My All Time Favorite Oakland Raiders Players

The Silver and Black. Just Win Baby. These are just a few of the phrases associated with what was once the most intimidating team in all off football: the Oakland / Los Angeles Raiders. When Al Davis took over the team in 1962, a new style of football was formed. The greatest Raiders players blended speed and power, a new dimension to player evaluation introduced by Davis. The best Raiders ever attribute their success to the culture of the team and to Davis’ leadership. The rowdy Raiders have been to Super Bowls in the 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, and 2000s, the only team in NFL history to do so. Some of the best players in Raiders history were on these teams. Famous Oakland Raiders like Ken Stabler, Cliff Branch, and Fred Biletnikoff are some of the best Raiders skill players while Gene Upshaw, Art Shell, and Jim Otto were powerful linemen whose grit allowed for these superstars to flourish.

The later Raiders teams were flashy with superstars like past players Jim Plunkett, Howie Long, and Marcus Allen, who is one of the best running backs of all time,  were parts of the later Super Bowl winning teams. Even though the team made a 12 year detour to Los Angeles, many of the team’s best, most iconic players were in Oakland.

The Oakland Raiders are known as a tough team who over time has had one simple slogan, “Just Win Baby.” Al Davis molded the Raiders in his image and won three Super Bowls. Along with the championships, comes a lot of great players.

OFFENSE

QUARTERBACKS

Ken Stabler

 

Jim Plunkett

 

Rich Gannon

 

RUNNING BACKS

Marcus Allen

 

Bo Jackson

 

Mark van Eeghen

 

Pete Banaszak

 

WIDE RECEIVERS

Tim Brown

 

Fred Biletnikoff

 

Cliff Branch

 

TIGHT ENDS

Todd Christensen

 

Dave Casper

 

OFFENSIVE LINEMEN

Art Shell

 

Gene Upshaw

 

OFFENSIVE LINEMEN

Jim Otto

 

Steve Wisniewski

 

Lincoln Kennedy

 

DEFENSE

DEFENSIVE LINEMEN

Howie Long

 

Otis Sistrunk

 

Chester McGlockton

 

DE- Ben Davidson (1964-1971)

 

LINEBACKERS

Ted Hendricks

 

Rod Martin

 

LB – Greg Biekert (1993-2001)

Matt Millen

 

DEFENSIVE BACKS

Lester Hayes

 

Willie Brown

 

Terry McDaniel

 

Mike Haynes

 

Jack Tatum

 

S – George Atkinson (1968-1977)

SPECIAL TEAMS

K – George Blanda

 

P – Ray Guy

 

PR – Tim Brown

 

KR – Clarence Davis

 

NICKNAME

• For a brief period, the new AFL team was known as the Senors but by the time the 1960 season started, the Oakland team was known as the Raiders. The origin of the Raiders name is not known. It was most likely chosen by principal owner Chet Soda and his partners.

TEAM NAMES

• Oakland Raiders (1960-1981)
• Los Angeles Raiders (1982-1994)
• Oakland Raiders (1995-Present)

HEAD COACHES

• Eddie Erdelatz (1960-1961)
• Marty Feldman (1961-1962)
• Red Conkright (1962)
• Al Davis (1963-1965)
• John Rauch (1966-1968)
• John Madden (1969-1978)
• Tom Flores (1979-1987)
• Mike Shanahan (1988-1989)
• Art Shell (1989-1994)
• Mike White (1995-1996)
• Joe Bugel (1997)
• Jon Gruden (1998-2001)
• Bill Callahan (2002-2003)
• Norv Turner (2004-2005)
• Art Shell (2006)
• Lane Kiffin (2007-2008)
• Tom Cable (2008-2010)
• Hue Jackson (2011)
• Dennis Allen (2012-2014)
• Tony Sparano (2014)
• Jack Del Rio (2015-2017)
• Jon Gruden (2018-Present)

SUPER BOWL CHAMPIONS

• Super Bowl XI (1976) – Oakland Raiders defeat Minnesota Vikings 32-14
• Super Bowl XV (1980) – Oakland Raiders defeat Philadelphia Eagles 27-10
• Super Bowl XVIII (1983) – Los Angeles Raiders defeat Washington Redskins 38-9

AFL CHAMPIONS (PRE-1966)

• None

SUPER BOWL APPEARANCES

• Super Bowl II (1967) – Oakland Raiders vs. Green Bay Packers
• Super Bowl XI (1976) – Oakland Raiders vs. Minnesota Vikings
• Super Bowl XV (1980) – Oakland Raiders vs. Philadelphia Eagles
• Super Bowl XVIII (1983) – Los Angeles Raiders vs. Washington Redskins
• Super Bowl XXXVII (2002) – Oakland Raiders vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers

AFL CHAMPIONSHIP GAMES (PRE-1966)

