The last game at Foxboro Stadium ‘almost brings a tear’ to Bill Belichick’s eye
On January 19, 2002, the New England Patriots and Oakland Raiders squared off at Foxboro Stadium for a frosty postseason matchup. In the first-ever AFC divisional round game to take place at night, quarterback Tom Brady took the field in chilly temperatures and heavy precipitation for his playoff debut.
“It started out there was a little bit of snow on the field,” Patriots head coach Bill Belichick told NFL Films. “Of course, by the end, you couldn’t see the lines. You could just see the pylons and the field markings.”
But the inclement weather was merely just one element of the unforgettable evening. As the wintry mix continued to cover the field, the Patriots found themselves trailing 13-3 in the third quarter. After a six-yard rushing touchdown by Brady to bring the score to 13-10, New England was poised to mount a fourth-quarter comeback.
Their momentum, however, seemingly came to a halt in final minutes of the game, as Oakland’s Charles Woodson—whose locker at Michigan was two stalls down from Brady’s—sacked his former teammate and forced a fumble.
“We didn’t have Woodson blocked, and really Tom should have read that and gotten rid of the ball,” Belichick recalled.
With 1:50 left to play, Oakland regained possession and had plans to run out the clock and advance to the AFC Championship game.
Or so they thought.
After officials reviewed the play, they ultimately decided to reverse the call on account of the “Tuck Rule.” The refs claimed that Brady’s arm had made the forward motion to throw the ball.
“As soon as I saw the replay, I felt pretty good about the situation,” Belichick said. “I thought really that Tom was tucking the ball, and I thought that this is going to be an incomplete pass.”
As a result of the overturned call, the Patriots continued their drive and set up a game-tying 45-yard field goal by Adam Vinateri. The kicker went on to notch the game-winning score in overtime, sending the Patriots to the conference title game. Belichick and Brady would, of course, go on to win their first of five Super Bowls together.
“It was so dramatic,” Belichick told NFL Films. “It was, you know, almost romantic. The way the snow was falling and the crowd. And really, it almost brings a tear to my eye.”
The latest edition of the NFL Network’s documentary series, The Timeline, takes a deeper look at the controversial game and how it influenced the Patriots’ dynasty and Raiders’ corresponding demise. The episode will air after the Patriots-Buccaneers game on Thursday and feature interviews from Belichick, then-Oakland head coach Jon Gruden, Woodson, and Brady.
Watch a trailer of the hour-long program below.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TxSHdf5U_GI
