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These AFL Team pages were salvaged from the defunct site aflfootball.tripod.com, which inspired my AFL pages.
They are dedicated to that site's creator, Robert Phillips, who has re-created his site at afl-football.50.webs.com.

Patriots Facts

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Facts

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Raiders Facts

Bengals Facts

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OAKLAND RAIDERS

The American Football League was formally organized on August 14, 1959. However, the Oakland Raiders did not become the eighth member of the new league until January 1960, when they were selected as a replacement for the Minneapolis franchise, which defected to the NFL. A major initial stumbling block was the lack of an adequate stadium in Oakland. Until the 54,616 capacity Oakland Coliseum was opened in 1966, the Raiders had to play in Kezar Stadium and Candlestick Park across the bay in San Francisco and in a temporary stadium, Frank Youell Field in Oakland. Oakland's record for the first three years was a miserable 9-33-0. Average home attendance was just under 11,000.

Then in 1963, the Raiders hired a San Diego assistant coach, Al Davis, as their new head coach and the reversal in fortunes was both rapid and dramatic. From a 1-13 mark in 1962, Oakland improved to 10-4 in 1963 and Davis was named the AFL Coach of the Year. Since that time, the Raiders' destiny has been the exclusive responsibility of Davis, who left the team only briefly for a short term as AFL commissioner in 1966. After the AFL-NFL merger was completed, Davis returned to the Raiders as managing general partner and immediately transformed the Oakland franchise into one of pro football's premier organizations. Starting in 1965, the Raiders posted winning records 19 of the next 20 years. During that period, they won 12 divisional championships, the 1967 AFL championship, AFC championships in 1976, 1980 and 1983 and victories in Super Bowls XI, XV and XVIII.

The Raiders are the only original AFL team to win a Super Bowl since Kansas City won Super Bowl IV. Before the Denver Broncos won Super Bowls XXXI and XXXII, the Raiders were the only AFC team to win a Super Bowl since the Steelers won Super Bowl XIV and they are the only team, NFL or AFL, to play in the Super Bowl in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. They did not play in the Super Bowl in the 1990s.

In the 30-year period dating back to when Davis took over in 1963 up through 1992, the Raiders' winning record of .661 with 285 victories, 146 losses and 11 ties ranks as the best among all major sports teams. The Raiders also have dominated the Monday Night Football series with 30 victories (more than any other team) and a tie in 41 appearances.

While Davis stresses "Commitment to Excellence" for his entire organization, some of the Raiders' unprecedented success can be attributed to outstanding individual players and coaches who have worn the Silver and Black. In addition to Davis himself, eight players -- Jim Otto, George Blanda, Willie Brown, Gene Upshaw, Art Shell, Fred Biletnikoff, Ted Hendricks and Mike Haynes -- have been elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Five Raider coaches have been named either AFL or NFL Coach of the Year. In addition to Davis, they are John Rauch, John Madden, Tom Flores and Shell.

Raiders Facts

  • Franchise Granted:
    January 30, 1960 as the Oakland Raiders
  • First Season:
    1960
  • Stadiums:
    Kezar Stadium, Candlestick Park, Frank Youell Field, Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum
  • Head Coach:
    Eddie Erdelatz, Marty Feldman, Red Conkright, Al Davis, John Rauch, John Madden
  • AFL Championship:
    1967
  • AFL Division Championships:
    1967, 1968, 1969
  • All-Time AFL Record:
    80- 61- 5
  • Retired Uniform Numbers:
    None

Raiders' Historical Performance


 
REGULAR SEASON
YEAR GP W L T PF PA PCT. HEAD COACH
1960 14 6 8 0 319 388 0.429    Eddie Erdelatz
1961 14 2 12 0 237 458 0.143    Eddie Erdelatz, Marty Feldman
1962 14 1 13 0 213 370 0.071    Marty Feldman, Red Conkright
1963 14 10 4 0 363 282 0.714    Al Davis
1964 14 5 7 2 303 350 0.429    Al Davis
1965 14 8 5 1 298 239 0.607    Al Davis
1966 14 8 5 1 315 288 0.607    John Rauch
1967 14 13 1 0 468 233 0.929    John Rauch
1968 14 12 2 0 453 233 0.857    John Rauch
1969 14 12 1 1 377 242 0.893    John Madden

Raiders Totals 140 77 58 5 3346 3083 0.568  

 
POSTSEASON
YEAR W L PCT. RESULT
1967 1 1 0.500 AFL CHAMPIONS, LOST SUPER BOWL
1968 1 1 0.500 LOST AFL CHAMPIONSHIP
1969 1 1 0.500 LOST AFL CHAMPIONSHIP

