Two of the best quarterbacks of the 1970s match up on Monday Night Football, as Ken Anderson's 9-3 Bengals roll into the black hole to face Ken Stabler and the future Super Bowl champion 11-1 Raiders, who look to win their 9th straight.
I was 5 -6 year's old and i’d hear the opening music with Cosell building the game up, took my bath and got a blanket and laid down to watch good game. As a little kid I loved to watch Monday night football. When football was on, life was good !
During the 70's, each MNF game was huge no matter the matchup. And if your team was playing it was a huge rush. Howard could be annoying but he gave the game a sense of urgency and importance. Gifford had the patience of a saint.
Watched this live on TV in 1976, this Oakland team was my all-time favorite sports team led by my favorite athlete all-time Ken Stabler. Those who thought they'd throw this game to avoid the Steelers were dead wrong. The Raiders had zero fear of Pittsburgh. They were equal to or better than the Steelers every year, were 2-3 against them in the playoffs from 1972-76, which were 2 blowout wins and 3 close losses including the immaculate reception fluke. They beat them in another blowout in the 1983 playoffs to pull even at 3-3 in postseason matchups. However, Pittsburgh won 4 Super Bowls from 1974-79, while Oakland only won in 1976, and then again in 1980 and 1983. The Raiders underachieved, they should have won several more Super Bowls, especially in 1969 and 1974.
These MNF games bring back the 70s as I remember them. I could watch these all day/night. This year the Super Bowl bound Raiders could do no wrong except for a 48-17 thrashing by the Patriots on Oct 3rd. Their season was an amazing feat considering they were injury riddled much of the year. Thanks for not cutting out the original commercials as they give it more of that 70s time capsule.
I Hear ya!! The 76 season was one of the best seasons ever. Almost all the teams had Great quarterbacks and MNF was a Real Event back in those days. It was the best time of my life.
Thank you for this. I'm an old Raiders fan and watched this under self-quarantine on my birthday. I am now re-energized by my heroes. Thank you Snake, Ghost, Cliff Branch, Mad Stork, Dr. Death, Assassin, Tooz, Clarence, Van Eeeghen, Gene Upshaw, Art Shell, Dave Dalby, George Atkinson and others. Game was more violent then than now. Today the athletes are better, but were they as tough as these old warriors? I don't think so.
@@davidcobb2693 I can't believe I forgot Freddy! Someone needs to post more Raiders games from 1976 championship season. Only complete games I can find are this and Super Bowl.
Me too. It seems like yesterday that I was in the living room with my pops eating porterhouse steaks and watching MNF. I miss it so much. Damn time just goes too fast.
Now you got Gus Johnson screaming in your face and trying to coin nicknames for everyone so he can get the credit and be relevant..🙄..hes unbearable. Giffords voice just takes me back here to a way bettertime.....staying up late with my dad every Monday in the fall taking in the games..
The Lionel train commercial with Johnny Cash (2hrs 15 minutes) brought back all the memories of being little. I actually got my 1st Lionel train set the Christmas of 76... I probably saw this commercial and made a big deal out of it and my parents took note!
Best thing about these commercials is historical accuracy. Younger people can see by actors and extras in these adds that we didn't all dress up in that garbage they see in the thrift stores labeled "70s" We actually dressed very "business casual" in relation to present day convention.
This is about the time I started watching the NFL when I was a kid. All of these names are tattooed on my brain. Love watching these old games...thanks for posting.
This is an absolute 'time capsule' of a post. Ice Cube calls himself a fan , but no one will ever beat Jim Garner; he always seemed to be on the sidelines.
Mason Boehm great point. Have been desperately seeking a 1975 MNF game between the Bengals and Buffalo Bills. O.J. Simpson ran for 197 yards and Ken Anderson threw for almost 450 yards (in ‘75!) Best of all, my Dad let me stay up and watch the whole Bengals victory!
....and the Raiders provided a number of those treasures. Who can forget their huge, come-from-behind win in the Superdome in 1979 to pretty much prevent the Saints from realizing their first ever playoff berth?
The Bengals were really good in the mid 70s. They couldn’t get past some of the greatest teams in NFL history… Miami Dolphins, Oakland Raiders and the Pittsburgh Steelers
In memory of John Madden--one of the last living AFL head coaches. Of course, he and the Raiders would participate in the NFL where he won a Super Bowl! This is for Mister Madden.
As a Huge Steelers fan, I'm disappointed the Steelers couldn't finish the job. The Raiders were ready in the AFC title game. If Franco and Rocky had played. it might have been different, but we'll never know.
I was and always been a Raider fan. Thank you for bringing back memories of a great game and season. Making me feel sixteen again during this time of CV. Commercials helped to bring that time back, too. GO RAIDERS,wherever you play.
I loved growing up in California in the 70's and watching the Raiders was a big part of it. Sad how things have turned out for that state and even the Raiders have left too.
