NBC Sports: NFL 1980-AFC Final-Oakland Raiders @ San Diego Chargers: Full Game

Source:The New Democrat

With all due respect to the Air Coryell Chargers, they weren’t a complete all around great football team. They had a great offensive minded head coach in Don Coryell. They had a Hall of Fame quarterback in Dan Fouts and a great passing game as a result. With great receivers, Kellen Winslow, Charlie Joyner, John Jefferson and perhaps a few others. And they had a pretty good running game with Chuck Muncie. This was a team in the late 1970s, through 1987, which was Dan Fouts last season, that scored a lot of points and gained a lot of yards. But gave up almost as many points and yards as they gained. Great teams don’t do that. If they have a great offense, they at least have a good defense to go with it. So they aren’t winning and losing a lot of shootouts. But winning a lot of blowouts. The San Francisco 49ers of the 1980s are a great example of that.

The 1980 Raiders, were a great team, at least in the second half of the season and through the playoffs, including the Super Bowl. Because they could score a lot of points and gain a lot of yards. Both passing and running, but their defense shut teams down. They shut good offenses down, like the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl 15. And this first quarter is a great example of that. The Raiders scored 21 points, the Chargers scored a touchdown. But the difference being the Raiders were able to shut down the Chargers in that quarter, even though the Chargers did score a touchdown. And the Chargers, give up three touchdowns in that quarter.

The Raiders, simply matched up very well with the Chargers that season. The Chargers had the great passing game, but the Raiders had a great pass rush and great secondary. They were big and quick on defense and caused a lot problems for the Chargers offense. And the Raiders had a balanced offense and with the Chargers being prone to giving up a lot of yards both from the pass and run, meant the Raiders could move the ball and score and get the ball back. Which created separation on the scoreboard. Super Bowl teams, aren’t great on one side of the ball and weak on the other. Even if their strength is on one side of the ball, they’re good enough on the other side to complement their strengths. Which gives them a good team. That was the difference between the Raiders and Chargers in this game.

NBC Sports: NFL 1980-AFC Divisional: Oakland Raiders @ Cleveland Browns: Full Game

Source:The New Democrat

Especially if you consider the playing conditions of this playoff game between the Raiders and Browns, this is one of the best playoff games of all-time in NFL history. Cleveland, Ohio just from Lake Erie in January with snow on the ground, even though it didn’t snow in this game. Frigid conditions, Cleveland Municipal Stadium that wasn’t just an outdoor stadium, but an open air stadium as well. Where the lake was just off of the stadium and the end zone by the lake only had one deck of seats. So there wasn’t any protection from that part of the field from the cold air and wind. So you literally felt the frigid wind coming off of the lake in that stadium from that end zone.

Which meant this game was a defensive oriented ball control power run short throwing football game. And even though the Raiders were the road team and from Oakland and Northern California and the Browns were the home team from Cleveland, the style of football for this game favored the Raiders. Because they were a big strong physical team on both sides of the ball. That ran the ball and stuffed the run. Attacked the quarterback and protected the quarterback. The Browns were a finesse pass first team that was questionable on defense and prone to getting beat by big physical teams that ran the ball very well.

The Browns of the late 1970s were called the Cardiac Kids for a very good reason. Even though they were a good football team back then and had pretty if not very good players on both sides of the ball, they weren’t great back then. And didn’t overwhelm good teams because of how good they were. They didn’t blow good teams out because they gave up a lot of yards and sometimes points as well. And were also behind a lot late in games and having to come back. The Raiders on the other hand when they were in the playoffs, they tended to win and hammer their opponents and put them away convincingly.

NBC Sports: NFL 1980-Wildcard-Houston Oilers @ Oakland Raiders: Full Game

Source:The New Democrat

On paper this looked like a great matchup and great game. Two physical hard-hitting teams with big offensive lines who play very good defense and run the ball very well. As well as having two very good quarterbacks in Ken Stabler for the Oilers, who of course use to play of the Raiders for so long. And Jim Plunkett for the Raiders, who finally got a chance to play for a good winning team. And one of if not the best all around teams in the NFL in 1980. All Plunkett needed was a good shot with a good team and he could show everyone how great a quarterback he really was.

