Thanks to the Miami Dolphins' 31-24 loss to the New York Giants on Monday night, the defending Super Bowl champions clinched their division for the seventh straight year and will have a chance to defend their championship in the postseason.
The Dolphins were officially eliminated from playoff contention, per Ian Rapoport of NFL.com.
Tom Brady has been the starting quarterback for the Patriots since winning Super Bowl XXXVI in 2001. Since that year, the Patriots have won the AFC East 13 times in 15 seasons. The two exceptions came in 2002—when the Patriots went 9-7 and finished in second place in the division—and 2008—when the team went 11-5 behind backup Matt Cassel following Brady's season-ending knee injury but failed to qualify for the playoffs.