Post by TheShadow on Feb 18, 2006 21:30:58 GMT -5
www.raiders.com
Our Epic Rivalries series takes a look at the Raiders vs. Jets series that
dates back to the old American Football League...
The Oakland Raiders and the New York Jets are getting to know each other
pretty well. The Jets are becoming all too familiar with the city of Oakland
and the confines of Network Associates Coliseum. It was suggested to current
Jets head coach Herman Edwards during the 2002 playoffs that the Jets should
be placed in the AFC Western Division. The Raiders have hosted the Jets in
the regular season four years in a row, and as luck would have it, twice in
the playoffs in the last two years. The Jets have won only one of those
meetings - the 2001 regular season finale.
Although recent history links these two holdovers from the American Football
League, the Jets and the Raiders rivalry dates back to the 1960s and
features many memorable and critical contests.
1960s
When the Jets and Raiders began play in 1960 as part of the upstart AFL, the
Jets were known as the New York Titans. From 1960-62, the Raiders won only
one game against the Titans. In 1963, both teams underwent fundamental
change. The Raiders hired Al Davis as Head Coach and General Manager, while
the Titans were sold and became the Jets. From 1963-64, the teams split
their annual pair of games. The Raiders swept the series in 1965 and 1966,
the teams split in 1967, and the Raiders captured four games from the Jets
from 1968-1969.
On November 17, 1968, the Jets and Raiders played a game that will be
forever etched into the annals of professional football and television
history. With the Jets leading 32-29, it was 7:00 PM on the east coast as a
commercial break concluded. NBC was scheduled to air the children's movie
Heidi at 7:00. Rather than show the end of the game, NBC Broadcast
Operations Supervisor Dick Cline followed the network's predetermined plan
and switched to Heidi.
The Raiders went on to score two touchdowns in a nine-second span and held
on to win a most memorable game 43-32. The only problem was...the American
viewing audience never saw the greatest comeback in the history of pro
football (at the time). As a result, television networks changed their
policies and will not switch away from a football game in progress. That
game went on to become known as The Heidi Bowl.
The Jets went on to defeat the Raiders in the AFL Championship game later
that season.
1970s - 1990s
The Raiders and Jets only played each other four times in the 1970s with the
Raiders winning three of the four meetings. That number shrunk to two
meetings in the 1980s, with the Raiders winning both match-ups. The Jets
eliminated the Raiders from the playoffs during the strike-shortened 1982
season. In the 1990s, the Raiders and Jets met five times, with the Jets
winning only one game against the Silver and Black. The last meeting of the
1990s came in 1999 with the Raiders winning at home with just seconds left.
2000s
The Raiders hammered the Jets 31-7 in primetime in 2000 setting the stage
for a re-ignition of the rivalry. In 2001, the Raiders fell to the Jets in
the regular season finale after having clinched the AFC West. The Jets
qualified for the playoffs as a Wild Card and had to fly out to Oakland one
week later. The Raiders eliminated the Jets from the playoffs 38-24.
In 2002, the Raiders played the Jets in primetime again. The Silver and
Black prevailed in a hotly contested Monday Night game 26-20. Oakland
captured their third straight AFC Western Division title, a first round bye
and earned home field advantage throughout the playoffs. The Jets needed to
defeat Green Bay, and a New England victory over the Miami Dolphins just to
make the playoffs. A win over the Packers, and a comeback win by the
Patriots gave the Jets the AFC East title and a first round match up with
the Colts. After blowing out Indianapolis, the Jets headed west once again
to face the Raiders. New York left Oakland empty-handed once again as the
Raiders won convincingly 30-10 and advanced to the AFC Championship.
The Raiders and Jets share a common bond dating back to the old American
Football League when legends like Joe Namath and Daryle Lamonica battled
deep into the history books.