The annual NFLPA report card was released on Wednesday, and all 32 teams were graded on things like locker rooms, training staff, treatment of families and several other factors.
One other category was team travel to away games. The New England Patriots finished with an F grade in the category, ranking them 31st out of 32 teams (Buffalo somehow managed to receive an F- grade).
According to the report card, several players complained about New England’s travel schedule, in addition to traveling on the team plane itself.
Let’s take a look at why Patriots players feel like New England’s team plane is severely lacking.
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New England Patriots team plane, explained
According to the NFLPA’s report card for the Patriots, 39 percent of players indicated that they have a “comfortable amount of personal space” on flights to away games. The report adds that the team’s travel schedule isn’t very efficient, either. Here’s what the report details about the players’ issues with the plane itself:
Players want an upgraded team plane. The current plane is too small, there is no Wi-Fi available, and there are seats with ashtrays in the armrests. Players specifically responded that “our plane is the worst thing — size, space, safety” and “it is not conducive to preparedness for athletic performance.”
What kind of plane do the Patriots use?
According to this article from Simple Flying in 2024, the Patriots use a Boeing 767 plane. Another outlet, One Mile At A Time, says that the Patriots purchased two planes in 2017 for $10 million, before dropping to a single plane. The plane is operated by Eastern Airlines on behalf of the Patriots.
According to ESPN at the time of the plane’s purchase, the planes were retrofitted with first-class seats that recline. Apparently the new seats don’t make that much of a difference as far as comfort.
In this video of the interior of the plane, you can see that the seats still look relatively small, resembling a commercial airline plane:
During the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, Kraft used one of the Patriots’ planes to bring back 1.2 million N95 masks to healthcare workers in Massachusetts.
How old is the Patriots team plane?
Per One Mile At a Time, the remaining plane that the Patriots use was produced in 1991, making it over 30 years old. The outlet adds that the plane was flown by American Airlines until 2016.
According to Forbes’ valuation of the Patriots from 2024, New England brought in $712 million in revenue. Kraft has a networth of $11.8 billion in addition to two other private jets, including one worth $26 million.
Patriots report card
New England had one of the worst overall report cards from the NFLPAs report, ranking second-to-last, behind the Arizona Cardinals. Here’s where New England ranked in the rest of the categories:
- Treatment of families: C+ (18th)
- Food/dining area: C (24th)
- Nutritionist/dietician: B (25th)
- Locker Room: C- (22nd)
- Training Room: C- (30th)
- Training Staff: C+ (26th)
- Weight Room: F (32nd)
- Strength Coaches: B (26th)
- Team Travel: F (31st)
- Head Coach: B+ (24th)
- Ownership: D (29th)
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