2001 AFC divisional playoff game

A screenshot of the CBS broadcast taken seconds before the controversial play began.
Oakland Raiders New England Patriots (10-6) (11-5) 13 16 Head coach:  Jon Gruden Head coach:  Bill Belichick
1 2 3 4 OT Total OAK 0 7 6 0 0 13 NE 0 0 3 10 3 16
Date	January 19, 2002
Stadium	Foxboro Stadium
Location	Foxborough, Massachusetts
Referee	Walt Coleman
Attendance	60,292
Network	CBS
Announcers	Greg Gumbel and Phil Simms

The 2001 AFC divisional playoff game, also known as the "Tuck Rule Game,"^[1] "Snow Bowl,"^[2][3] or the "Snow Job,"^[4][5] was a playoff game between the New England Patriots and the Oakland Raiders. It took place on January 19, 2002, at Foxboro Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, then the home stadium of the Patriots. The name "Tuck Rule Game" originates from the controversial game-changing play. In the play, Raiders' cornerback Charles Woodson sacked Patriots' quarterback Tom Brady, which in turn, caused a fumble that was eventually recovered by Raiders' linebacker Greg Biekert, and would have almost certainly sealed the game. Officials reviewed the play, and eventually determined that Brady's arm was moving forward, thus making it an incomplete pass. As a result, the original call was overturned, and the ball was given back to the Patriots, who subsequently moved the ball into field goal range. With under a minute remaining in regulation, Patriots' placekicker Adam Vinatieri kicked a 45-yard field goal to tie the game at 13, which sent the game into overtime. In the subsequent overtime, Vinatieri kicked a 23-yard field goal to win the game for the Patriots. New England went on to win Super Bowl XXXVI.

The "tuck rule" call [edit]

Playing in a heavy snow storm, Oakland led at halftime, 7–0, and then took a 13–3 lead into the fourth quarter after two field goals. Brady rushed in for a touchdown to cut the lead to 13–10. With less than two minutes left to play, the Patriots drove the ball down the field. While they were slightly out of field goal range, Brady dropped back to pass and dropped the ball after being hit by Woodson. Raiders linebacker Greg Biekert dove on the ball, and was initially credited with a recovered fumble.

In 1999, though, a new rule had been introduced, which eventually became known as the tuck rule:

NFL Rule 3, Section 22, Article 2, Note 2. When [an offensive] player is holding the ball to pass it forward, any intentional forward movement of his arm starts a forward pass, even if the player loses possession of the ball as he is attempting to tuck it back toward his body. Also, if the player has tucked the ball into his body and then loses possession, it is a fumble.^[6]

After instant replay, referee Walt Coleman reversed this call, declared the play an incomplete forward pass, and gave possession back to New England. In explaining the reversal to the stadium crowd and the television audience, the referee stated that the ball was moving forward at the time it was dropped. In later interviews, the referee stated that it was his explanation, not the reversal, that was in error; the ball was moving backwards when it was lost, but the tuck rule applied. Thus, the original call was overturned, and New England maintained possession.

Because the play was initially ruled a fumble, instant replay rules required the referee to see "incontrovertible visual evidence" on the replay that Brady had not "tucked the ball into his body and then {lost} possession" of it before reversing the original call on the field. In 2012, on the ten-year anniversary of the game, Coleman told ESPN that he did not see Brady lose the ball, and, as NFL refs were trained to do in this situation, ruled it a fumble because that call could be reviewed while an incomplete pass could not; once he saw a replay, Coleman quickly reversed his previous ruling, telling ESPN it was an "easy" call.^[7]

The tuck rule was abolished on March 20, 2013, by a 29-1 vote of current teams. Two teams, including the Patriots, abstained from the vote.^[8]

The aftermath [edit]

With the Patriots given new life, Brady completed a 13-yard pass to David Patten that advanced the ball to the Raiders 29. Shortly thereafter, Vinatieri came on to attempt a game-tying field goal. Kicking into the wind and snow, Vinatieri's line-drive kick was good from 45 yards away with 27 seconds left, and the game was tied. After the ensuing kickoff, the Raiders decided not to attempt to advance the ball and let the game go to overtime.

The Patriots won the toss and took the ball to start overtime. They drove 61 yards in 15 plays, with Brady completing all eight of his pass attempts for 45 yards. On fourth down and 4 from the Raider 28, Brady hit Patten for a six-yard completion. A few plays later, Vinatieri kicked a 23-yard field goal and the Patriots won 16-13. It was the final game at Foxboro Stadium, due to the Pittsburgh Steelers winning their divisional playoff game (they had home-field advantage throughout the playoffs).

With the win, the Patriots advanced to the AFC Championship Game against the Steelers, where they scored a 24-17 victory, and then defeated the NFC champion St. Louis Rams 20-17 in Super Bowl XXXVI on a last-second field goal by Vinatieri to capture their first Super Bowl championship. Additionally, the Patriots would win Super Bowls XXXVIII and XXXIX and make appearances in Super Bowls XLII and XLVI.

For the Raiders, they would go to the Super Bowl one year later, only to be beaten by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and their former head coach, Jon Gruden, by the score of 48-21. The Raiders have not gone to the playoffs since then.

As of October 2012, Coleman has been referee for 155 more NFL games, none of which involved the Oakland Raiders. Including 11 New England Patriots games. ^[9]

Starting lineups [edit]

See also [edit]

• Snowplow Game

References [edit]

External links [edit]

• Referee criticism
• ESPN recap of the game
• CNNSI recap of the game