herald)
The two central figures of that dynasty — Bill Belichick and Tom Brady — were the most notable absences on Sunday. Belichick was not in attendance after leading his North Carolina Tar Heels to an upset win over Pitt on Saturday. Brady, who is now both FOX’s lead NFL analyst and a minority owner of the Raiders, was 3,000 miles away in Seattle, calling 49ers-Seahawks for the network.
Vinatieri referenced Brady — and took a few jabs at the smattering of Raiders fans in attendance — after receiving his Pro Football Hall of Fame Ring of Excellence in a separate halftime ceremony. Those fans, he said, “have had a front-row seat to a lot of pretty cool moments in my career.”
“At the time, I thought we owned the Raiders,” the Snow Bowl kicker cracked. “And you know what? Thanks to Tom, now we do.”