Firsts, Records, and Odds and Ends

  • First Regular-Season Game:
    A 37-22 loss by the Oakland Raiders to the Houston Oilers, 9/11/60.
  • First Regular-Season Win:
    A 14-13 victory over the Houston Oilers, 9/25/60.
  • First Playing Site:
    San Francisco's Kezar Stadium.
  • Original Team Colors:
    Black, Gold and White.
  • First All-League Selection:
    Hall of Fame C Jim Otto, All-AFL, 1960.
  • First Winning Season:
    1963 (10-4).
  • First Playoff Appearance:
    A 40-7 victory over the Houston Oilers in the 1967 AFL Championship game, 12/31/67.
  • First Super Bowl Appearance:
    A 33-14 loss to the Green Bay Packers in Super Bowl II, 1/14/68.
  • First To Rush 100 Yards in a Game:
    Tony Teresa, 141 yards vs. the Buffalo Bills, 11/13/60.
  • First 1,000-Yard Rusher:
    Clem Daniels, 1,099 yards (1963).
  • First to Pass 400 Yards in a Game:
    Tom Flores, 407 yards vs. the Houston Oilers, 12/22/63.
  • Most Receptions, Career:
    Fred Biletnikoff, 589 receptions (1965-78).
  • All-Time Leading Scorer:
    George Blanda, 863 points, (1967-75).
  • First Raider Elected to the Hall of Fame:
    Jim Otto, 1980.
  Copyright 1997-2004 Robert Phillips. All rights reserved.             

USA Today ~ July 22, 2009

Lamonica's Raiders took pride in wide-open offenses of AFL

Former Raiders wideout Fred Biletnikoff said Daryle Lamonica enjoyed the team's wide-open offense during its time in the AFL. Attacking deep was Daryle's mind-set, " Biletnikoff said.
AP photo
Former Raiders wideout Fred Biletnikoff said Daryle Lamonica enjoyed the team's wide-open offense during its time in the AFL. Attacking deep was Daryle's mind-set, " Biletnikoff said.
 
 ABOUT THE AFL SERIES
USA TODAY will celebrate the American Football League's 50th anniversary this summer with a series of retrospectives.

THE AFL, 50 YEARS LATER

Sixth in a series exploring the histories of all 10 AFL franchises as the NFL celebrates the league's 50th anniversary.

Today's Tom Brady-led New England Patriots, Peyton Manning's Indianapolis Colts, Kurt Warner's Arizona Cardinals and Drew Brees' New Orleans Saints all feature spread passing attacks that owe a nod to the American Football League's vertical-strike Oakland Raiders.

Daryle "The Mad Bomber" Lamonica was the trendsetting igniter for Raiders boss Al Davis' explosive passing scheme.

When Davis acquired the strong-armed quarterback in a trade with the Buffalo Bills before the 1967 season, the Raiders took flight.

Every game was a Fourth of July fireworks show, earning Lamonica his legacy.

"Howard Cosell hit me with that 'Mad Bomber' nickname … in 1967 or '68," Lamonica says of the legendary late Monday Night Football announcer. "When I first heard it, I didn't like it.

"But that very next game, I got under center and, just before I started my cadence, the cornerback made eye contact with me. And then he backed up two steps.

"From there on, I was able to utilize it to get the defense on its heels.

"Mad Bomber is now my registered trademark. That's the way I sign autographs (as) Daryle Lamonica, 'The Mad Bomber,' No. 3."

His No. 1 priority? Just wing it, baby.

"Daryle gave our team that wide-open identity," Hall of Fame wideout Fred Biletnikoff says.

"We threw it 30-40 times a game. We were night and day from the (more conservative) NFL. … Attacking deep was Daryle's mind-set."

Those attacking Raiders reflected the rise of an entertaining, rebel league. "We'd have three, four wide receivers in a formation because Al Davis' philosophy was throw the ball three times (and) get one completion of 15 yards vs. three 5-yard completions," Lamonica says.

"Al Davis was never one to worry about pass-completion percentages. He always wanted to attack. That style really fit my personality."

Hall of Fame Raiders cornerback Willie Brown says Lamonica stoked his teammates by cranking up his arm when leaving the locker room. Lamonica, the former Notre Dame standout, backed up the late Jack Kemp before Davis sent wideout Art Powell and (future Raiders coach) Tom Flores to Buffalo for Lamonica and wideout Glenn Bass.

"Daryle had a great arm," Brown says. "We used to tease him, because he'd be warming up his arm in the tunnel and we'd say that's because he was going deep right away.

