1980 Oakland Raiders season
| 1980 Oakland Raiders season | |
|---|---|
| Head coach | Tom Flores |
| General manager | Al Davis |
| Owner | Al Davis |
| Home field | Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum |
| Results | |
| Record | 11–5 |
| Division place | 2nd AFC West |
| Playoff finish |
Won Wild Card Playoffs (Oilers) 27–7 Won Divisional Playoffs (Browns) 14–12 Won AFC Championship (Chargers) 34–27 Won Super Bowl XV (Eagles) 27–10 |
The 1980 Oakland Raiders season began with the team trying to improve on their 9–7 record from 1979. It was the 20th anniversary of the Oakland Raiders franchise and ended with their second Super Bowl victory. Prior to the start of the season Al Davis announced plans to move the Raiders from Oakland to Los Angeles. However, NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle blocked the move by filing a restraining order. He would even try to get Al Davis removed as owner, as the case went to the courts. Still playing in Oakland the Raiders entered the season with a new Quarterback after acquiring Dan Pastorini from the Houston Oilers for Kenny Stabler. However Pastorini struggled and the Raiders got off to a 2-3 when Pastorini was injured and replaced by Jim Plunkett. Plunkett proved right for the Raiders offense as the team played solid football the rest of the season compiling an 11-5 record, and qualifying for the playoffs as a Wild Card. In the Wild Card Game the Raiders would beat the Houston Oilers 27-7 at Oakland as the Raiders defense picked former teammate Kenny Stabler off twice. Playing in freezing weather with temperature reading 30 degrees below zero the Raiders stunned the Browns 14-12 in a defensive struggle in Cleveland. In the AFC Championship Game in San Diego the game would be a shoot out as the Raiders stunned the Chargers 34-27 to become the first AFC Wild Card to make the Super Bowl.
Head Coach: Tom Flores
Ast: Ray Willsey (RB), Lew Erber (WR), Sam Boghosian (OL), Earl Leggett (DL), Charlie Sumner (LB), Chet Franklin (DB), Steve Ortmayer (ST), Bob Mischak (OfA, pro sct), Joe Madro (OfA, sct), Willie Brown (DfA)
Five weeks into the Raiders season, starting QB Dan Pastorini broke his leg in a game against the Kansas City Chiefs. 32-year-old Jim Plunkett came off the bench to relieve Pastorini and had a terrible performance, throwing 5 interceptions in a 31–17 loss. The Raiders, thinking that Marc Wilson did not have the experience they wanted, called on Plunkett to start for the remainder of the year. In his first game as a starter, he completed eleven of fourteen passes with a touchdown and no interceptions, beginning one of the greatest comeback stories in the history of the sport. Plunkett guided Oakland to nine victories in eleven games and a playoff berth as a wild-card. Then, even more remarkably, rather than suffering an early defeat which marks the typical fate of NFL wild card teams, Plunkett led the Raiders to four playoff victories, including the Super Bowl, where they defeated the Philadelphia Eagles, 27–10, in Super Bowl XV. Throwing for 261 yards and three touchdowns, Plunkett was named the game's MVP.
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