This game was exactly that for the first three-quarters of it. Raiders up 10-7 after three-quarters and the Raiders went to work and not just dominated the Oilers defensively like they did for the first three-quarters, but their great defense turned into points as well. Scoring seventeen points in the fourth quarter and turning a very good close game into a blowout. 1980 was supposed to be the year for the Houston Oilers with the Pittsburgh Steelers not even making the AFC Playoffs. After dominating the 1970s. But it was the Raiders that instead stepped up and won the AFC and Super Bowl.

NBC Sports: NFL 1977-AFC Final-Oakland Raiders @ Denver Broncos: Full Game

Source:The New Democrat

With all due respect to the 1977 Denver Broncos, even though this game was played in Denver, this is one of the biggest upsets in NFC conference final history. If you look at the two teams and the two squads, the Raiders clearly had a better team man for man and as far as talent. The Broncos might not even had a single Pro Bowler on offense. The Raiders had four Hall of Famers on offense alone. OT Art Shell, OG Gene Upshaw, WR Fred Biletnikoff and TE Dave Casper. Arguably and I believe the best all around TE of all-time. The Raiders should have at least two other Hall of Famers on offense. QB Ken Stabler and WR Cliff Branch.

What the Broncos had in 1977 and really all the way even perhaps through the Dan Reeves era in the 1980s, but defensively not as good, was a great defense. Especially their linebackers, in Randy Gradishar, who should be in the Hall of Fame. Tom Jackson, Bob Swenson and Joe Rizzo. And Pro Bowler DL Paul Smith, Barney Chavous, Pro Bowler Lyle Alzado, who should probably get consideration for the Hall of Fame. NT Rubin Carter, who was a stud in the middle. Which you must have in order to play a 3-4. Louis Wright and Steve Foley in the secondary. They didn’t need a lot of talent on offense, because they didn’t need to score a lot of points. They only gave up ten points a game.

Going into this game, you would have to think the Raiders simply because they had a very good if not great all around team and the defending Super Bowl champions, would be the clear favorite in this game. Great quarterback, the best offensive line in football, great running game with Mark Van Egan and Clarence Davis. Great receivers and one of the best defenses in the NFL. That this would be the year we finally got to see the Oakland Raiders and Dallas Cowboys in the Super Bowl. Which would’ve been a classic in 1977, but the Broncos defense could shut anyone down. And then score enough points to win the game. And you can see it for yourself.

NBC Sports: NFL 1975- AFC Final-Oakland Raiders @ Pittsburgh Steelers: Full Game

Source:The New Democrat 

This was the second of three-straight AFC Finals that the Raiders and Steelers played against each other. 1974-76, Steelers won the first two and the Raiders finally broke through after losing six straight AFC Finals from 68-75. Six in eight years and this game in 75 was one of the better games in this rivalry, which I believe was the best rivalry in the 1970s in the NFL. Especially conference rivalry and between teams from different divisions. Even better than the Redskins-Cowboys rivalry in the NFC. Because these teams were better and they were playing in the playoffs every year and played three conference finals against each other.

Rivalries are only good and even real if the teams are good. And great rivalries are only great if the teams are great. And that is what separates the Raiders-Steelers rivalry from I believe the rest that we’ve seen ever. Because in the 1970s both teams year after year only had one goal, which was to win the Super Bowl. And they knew if they were going to do that they were going to have to beat the other team. Probably in the AFC Final just to get to the Super Bowl. Two very tough well coached teams, that both had power running games. That both had vertical passing games and great quarterbacks.

Both teams were very similar that they won by beating their opponents up. Running the ball right at the defense and doing it over and over and having very tough defense that could stuff the run, attack the quarterback and pound the receivers in the secondary. But they did it differently which gave fans something else to se. The Raiders, with their 3-4 defense that would use their DL to occupy the offensive line and have their linebackers make the plays and blitz the quarterback. The Steelers, were a 4-3 two-gap defense that could attack the QB and stuff the run just with their great defensive line. And play their linebackers and DB’s deep. And these teams were great at what they did, similar in how they did, but different enough to make their games even more interesting.