"We scored 35-40 points every week. That was a brand-new, exciting type of football for the fans."

Lamonica was well protected by three Hall of Fame bodyguards in center Jim Otto, late guard Gene Upshaw and tackle Art Shell.

The quarterback's ability to disguise his intentions grew from practicing against Brown and fellow defensive backs Kent McCloughan (father of San Francisco 49ers general manager Scot McCloughan), Dave Grayson and George Atkinson.

"I faced one of the best secondaries every day in practice," Lamonica says.

It helped to have sticky-fingered receivers such as Biletnikoff and tight end Billy Cannon catching his passes.

"I really thought we were the best AFL team, a very dynamic team," Biletnikoff says. "Go up and down our roster. We were filled with great players."

Says Brown, "We felt we had a better league and better ballplayers than the NFL."

Davis was a disciple of former San Diego Chargers passing game innovator Sid Gillman, whose coaching tree includes Don Coryell, Bill Walsh, Joe Gibbs, John Madden, Chuck Noll and Ernie Zampese.

The hiring of Davis as Raiders coach in 1963 transformed a foundering franchise (9-33 in its first three years) into a perennial power. After serving as AFL commissioner in 1966, Davis became managing general partner of the 13-1 Raiders who won the 1967 AFL championship.

Davis was known as "Mr. AFL" for helping sign away budding NFL stars such as San Francisco 49ers quarterback John Brodie, Chicago Bears tight end Mike Ditka and Los Angeles Rams quarterback Roman Gabriel, all nullified by the merger.

"Mr. Davis, Sid Gillman and the crew out of San Diego were heavily involved in scouting the smaller black colleges because they wanted to be able to compete, and the NFL didn't have a lot of black players at that time," Brown recalls.

"When Mr. Davis became commissioner in 1966, he was getting the top players and bringing them to the AFL. … That's the reason why we finally got the merger."

Davis gave Madden his start as the Raiders linebackers coach in 1967. Two years later, when coach John Rauch resigned to take the same position with the Bills, Madden became pro football's youngest head coach at 32.

"John handled our team, our personalities," Biletnikoff says. "He always had a great sense of what his team needed, whether it was to call off a meeting, saying, 'You guys go out and have a camaraderie night.'

"He was a coach, psychologist and friend. … Everybody loved the guy and had a great deal of respect for John."

The Lamonica Raiders brought out the best in Joe Namath's New York Jets. "With Joe Namath and Daryle, it was a typical AFL game," Biletnikoff says. "When we played the Jets, it was always down to the wire."

Those Jets-Raiders shootouts included the 1968 Heidi game, blacked out in the feverish final 65 seconds when NBC cut to the previously scheduled children's movie about a Swiss mountain girl as the Raiders rallied from a 32-29 deficit to a 43-32 win that an East Coast viewing audience never witnessed. (The incident spawned arrangements guaranteeing games be aired in their entirety.)

Six weeks later, the Jets got payback, winning the 1968 AFL Championship Game 27-23. That propelled them to their legendary Super Bowl III upset of the NFL's heavily favored Baltimore Colts.

"Joe Namath and I used to light it up," Lamonica says.

Lamonica, who went 36-4-1 in his three years as Oakland's starter in the AFL days, earned the league's MVP honors in 1967 and 1969 when he threw 30 and 34 touchdowns, respectively.

He led the Raiders to three consecutive Western Division titles and that 1967 league crown, though it's often overshadowed by the beating Oakland took in Super Bowl II, a 33-14 defeat at the hands of Vince Lombardi's Green Bay Packers.

"I was able to win a couple of MVPs and passing titles and go to Pro Bowls," Lamonica says. "But my only regret was we didn't win a Super Bowl (in the AFL era).

"The Jets went to the Super Bowl and beat the Colts, vs. the Raiders having a chance to beat the Colts.

"I felt we had the talent to win a Super Bowl with the team we had."

              
Lamonica went 66-16-4 as a starter, good for a 78.4% winning percentage, second best in Professional Football history.  In the American Football League, Lamonica's winning percentage as a starter was 90.0%, on 40 wins, 4 losses and 1 tie in 45 games, the best ever in the AFL
. ~ REMEMBER the AFL

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USA TODAY Series on the AFL:  

  How the AFL changed the NFL
   Boston Patriots
   Miami Dolphins
     CincinNati Bengals
    Denver Broncos
     Los Angeles/San Diego CHARGERS
     Dallas Texans/Kansas City Chiefs
    New York TITANS/JETS
    BUFFALO BILLS
    HOUSTON OILERS

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