Las Vegas Raiders

The history of the Las Vegas Raiders is pretty short-lived, but if we head back to the total history of the franchise, there is plenty to discuss and celebrate. The Las Vegas Raiders started as the Oakland Raiders back in 1960. The team played their first season in 1960 as members of the American Football League. As part of the Western Division, they played there until the 1970 season, when they joined the National Football League. Now, the team plays its games in Paraside, Nevada, and is headquartered in Henderson, Nevada. The official location history started in Oakland from 1960-1981, followed by Los Angeles from 1982-1994, then back to Oakland from 1995-2019. A trip to Las Vegas started in 2020.

One of the latest big buildings in downtown Las Vegas – is Allegiant Stadium. Home of the Las Vegas Raiders, the construction of the stadium started in 2017, and it was opened for seating in 2020. The Raiders host nearly 65,000 fans in the stadium on normal Sundays, with the ability to expand up to 72,000.

UNLV Football also plays at the stadium, but they use artificial turf, while the Raiders use Bermuda Grass. The Super Bowl in February of 2024 will be held there for the first time.

Before playing at Allegiant Stadium, the Raiders, obviously were all over Oakland and even Los Angeles and played at the following locations. They started at Kezar Stadium during the 1960 season and then moved to Candlestick in 1961. Then, in 1962 – the team moved to Frank Youell Field until 1965. Then, a 15-season period at the Oakland Coliseum came into play, until a move to Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in 1982. They were there until 1994, when they moved back to Oakland Coliseum, where they finished their time in the bay area in 2019.

The Raiders were originally known as the “Senors” after a contest to name the team. It took just days and many jokes about the team name, along with some big-time complaints, they then turned to the Raiders. The name Raiders is supposed to be an inspiration to a fighting name that gets the supporters fired up. A Raider is known as a soldier specifically trained for close-range fighting.

The Raiders have a good list of guys that have appeared in the National Football League record book. Derek Carr leads the franchise in most quarterback statistics but is not up there when it comes to the National Football League.

The one record that the Raiders have that many remember – is Sebastian Janikowski and his 76-yard field goal attempt. The big guy attempted this feat back in the 2008 season and came up well short, but still is in the record book.

Jim Otto was a really good football player. One of the reasons we know that – is his 10 first-team All-Pro Selections. Otto was an elite center that played over 200 games from 1960-1974. Otto and Jerry Rice are the only two players in NFL history with double-digit All-Pro Selections.

Lastly, another record we have to address – is head coach John Madden and his dominance. The head coach left the game with the best average divisional finish as a head coach. Madden’s teams never finished worse than second place in their division. He finished his career with nearly 76% wins, which comes in better than Vince Lombardi and his .738.

Before we move any further on this – the Las Vegas Raiders do NOT have any Super Bowl titles, but, the Raiders as a franchise have three of them and have been in the game four times. The Raiders have not won a Super Bowl since 1983 and have not played in a Super Bowl since 2002.

The first Super Bowl title for the Raiders came at Super Bowl XI, in 1976. The win was a decisive one, as the Raiders scored 32 points against the Minnesota Vikings and won the game. Oakland scored 16 in the first half, and another 16 in the second half. The opponents from New York scored just two second-half touchdowns in the game. Fred Biletnikoff, the Raiders wide receiver, was named the MVP of the game with four receptions for 79 yards.

The second Super Bowl title for the Raiders came in the 1980 season. Super Bowl XV, this time saw them smack around the Philadelphia Eagles. Head Coach Tom Flores and his team score 14 in the first quarter and ran away with the game. Quarterback Jim Plunkett was named the MVP of the game after throwing for three touchdowns in the win.

The third and final Super Bowl for the Raiders came during the 1983 season. Super Bowl XVIII took place in Tampa Florida, where head coach Tom Flores won his second title. The Raiders scored 21 first-half points, and held the Redskins to just 9 total points in the win. Marcus Allen was named the Super Bowl MVP, as he carried the football 20 times for a record 191 yards and 2 touchdowns. The Raiders and Redskins saw over 77M viewers watch the Big Game on CBS.

The lone Super Bowl loss for the Raiders came during the 2002 season, where they lost to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in San Diego. The Raiders have been to the postseason in 23 of their seasons, including four in a row, and five out of 6 seasons during the ealry 1980’s.

Derek Carr left the Raiders following the 2022 season as the quarterback with the most starts in franchise history. But, Carr certainly was not the most successful; in fact, near the bottom of starting quarterbacks in franchise history. The most successful was Daryle Lamonica, who started 84 games and won nearly 78% of his game.

After Lamonica, Tom Flores, Rich Gannon, and Jim Plunkett are next three on the list for games started as starting quarterback. Flores started 63 games, and finished his career right at .500.

Carr leads the franchise in completions with 3,201, and also touchdowns with 217. Ken Stabler, who many consider an elite quarterback threw 150 touchdowns, and also leads teh franchise with 143 interceptions.

The Raiders have 30 players that are part of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. 17 of those players have primary contributions to the Raiders, while the others spent part of their careers there.

The first Raiders player to be inducted to the Hall of Fame was center Jim Otto. Otto played from 1960-1975, and was later inducted in 1980. The next season George Blanda, the quarterback and a kicker, was inducted after his 1967-1975 seasons.

Willie Brown, Gene Upshaw, Fred Biletnikoff, Art Shall, Ted Hendricks and Mike Haynes were the next 8 Raiders players inducted into the Hall of Fame. Some of the more recent names inducted into the Raiders Hall of Fame include Tim Brown, wide receiver; Ken Stabler, quarterback; Charles Woodson, cornerback; and Cliff Branch, wide receiver.

The Raiders have four guys that are in the Hall of Fame as nonplayers. Al Davis was the Coach-Owner-Commissioner for 48 seasons. All the way up until 2011. Davis was inducted back in 1992.

John Madden, Ron Wolf, and Tom Flores are also in the Hall of Fame. Madden was inducted in 2006, and Flores in 2021. Both are Super Bowl-winning head coaches for the Raiders. Finally, Ron Wolf, known for his ability to find players as a scout, and player personnel director from 1963-1989, was inducted in 2015.

The Raiders uniforms when they first started were black and gold with Gothic numbers. The helmets were black with a white stripe and no logo. Now, the Raiders are silver and black, but the design has pretty much remained the same since 1963.

The Raiders are known for the slogan “Just Win Baby,” which came from owner Al Davis. They also are known for “Commitment to Excellent.” The Raider Nation is known as one of the most avid fan bases in all of the National Football League. They are also known as the black hole, and you can typically find them at games early, tailgating and dressing up in face masks and paint.

The Raiders have cheerleaders known as the “Raiderettes” and started back in 1961.