(This story was updated because an earlier version included an inaccuracy)
New England Patriots cornerback Christian Gonzalez is just as smooth off the field as he is on it.
That was made obvious by his perfect response to former NFL coach Jon Gruden, who jokingly brought up the tuck rule game during an interview with the All-Pro defensive back.
“I used to hate the Patriots,” Gruden said on the “Gruden Goes Long” podcast. “That tuck rule, that was some [expletive] Gonzalez. You know that?”
Gonzalez responded, “That was before my time.”
Gruden was referring to the 2001 divisional round of the playoffs when he coached the Oakland Raiders in an overtime loss to the Patriots. It is often called the “tuck rule game” because a previous NFL rule saved the Patriots and kept their first Super Bowl run alive.
Tom Brady fumbled the ball after being sacked with under two minutes left in the fourth quarter. The Raiders initially recovered the ball and were in a position to ice the game.
However, the call was overturned due to the now-eradicated tuck rule, which said that a play was considered a forward pass if the offensive player’s arm was moving forward.
The fumble was ultimately overturned, and the Patriots went on to win the game.
That game will forever remain a sore subject for Gruden and former players on that Raiders team. As for Gonzalez, who wasn’t even born at the time, it’s ancient history that had nothing to do with him.
His goal is to make his own history with a present-day Patriots team looking to get back to playoff contention.