|
In
1970, the Raiders became the part of National Football
League following the amalgamation of AFL-NFL. The Oakland
Raiders have seized three Super Bowl Championships 1976
(XI), 1980 (XV), 1983 (XVIII). Their each Super Bowl
appearances in which they were victorious was marked by
threatening performances in all the three phases of the
game—offense, defense and special teams. The Raiders in
their glorious 35 years of NFL career have recorded some
glorious moments, featuring some of pro football’s most
exciting games. In Super Bowl XI, the Raiders proved
convincingly that they were actually the very best in the
world. The Raiders commitment to excellence was highlighted
with their second Super Bowl victory. The men in silver and
black moved to Los Angeles, California to play their home
games at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in 1982 and
recorded their most recent Super Bowl XVIII the following
season.
 |
On
January 30, 1960, Oakland was granted AFL’s license to
play in the Western Division. Formerly, the team was
named the Dons, the Senors, but finally it was nicknamed
as the Raiders. Eddie Erdelatz became the first Raiders
coach and Tony Teresa the first Raider to rush 100 yards
in a game against the Buffalo Bills. Raiders played
their first game against the Dallas Texans and posted
their first victory against the New York Titans. For two
decades, from mid 60’s to mid 80’s, the Raiders became
the most committed and steady team of the pro football.
In the initial three seasons the team encountered prelim
fuss, from changing stadiums to gaining and losing of
stats. |
|
In
1963, San Diego Chargers assistant coach AlDavis was
hired by the Raiders as their head coach and general
manager. At the age of 33, Davis became the youngest
person in professional football history to hold the
positions. He modernized the men in silver and
black. Under Davis the Raiders improved
dramatically. Initially, the metropolitan city of
Oakland lacked a stadium, which was an immediate
requirement of the team. It was then in 1966, a
stadium worth $25.5 million viz. Network Associates
Coliseum (The Black Hole) was inaugurated. This
stadium is the sole property of the city of
Oakland/Alameda County and has the capacity of
accommodating the crowd of 63,026 with 143 luxury
suites. In 1969, John Madden became the team's sixth
head coach, and during the 1970s his Raiders' became
one of the most successful franchises in the NFL. In
1989, former Raider lineman Art Shell became the
team’s head coach. Shell was the first
African-American head coach of the modern NFL era.
He led the Raiders to the AFC Championship game in
the 1990 season, where they lost to the Buffalo
Bills, 51-3.
In 1995, the Raiders moved to Oakland where their
fans gave them a warm welcome. The Raiders finished
the 2002 season with an 11-5 record and clinched the
top seed in the playoffs. Gannon was named MVP of
the NFL, and the Raiders made their fifth Super Bowl
appearance following the season. They lost Super
Bowl XXXVII to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, now coached
by Gruden.
The Raiders are the most controversial team in the
NFL due to their involvement in various accusations
and disputes. The latest being with the city of
Oakland, in which they admitted that in order to
modernize their arena, they will market all of their
home games. Raiderettes also known as the Oakland
Raiders cheerleaders also don’t lag behind in
boasting their team and inculcating high spirits
among them. In 2003, the Raiders auditioned more
than 600 beautiful ladies for the Raiderettes squad,
out of which only 48 were selected. |
 |
|
________________________________________________________________________ |
Watch
Indianapolis Colts
play
Super Bowl 2006
at Detroit. Who can challenge the might of Indy
this year?
The main competitors are: Mike Anderson’s Denver
Broncos, Lovie Smith’s Chicago Bears or Shaun
Alexander
Seahawks.
Watch all the NFL Playoff game live. Support
your team tickets for
2005 NFL Playoffs
today.
__________________________________________________________________________ |
|
|