• None

AFL/AFC CHAMPIONSHIP GAMES

• 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1980, 1983, 1990, 2000, 2002

DIVISION CHAMPIONS

• 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1983, 1985, 1990, 2000, 2001, 2002

PLAYOFF APPEARANCES

• 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1980, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1990, 1991, 1993, 2000, 2001, 2002

PLAYOFF RECORD

• 25-18 .581

HALL OF FAME PLAYERS

• Marcus Allen RB (1982-1992)
• Fred Bilentnikoff WR (1965-1978)
• George Blanda PK/QB (1967-1975)
• Bob Brown T (1971-1973)
• Willie Brown CB (1967-1978)
• Dave Casper TE (1974-1980, 1984)
• Al Davis Owner (1963-2011)
• Eric Dickerson RB (1992)
• Mike Haynes CB (1983-1989)
• Ted Hendricks LB (1975-1983)
• James Lofton WR (1987-1988)
• Howie Long DE (1981-1993)
• Ronnie Lott S (1991-1992)
• John Madden Coach (1969-1978)
• Ron Mix OT (1971)
• Jerry Rice WR (2001-2004)
• Jim Otto C (1960-1974)
• Art Shell G (1968-1982)
• Gene Upshaw G (1967-1981)
• Rod Woodson CB (2001-2002)

RETIRED NUMBERS

• None

PRO BOWL MVP

• 1962 Cotton Davidson QB
• 1964 Archie Matsos LB
• 2001 Rich Gannon QB
• 2002 Rich Gannon QB

AWARDS

COACH OF THE YEAR

• 1963 Al Davis
• 1967 John Rauch

AFL ROOKIE OF THE YEAR

• None

DEFENSIVE ROOKIE OF THE YEAR

• 1998 Charles Woodson CB

OFFENSIVE ROOKIE OF THE YEAR

• 1982 Marcus Allen RB

AFL PLAYER OF THE YEAR

• 1967 Daryle Lamonica QB
• 1969 Daryle Lamonica QB

DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR

• 1980 Lester Hayes CB

OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR

• 1974 Ken Stabler QB
• 1985 Marcus Allen RB

NFL MVP

• 1974 Ken Stabler QB
• 1985 Marcus Allen RB
• 2002 Rich Gannon QB

SUPER BOWL MVP

• Super Bowl XI – Fred Biletnikoff WR (1976)
• Super Bowl XV – Jim Plunkett QB (1980)
• Super Bowl XVIII – Marcus Allen RB (1983)

 

I’ve been attracted to the smiling pirate image (he is smiling?) of the Silver & Black ever since I was a little kid. I love EVERYTHING here: *especially* the ’70s, ’80s & L.A Raiders…

Early ’60s players; Jim Otto; quarterback Tom Flores; Clem Daniels; Art Powell; miserable beginnings; Al Davis’ vision of excellence; dramatic turnaround 1-13 to 10-4; AFL-NFL merger; coach John Rauch; Gene Upshaw; Willie Brown; Daryle “Mad Bomber” Lamonica; Warren Wells; Fred Biletnikoff; Super Bowl II loss to Green Bay; infamous “Heidi Game” vs Jets in ’68; coach John Madden’s incredible 10+year career; George Blanda’s miracle season; great games & plays in the ’70s; Pittsburgh & “Immaculate Reception”; Miami & “Sea of Hands”; tackle Art Shell; Cliff Branch; Kenny “The Snake” Stabler; Super Bowl XI victory over Minnesota; Dave Casper; in-depth playoff game coverage against Colts in ’77 “Ghost to the Post”; infamous Denver non-fumble; San Diego & “Holy Roller”; coach Tom Flores; Lester Hayes’ 13 interceptions in ’80; Jim Plunkett leads 1st-ever WildCard team to Super Bowl; Super Bowl XV victory over Philidelphia; banning of Stick ’em; Super Bowl XVIII victory over Washington; Tiger Woods= Raiders fan; ’80s L.A. Raiders; Howie Long’s 8 Pro-Bowls; Mike Haynes= hall-of-fame corner; Marcus Allen’s *many* accomplishments; Bo Jackson- 2 sport Pro-Bowl/All-Star athlete; Art Shell- 1st black headcoach of modern era; Willie Gault & James Jett speedsters; Tim Brown; Ronnie Lott; Eric Dickerson; ’90s drought; coach John Gruden & team resurgence; Rich Gannon; Rod Woodson; Jerry Rice; 5 Super Bowls/ 3 victories in 4 different decades; Raider Nation; Raiderettes; and more!

Today the team is now rebuilding. The Raiders will climb again to greatness- it’ll be exciting to see a new era begin!

©MMXIX My All Time Favorites, all pictures and logos, team names are property of the National Football League. This site is not affiliated with the NFL or Oakland Raiders.  All Football Cards are low resolution scans from a personal collection and each is credited with the production company name and year.  This site is maintained for research purposes only.