| 1976 Oakland Raiders season | |
|---|---|
| Owner | Al Davis |
| General manager | Al Davis |
| Head coach | John Madden |
| Home stadium | Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum |
| Results | |
| Record | 13–1 |
| Division place | 1stAFC West |
| Playoffs | WonDivisional Playoffs (vs.Patriots) 24–21 WonAFC Championship (vs.Steelers) 24–7 WonSuper Bowl XI (vs.Vikings) 32–14 |
The1976Oakland Raiders season was the team's 17th season, and 7th in theNational Football League (NFL).
After having appeared in the three previousAFC Championship Games – and having lost all three—the 1976 Raiders finally won the conference championship,[1] and went on to win their firstSuper Bowl.
After posting a 13–1 regular season record and winning their sixthAFC West championship in seven seasons, and their fifth consecutive one, the Raiders won against both theNew England Patriots andPittsburgh Steelers to achieve the team's second Super Bowl berth. Then, on January 9, 1977, at theRose Bowl, the Raiders wonSuper Bowl XI by rolling over theMinnesota Vikings 32–14. With this victory, the Raiders achieved a 16–1 (.941) overall record. They were the best team in the NFL in 1976.
In 2012, the 1976 Oakland Raiders were named the greatest team of all time by NFL.com's "Bracketology"; a 15-day, six-round fan vote tournament that featured the 64 greatest teams from theSuper Bowl era. Oakland beat the2000 Baltimore Ravens in the final round by a .8% margin.[2] The NFL on its 100th anniversary named the 1976 Raiders #8 on the 100 greatest teams of all time.[3][4]
| Round | Overall | Player | Position | College |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 34 | Charles Philyaw | DE | Texas Southern |
| 2 | 50 | Jeb Blount | QB | Tulsa |
| 3 | 84 | Rik Bonness | LB | Nebraska |
| 4 | 110 | Herb McMath | DE | Morningside |
| 5 | 146 | Fred Steinfort | K | Boston College |
| 7 | 204 | Clarence Chapman | WR | Eastern Michigan |
| 8 | 220 | Jerome Dove | DB | Colorado State |
| 8 | 231 | Terry Kunz | HB | Colorado |
| 10 | 286 | Dwight Lewis | DB | Purdue |
| 11 | 313 | Rick Jennings | HB | Maryland |
| 12 | 343 | Cedric Brown | S | Kent State |
| 13 | 367 | Craig Crnick | DE | Idaho |
| 13 | 370 | Mark Young | G | Washington State |
| 14 | 397 | Calvin Young | HB | Fresno State |
| 15 | 427 | Carl Hargrave | DB | Upper Iowa |
| 16 | 454 | Doug Hogan | DB | Southern California |
| 17 | 478 | Buddy Tate | DB | Tulsa |
| 17 | 481 | Nate Beasley | HB | Delaware |
Front office
Head coaches
Offensive coaches
| Defensive coaches
Special teams coaches
|
| Quarterbacks(QB) Running backs(RB) Wide receivers(WR) Tight ends(TE) | Offensive linemen(OL) | Linebackers(LB)
Defensive backs(DB) Special teams(ST) | Reserve
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The Road to their first World Championship began on opening day, as they hosted the two-time reigning world championPittsburgh Steelers. Oakland trailed 28–14 with just over five minutes to play, yet orchestrated what many to this day refer to as theirComeback Classic of1976. They won 31–28 on a 21-yardFred Steinfort field goal with 18 seconds left.
What followed was a mammoth five-game road trip, featuring wins over each of the Raiders' three divisional foes. It also included Oakland's lone loss on the year, a 48–17 shocker atNew England. However, this would just be a preview of things to come between the Raiders and the Patriots.
Oakland's first six wins were by a total of 28 points. Coupled with the loss, the Raiders actually were outscored 151–148 despite a 6–1 record. But they became virtually unbeatable after the defeat. Upon returning home, they cruised to big victories, like a 49–16 stomping of the expansionTampa Bay Buccaneers and had nail biters like the 28–27 victory against a competitiveChicago Bear team at Soldier Field. They closed out the season with a 24–0 shutout of theSan Diego Chargers in Oakland, and ended allowing only 16 points total to division foes Denver, Kansas City and San Diego at home (Tampa Bay was also in the AFC West, finishing 0–14).[8]
The Raiders ended the 1976 season with 64.3% of their passes completed;Ken Stabler completed 66.7% of his passes. FullbackMark van Eeghen passed the 1,000-yard mark at 1,012 yards. Tight endDave Casper led the team in receptions with 53, while side receiverCliff Branch led in reception yards (1,111), touchdowns (12), and yards per reception for receivers who caught more than one pass (24.2).
