Tom Brady's incredible career was full of defining moments, especially in the playoffs. But perhaps the first - and one of the most infamous - of those came during the 'Tuck Rule Game' against the Las Vegas (then Oakland) Raiders.

The Patriots were trailing by three points late in the game when Charles Woodson sacked Brady and stripped the ball out of his hands. The refs originally called a recovered fumble, thus virtually ending the game.

But upon further review, ref Walt Coleman reversed the play, claiming that the ball was moving backward when Brady was sacked, thus making it an incomplete pass. Eventually, the Pats would tie the game and then win in overtime.

Tom Brady Says He Would've Been Drew Bledsoe's Backup Again If It Wasn't For The 'Tuck Rule'

Looking back to that game, even Brady knows that play could've changed his entire career. In his 30 for 30 documentary, he went as far as to say that he would've gone back to being Drew Bledsoe's backup next season if the Patriots lost that game:

"I'm probably the backup QB going into 2002," Brady said in the documentary. "I'm not the starter if we lose that game."

What's The Tuck Rule?

(via NFL)

"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."

Tom Brady Doesn't Rule Out Coming Back From Retirement

Brady's first full season as a starter was only the beginning of an unmatched career. Now, two decades later, he's not ruling back a miracle comeback just a week after announcing his retirement from the NFL:

“You know, I’m just gonna take things as they come,” Brady said on his podcast, as quoted by Pro Football Talk. “I think that’s the best way to put it and I don’t think anything, you know, you never say never. At the same time I know that I’m very, I feel very good about my decision."

"I don’t know how I’ll feel six months from now, [inaudible] change, it most likely won’t," Brady added. "But I try to make the best possible decision I can in the moment, which I did this last week. And, again, I think it’s not looking to reverse course, I’m definitely not looking to do that. But at the same time, I think you have to be realistic that you never know what challenges there are gonna be in life. Again, I loved playing. I’m looking forward to doing things other than playing.”

Truth be told, it was a fumble. Brady knows it, Bill Belichick knows it, Robert Kraft knows it, the refs know it, and even Patriots fans know it. But if that's what it took for us to have Tom Brady, then so be it.