Robert Glancy in the 70s, l grew up in union city, about 25 minutes from the coliseum. Loved watching them every week as well. The fact they left Oakland for a second time sucks. Very sad.
Good riddance to the Raiders, one of the most predatory and inept franchises in all of sports. A perfect fit for Las Vegas, a city that fleeces people for a living.
Forbes did an analysis of the Silver & Black years ago & valued team @ $800M with Pats & Boys @ $2-2.5B. Raiders fighting Roselle tooth & nail excluded them from goodwill & distracted team. Should've been at least $1-1.5, especially when half the world knows who "Silver & Black" refers to. Davis won three rings but shot himself in the foot. Many times.
I don't know how you recorded this segment....but I applaud you! Fantastic! This is when football was real football... Thank you! So much..what a real joy to watch.
Saw Stabler play twice in person. Unfortunately it was when he played fo the Oilers and Saints. God Speed to the Snake. Finally in the HOF. Just need to get Cliff Branch in as well. The fastest man I have ever seen on a football field.
@@Crusader1815 Cliff Branch held EVERY postseason receiving record when he retired, most receptions, most yards and most TD receptions. The anti Raiders bias must end!
Is it me , or is there a nice pace to this game as compared to today’s NFL, slow. And what a joy to see kickoff returns. How ‘ bout the price of that Thunderbird car, $5434.😄
Thank you for this. I’m going to sit down with my dad and my brother and my dog and watch this again. None of them are with me now but when I watch this it’ll feel like it.
This is one of the best Cincinnati Bengals teams in the history of the franchise (1968), and despite that, still failed to qualify for the playoffs this season, thanks to the best team in football at the time, being in the same division. I remember as a kid thinking how unfair that was, but I quickly learned that the NFL, and life in general, isn't/wasn't always fair...
Ok... I'm gonna say it... Dave Casper was the greatest TE that I have ever watched PERIOD! Catching, "YAC" blocking, scoring, etc. etc. He could do it all.
The later Paul Zimmerman campaigned heavily to get Casper enshrined into the pro football hall of fame. Dr.Z loved Casper but for some reason seemed to despise Stabler.
Do you know ,have any idea how beat up those players were when they retired most of would have debilitating injuries check out the past those players had horrible retirement . Read about Jim Otto ,double o . And no medical after retirement that's freaking sucks . Today's athletes just want to have a life after sports !
Not a Raiders fan but always respect GREATNESS ⚡️⭐️. I’m 57 and remember all this so well 👀🌈. Cliff Branch belonged in The HOF long before he passed ✨. The #’s + 3 Rings !!! Madden always said he was so proud of this win 💪. Classic era indeed ! I was there 💖
What an awesome post. Brings back so many great memories. I always looked forward to MNF during this era. Nowadays, there is Thursday night football, Sunday night football and sometimes doubleheader Monday night games. All on various networks. I understand ratings and revenue, but to me, it dilutes and diminishes the old time special feeling of the original era MNF.
Brings back lots of memories. Loved Half Time Highlights. That was the only chance you got to see the rest of the league other than your local team. Even like the commercials. That TV where you could play Pong was really high tech back then.
I'm no Bengals fan but I do agree with you a 100% I think we should petition to get Kenny in the pro football hof as follows: #KenAnderson inducted in football hof
a game of all-pros,,,,,Raiders... Ken Stabler, Cliff branch, Dave casper, Ray Guy, Art Shell, Monte Jackson, & Safety Jack Tatum.....while the Bengals had All-Pros Isaac Curtis, Safety Tommy Casanova, CB Ken Riey, Defensive End Coy Bacon, ...:Lastly i miss 'Alex Karras' helping out with the Monday Night Football broadcast crew... at this time Dandy Don Meredith was making Movie of the week TV films.
When I was a kid in the 1970s during school days my Mom would let me watch ABC's Monday Night Football until halftime and Howard Cosell's play by play during the halftime show before going to bed because she knew I'd had a liking for the legendary commentator.
Remember this like yesterday. All week long there’d been stories from Pittsburgh insinuating the Raiders might purposely lose to keep Pittsburgh out of the playoffs which was ridiculous. It was straight up gamesmanship but nevertheless the Raiders played their best game of the season and John Madden said he’d never been prouder of his team.
Okay, The NFL in 1976 was a decent one. First of one the league welcomes two expansion teams Tampa Bay and Seattle to make it a total of 26 teams, now it's 32. They later switch confernces the next season. There was only 14 regular season games, now it is 16. The playoff system hasn't changed much. Back then there was only 8 teams (6 division champions and 2 wild cards). Today, it's 12 teams (8 division champions and 4 wild cards). More grit and grime in 1976. Currently more flash and dash.
Raiders had great teams in 1970s... This was their best... And everything they said about their injuries was true... Madden and his staff did a great job!
Coaches are very important. Training, leadership, game plan. Too much emphasis nowadays on superstar players. That never works. It’s a team sport. Coaching is extremely important.