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance | Recap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | July 31 | Dallas Cowboys | W 17–14 | 1–0 | Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum | 52,391 | Recap |
| 2 | August 7 | vs.St. Louis Cardinals | W 20–9 | 2–0 | Sun Devil Stadium(Tempe, Arizona) | 33,216 | Recap |
| 3 | August 13 | atNew York Jets | W 41–17 | 3–0 | Yankee Stadium | 10,726 | Recap |
| 4 | August 21 | Los Angeles Rams | L 14–23 | 3–1 | Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum | 52,615 | Recap |
| 5 | August 29 | atSan Francisco 49ers | W 14–9 | 4–1 | Candlestick Park | 52,704 | Recap |
| 6 | September 4 | Seattle Seahawks | W 45–28 | 5–1 | Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum | 51,487 | Recap |
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Steelers | 0 | 7 | 7 | 14 | 28 |
| •Raiders | 0 | 7 | 0 | 24 | 31 |
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| •Raiders | 7 | 10 | 0 | 7 | 24 |
| Chiefs | 0 | 0 | 7 | 14 | 21 |
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| •Raiders | 0 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 14 |
| Oilers | 6 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 13 |
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Raiders | 0 | 10 | 0 | 7 | 17 |
| •Patriots | 7 | 14 | 14 | 13 | 48 |
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| •Raiders | 7 | 7 | 0 | 13 | 27 |
| Chargers | 7 | 0 | 3 | 7 | 17 |
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| •Raiders | 0 | 3 | 14 | 0 | 17 |
| Broncos | 0 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Packers | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 14 |
| •Raiders | 0 | 18 | 0 | 0 | 18 |
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Broncos | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| •Raiders | 3 | 0 | 3 | 13 | 19 |
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Raiders | 0 | 14 | 7 | 7 | 28 |
| Bears | 7 | 0 | 20 | 0 | 27 |
atSoldier Field,Chicago, Illinois
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Oakland escaped Chicago with a victory after a 31-yard field goal attempt byBob Thomas with 15 seconds left got caught in a gust of wind and hit the upright.
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chiefs | 0 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 10 |
| •Raiders | 7 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 21 |
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| •Raiders | 12 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 26 |
| Eagles | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buccaneers | 7 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 16 |
| •Raiders | 7 | 14 | 21 | 7 | 49 |
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bengals | 6 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 20 |
| •Raiders | 14 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 35 |
| 1 | Bengals | John McDaniel 40-yard pass fromKen Anderson (kick failed) | Bengals 6–0 | |
| 1 | Raiders | Dave Casper 24-yard pass fromKen Stabler (Errol Mann kick) | Raiders 7–6 | |
| 1 | Raiders | Dave Casper 3-yard pass from Ken Stabler (Errol Mann kick) | Raiders 14–6 | |
| 2 | Bengals | Stan Fritts 1-yard run (Chris Bahr kick) | Raiders 14–13 | |
| 2 | Raiders | Pete Banaszak 1-yard run (Errol Mann kick) | Raiders 21–13 | |
| 3 | Raiders | Cliff Branch 42-yard pass from Ken Stabler (Errol Mann kick) | Raiders 28–13 | |
| 3 | Bengals | Archie Griffin 21-yard run (Chris Bahr kick) | Raiders 28–20 | |
| 4 | Raiders | Fred Biletnikoff 7-yard pass from Ken Stabler (Errol Mann kick) | Raiders 35–20 | |
With the Raiders' victory, theSteelers tied the Bengals for first in the AFC Central. Pittsburgh would win the division on a tiebreaker.
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chargers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| •Raiders | 7 | 10 | 7 | 0 | 24 |
| AFC West | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | DIV | CONF | PF | PA | STK | |
| Oakland Raiders(1) | 13 | 1 | 0 | .929 | 7–0 | 10–1 | 350 | 237 | W10 |
| Denver Broncos | 9 | 5 | 0 | .643 | 5–2 | 7–5 | 315 | 206 | W2 |
| San Diego Chargers | 6 | 8 | 0 | .429 | 2–5 | 4–8 | 248 | 285 | L1 |
| Kansas City Chiefs | 5 | 9 | 0 | .357 | 2–5 | 4–8 | 290 | 376 | W1 |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 0 | 14 | 0 | .000 | 0–4 | 0–13 | 125 | 412 | L14 |
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Venue | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Divisional | December 18 | New England Patriots | W 24–21 | Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum | 53,045 |
| AFC Championship | December 26 | Pittsburgh Steelers | W 24–7 | Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum | 53,739 |
| Super Bowl XI | January 9, 1977 | Minnesota Vikings | W 32–14 | Rose Bowl | 100,421 |
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Patriots | 7 | 0 | 14 | 0 | 21 |
| •Raiders | 3 | 7 | 0 | 14 | 24 |
Raiders win and go to the AFC Championship Game and win to the Pittsburgh Steelers 24-7. And win Super Bowl XI to the Minnesota Vikings 32-14.
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Steelers | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| •Raiders | 3 | 14 | 7 | 0 | 24 |
Raiders win and go to Super Bowl XI where they faced the Minnesota Vikings and win 32-14.
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Raiders | 0 | 16 | 3 | 13 | 32 |
| Vikings | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 14 |
atRose Bowl,Pasadena, California
| Game information |
|---|
Second quarter
Third quarter
Fourth quarter
|
Raiders win and in 1977 finished 12-2 and win in 2OT to the Baltimore Colts 37-31. But lost to the Super Bowl XII loser Denver Broncos in the AFC Championship Game 20-17.
