Oakland Raiders

 

The Oakland Raiders were established early on in 1960 as a professional football team part of the AFL, and later on in 1970, joined the NFL when the AFL – NFL merger occurred. As they were part of the Western Division when they played with the AFL, ever since they joined the NFL they have been playing in the AFC West. The Raiders franchise has been playing for over 52 seasons, and during this long history they have experienced many successes; of which they have won 3 Super Bowl championships. The team is headquartered in Alameda, California, but they play all of the home games O.co Coliseum in Oakland, California. The team colors of their uniforms are Silver and Black, keeping it simple like their logo of a football playing raider. The Raiders have something much better than a simple mascot; they have a group of very rowdy and dedicated fans that call themselves the Raider Nation. This unofficial group of fans takes pride in going to watch the Raiders play, as they dress up for the occasion.

 

Raiders Brief Team History

When the Oakland Raiders were first established in 1960, they went through some tough times until 1963 when they hired Al Davis to be the head coach; Al Davis would eventually become the owner and general manager of the team. With Davis at the helm, the Raiders started to play with a much more aggressive style, and finally being able to get to their first playoff in 1967. By 1969 the Raiders acquired John Madden as their head coach, and during his time as head coach he led the team through many victories, including the 1976 Super Bowl victory. He ended his coaching career with the Raiders in 1978 with a win-loss record of 103 – 32 – 7; a very impressive record.

By 1980, the Raiders win their second Super Bowl championship with quarterback Tom Flores leading the team. In 1982, owner Al Davis decided to move the Oakland Raiders to Los Angeles due to the poor state in which their current stadium was in. They remained as the Los Angeles Raiders until they moved back to Oakland in 1994. Not everything was a total loss with the move, the Raiders still continued to play with their aggressive style and got their third Super Bowl victory in 1983. During the 1990’s and 2000’s the Raiders continued to have a few successful seasons; appearing in another 6 playoffs, but have been unable to make the playoffs since 2002.

 

Notable Raiders Figures

The Raiders have always been known for their aggressive playing style and with it come some great players and coaches that knew just how to use that to their advantage.

 

Past Raiders Figures

 

John Madden was the Oakland Raiders head coach from 1969 – 1978 and during his time with the team he managed to get an incredible record of 112 – 39 – 7, where he won 71.3% of all of the games he coached.  He also led the team during their first Super Bowl victory in 1976. He was a great coach and knew just how to best use the players at his disposal.

 

Tom Flores and Jim Plunkett. Flores was the head coach for the Raiders from 1979 – 1987, picking up right after Madden left, and Plunkett was the starting quarterback. Both of these men led the Raiders through some very successful times, including being able to win two more Super Bowl championships in 1980 and 1983.

 

Howie Long was a defensive tackle and defensive end for the Raiders. He started with the team back in Oakland and retired while they were still in Los Angeles. He was an effective defender, helping the team win the 1983 Super Bowl. He won Defensive Lineman of the Year two years in a row in 1984 and 1985 and ended his career with 91.5 sacks, 2 interceptions, and 10 recovered fumbles.

 

Present Raiders Figures

 

Carson Palmer has been the starting quarterback for the Raiders since he was traded in 2011. He joined the team in order to help get the offense back into a more competitive state. During his 2011 season he managed to get over 2,000 passing yards with 13 touchdowns; even though he did not play in all of the games. He has proven to be a great quarterback, being able to improve the Raiders offense greatly.

 

Running back Darren McFadden, along with wide receiver Denarius Moore and tight end Brandon Myers are the players that make the offensive line move and work with Palmer. McFadden is able to exploit the opponent’s defensive weaknesses and slip through, while Moore and Myers make Palmers job easier by making themselves readily available for any of his passes.

 

It wouldn’t be the Raiders if we did not include their defense, and outside linebacker Philip Wheeler and defensive end Matt Shaughnessy represent the defense. Wheeler does a great job at tackling any of the incoming rushers and capable of forcing fumbles. Shaughnessy on the other hand is more in the offensive lines face, putting pressure on the quarterback, getting sacks, and forcing them to make mistakes.

 

Present Team Personnel

The current, majority, owner of the Oakland Raiders is Mark Davis. Davis was the son of Al Davis, who was the man responsible for the Raiders earliest successes and later on went to become the owner. Mark has inherited the team, as well as the same business savvy from his father and we hope he continues to help the Raiders improve, just like his father. The Raiders head coach is Dennis Allen, who recently took up the position for the 2012 season. It may not have been such a great start for him or the Raiders, but as time goes on, the Raiders will certainly get back into shape.