The New England Patriots finished the National Football League's 1971 season with a record of six wins and eight losses, and finished third in the AFC East division. It was the first season the Patriots played in Schaeffer Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts after playing in three different stadiums the previous three seasons in Boston. It was the first season after the Patriots changed its name from the Boston Patriots to the New England Patriots in a move to regionalize the franchise and represent the six New England states.