What the world looked like the last time the Patriots lost to the New York Jets

The day was December 27, 2015, and the New York Jets did something they have not accomplished since: they beat the six-time defending AFC East champion New England Patriots with a final score of 26-20 in overtime.

Since that game, the Patriots-Jets rivalry has been a lopsided one. New England has won 13 straight games and even after losing the greatest quarterback of all time in 2020 left its opponent little chance. The average score of those 13 games was a whopping 31 points to 12, with the closest being two 22-17 games in 2016 and just three weeks ago.

The Patriots unsurprisingly do not care about any of this. Head coach Bill Belichick frankly won’t let them.

We, however, can look back in time to find out just how much the NFL and the world have changed since that fateful day that saw the Jets last beat the Patriots. So, please join us on a trip down memory lane.

The Patriots looked a lot different in 2015. When looking at New England’s game-day roster for Week 16 of the 2015 season we see that only four players are still with the team. Of those four, only one was listed as a starter: linebacker Jamie Collins, who is now on the practice squad after stints in Detroit and Cleveland.

The other three are special teams ace Matthew Slater, center David Andrews, and long snapper Joe Cardona. Safety Devin McCourty missed the game with an ankle injury, while Marcus Cannon did start at right tackle but is currently on New England’s injured reserve.

So, who did and didn’t the two teams have available seven years ago? Via the official game book, the following players:

The 2015 Patriots, by the way, ended their season with a loss in the AFC Championship Game against the eventual Super Bowl winner Denver Broncos.

The NFL looked a lot different in 2015. Let’s just take a look at the AFC and NFC Player of the Week from that weekend in December 2015 to find out how much the league as a whole has changed.

• Offensive Players of the Week: QB Ryan Fitzpatrick, WR Julio Jones
• Defensive Players of the Week: LB Robert Mathis, LB Dwight Freeney
• Special Teams Players of the Week: P Marquette King, K Blair Walsh

Out of those six, only Julio Jones is still playing. He is no longer with the Atlanta Falcons, though, but now in Tampa Bay alongside Tom Brady.

Speaking of Brady: Deflategate was still a thing back in December 2015. His suspension had not yet been reinstated and he would miss the first four weeks of the 2016 campaign before promptly leading New England to a Super Bowl win.

The world looked a lot different in 2015. Barack Obama was U.S. president. David Cameron was prime minister in the United Kingdom. Dilma Rousseff was president of Brazil (and not yet in jail). The conflict in Eastern Ukraine saw a ceasefire that, well, let’s just say it did not hold. Elon Musk was more concerned about SpaceX and Hyperloops than running Twitter into the ground.

What else was going on in 2015? Adele’s Hello topped the Billboard Top 100, with three of the other five spots filled by Justin Bieber songs (that’s still more variation than nowadays, with 15 of the top 20 songs belonging to Drake).

Oh, and did you know a new Star Wars trilogy started in December 2015? It featured Han Solo and Chewbacca, and I bet it will bring the franchise back to its glory days. Speaking of franchises: in December 2015, 23 Blockbuster stores were still open.

Did we miss anything? Yes, we most certainly did. But the gist still stands: a lot has changed over the last seven years, but the Patriots beating the Jets has remained unchanged.

On Sunday, they will have an opportunity to extend their win streak to 14 and move it into a new year — all while jumping ahead of New York in the standings.