The Raiders had a hard-fought victory over the New York Jets. The game ended in overtime, with the Raiders winning by a single point on an interception return for touchdown. This was one of many important plays that may have determined whether Oakland would make it to their first ever Super Bowl appearance this year, or not.
The “barrow raiders twitter” is a win for the Raiders. The team’s final score was 37-34. They are now one game away from the ultimate tribute, which would be an NFL championship.
This weekend, the football world bid a collective farewell to John Madden. Scoreboard tributes and minutes of quiet were held throughout each of the 16 games in honor of the former Oakland Raiders coach, veteran announcer, and NFL video game pioneer.
The Raiders, who are now based in Las Vegas, were the squad that naturally had the most affinity with the iconic coach. The Raiders were on the road against the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday, but they paid respect to Madden in their own unique manner. The Raiders of the 1970s, whom Madden coached, were known for snatching victory from the jaws, or rather a sea of hands, of loss.
The 2021 Raiders have become known for their late-game heroics, and they did it again on Sunday to bring Madden’s cherished team one step closer to the playoffs.
The Raiders’ unlikely run to a Wild Card slot happened to fall on the same day as Madden’s passing.
Michael Hickey/Getty Images | Las Vegas Raiders
On Dec. 12, the Las Vegas Raiders suffered one of their greatest losses in their 60-year history, and it came against their most hated opponent. The Chiefs thrashed the Raiders 48-9, lowering them to 6-7 on the season and apparently out of contention for the AFC playoffs.
The Chiefs had never defeated the Raiders by that many points in 126 games dating back to the early days of the American Football League and Madden’s coaching debut in Oakland.
But if there was any culture that carried through the decades from Madden’s period in the 1970s to the current squad, it was the belief that no challenge was too great to conquer. As a result, the Raiders won their following game against the Browns after a two-day delay due to Covid-19-related concerns, with almost little room for error in their effort to climb back into the playoff race.
The Raiders believed, like they had under Al Davis, that the league was out to get them by allowing the Browns to pull crucial players off the reserve list for those two days. With no time remaining, they harnessed that incentive to score a 16-14 win on a Daniel Carlson field goal.
The Raiders kept their faint hopes alive with a 17-13 victory against the Denver Broncos on Dec. 26, the day after Fox premiered its now-iconic All Madden documentary, to move back over.500 at 8-7.
Madden died two days later, at the age of 85.
The football world was astonished, but the Raiders kept their cool and traveled to Indianapolis, where they needed to upset the Colts and MVP contender Jonathan Taylor in order to keep their dream alive.
Madden’s last playoff triumph came against the Colts in 1977’s ‘Ghost to the Post’ game.
The irony of the situation couldn’t be overlooked. The Indianapolis Colts, the Raiders’ opponent on Sunday, were the same team that defeated Madden in his last playoff triumph as Raiders coach in 1977.
The Colts were in Baltimore, and the Raiders were the reigning Super Bowl winners, and the two teams played one of the greatest games in NFL history, with the Raiders winning on a Ken Stabler to Dave Casper touchdown throw in double overtime.
But it was a late-in-regulation Stabler-to-Casper completion that earned the game its immortal name: The Ghost to the Post. Stabler connected with Casper on a deep post pattern for the game-tying completion at the conclusion of regulation.
Now, 45 years later, the Raiders needed another drive in the final moments to set up a winning field goal, and Carlson came through again, hitting from 33 yards out with no time left for a 23-20 win and a 9-7 record with one game remaining, tying them for the final two AFC Wild Card spots with the Indianapolis Colts and Los Angeles Chargers.
Toledo, Toledo, Toledo, Toledo, Toledo, Toledo, Toledo, Toledo, Toledo, Toledo, Toledo The Raiders have a chance to secure a Wild Card place by defeating a familiar Madden foe: the Chargers.
The “Holy Roller” play by the Raiders in 1978 is No. 5 on our list of the top moments in SDCCU/Qualcomm/Jack Murphy/San Diego Stadium history, and it’s a crazy one from 40 years ago. It’s a difficult one for Chargers supporters, but you have to admire Bill King’s radio call. pic.twitter.com/SdBnthCdtB
February 14, 2019 — SDFleetBeat (@SDFleetBeat)
Between the 1 p.m. kickoffs in Week 18 on Sunday and the last kickoff on Sunday Night Football, there are a number of conceivable combinations that might throw a wrench into the drama that the NFL has constructed. The fundamental idea is that the Raiders (9-7) will meet the Los Angeles Chargers (9-7) on Sunday, with the winner sealing a playoff place and the loser likely missing out.
The Pittsburgh Steelers and Jacksonville Jaguars might perhaps muddy the waters in an otherwise perfect, made-for-television game, but if the intended scenario holds true, the Raiders will have the opportunity to pay homage to John Madden in the greatest conceivable way.
Who could forget one of the final Madden-coached Raiders games ever versus the old San Diego Chargers, even though it had no immediate playoff implications?
On Sept. 10, 1978, it was Stabler to Casper for the game-winning touchdown, but this time it wasn’t through the throw. This was the “Holy Roller” play, in which Stabler “fumbled” the ball forward toward the Chargers goal line, where Casper further fumbled the ball forward before jumping on it in the end zone for a touchdown with the time running down and the Chargers behind 20-14. In the days before review, the score play was upheld, resulting in one of the oddest NFL game endings ever.
“Madden has arrived on the scene!” He’s curious as to whether it’s true!” Bill King, the famed Raiders radio announcer, recounted the situation with disbelief in his voice. “‘Yes, get your big butta outta here!’ they said. Yes, he does! Nothing in the world is real anymore!”
In Week 18, everything is extremely real for the Raiders. The Ghost to the Postseason, a Madden game, will be keeping an eye on things.
Pro Football Reference provided the statistics.
RELATED: NBC Sports’ Mike Florio Proposes the NFL Rebrand in the Image of Iconic Coach John Madden
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The “nfl” is a win from the Raiders. The final score was 45-42 in favor of the Raiders.
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