@@timhuggins7069 I graduated that year also, and to make it even better the Raiders won that Super Bowl against the Vikings in my hometown! The Rose Bowl is close enough that I can actually walk to it
Where to start? 1. The game moves along so much better without any reviewing of plays. More than anything else, the needless reviewing of calls has ruined the modern game. 2. The screen is so uncluttered, and commentary is kept to a minimum. The game is so much more enjoyable without all the onscreen graphics and clutter. 3. The players behaved. No stupid showboating and dancing and taunting after every play. It's like watching men here, rather than the children we have to watch today. 4. I miss when some kickers still kicked straight-on rather than soccer-style. 5. Howard Cosell was a one-of-a-kind, and man those yellow jackets were something else. 6. The Goodyear Blimp view is surprisingly effective, and I wish we could have it back. You can watch a play unfold in a way you can't with any of the modern camera angles. 7. Commercials were better in the '70s, but then, so was nearly everything else.
It's probably debatable but this was the greatest defensive team for one year that I've ever seen in my life even though I was like 13 I still remember watching a couple games I think they had 6 shutouts that year don't quote "me they played the Baltimore Colts in the playoffs but they had injures in the game when they played the raiders the next They were beat up and out of gas but the raiders were due Yeah Terry Bradshaw missed most of that season they won these games with some non descript backup quarterback
Yea and look at the hits the QBS used to take.That was a part of the game, if you cant get him hit him.Not necessarily to hurt the guy, but get inside his head so he cant feel comfortable.
@@ginagetscreative Dan Marino, Warren Moon, Fran Tarkenton, Dan Fouts, Jim Kelly: five Hall of Famer QBs (who never won a ring) with more passing yards than Ken Anderson, who is currently listed 21 spots ahead of Terry Bradshaw in total passing yards. Anderson is also ahead of Bradshaw in passer rating and pass completion percentage. So having a ring or two (or four) helped Bradshaw a great deal.
The graphics, the music, the sense of awe and urgency, mixed with just enough "sports entertainment" like maybe 10% made this era of the NFL the best, of course ending in the early 90s
As great a punter as Ray Guy was notice he kicked off as well. Important to note that this was back when they kicked off from the 35 hardline. Every Ray Guy kickoff went 65 yards and was caught at the goaline. Amazing athletic feat but not very well known.
Orangjuice..They sure were. My dad owned a dark brown, 1972 LTD. Wood interior and satin-like...or velvet apolhestry. It was loaded. They sure don't make them like they used to.
Wow, I had no idea that Ray Guy also handled the kick off duties in this game. Love that square toed kicking shoe that he uses. Notice how he has it tilting up for extra help in getting his kicks high up in the air and real deep. Makes it so much easier for his kicking team to get down there and limit the returns. I was a teenager in the 70's and had no idea that Guy handled kick offs early in his career. It was a great decision by Al Davis and John Madden as Guy had the strongest leg in the NFL and was also a great athlete. Guy gives the Raiders a huge advantage in field position all throughout this game. Notice how Guy's punts rarely get returned because their height and distance. And it's the same with his kick offs. Guy's kick offs are always very high and reach the goal line or into the end zone with returns held in check. On the other hand Chris Barr's kickoffs are routinely 15 yards or so well short of Guy's kick offs. That led to a lot more opportunities for returns, which the Raiders took advantage of.
A few years ago, I was browsing through the sports section of the local library when I came across a book titled, "Monday night mayhem." The names you see in the intro such as Roone arledge, chet forte, are talked about in the book as well as the announcers. I def recommend the book of you're interested in the origins and background stories of this program.
Totally understand it--he was a great punter--one of the best in history and the knowledgeable Oakland fans understood how his stellar punting helped the Raiders to their great record.
Incredible that I’d pick this video at random and there on the highlights is Steve Jones from my tiny (pop. 12,000) home town. And the ads, including a cigar ad. Great stuff.
The historical perspective of watching these uploads intact. Reggie Jackson makes a booth appearance after just signing with the Yankees. The no-frills player introductions are priceless. Did it seem like Cosell had no use for Alex Karras? And lastly, why is Cliff Branch NOT in the hall of fame???
lulz...Karras made some great straight lines, the one about Biletnikoff's profile looking like John Barrymore, then he asked to listen to the ref call the penalty because "he has a beautiful voice", but Cosell and Gifford weren't hip to Karras' humor.
Cosell had no use period for any ex player in the booth. That pompous ass thought they were beneath him because they didn't have the qualifications he thought he had.
"Mongo like candy!" As a kid watching Monday Night when Alex was there and when Chet Forte was the director, we couldn't wait as to what would always happen. As Alex was talking about a play Chet would have the cameraman pan his camera into the crowds to find a cutie and zoom-in on her. Alex in mid-sentence, would pump his brakes and start swooning about the beauty that everyone watching the game saw on their tv screen. A classic one was a gorgeous red-head during a game in Kansas City. Alex stopped and started salivating. My younger brother and I were rolling on the ground in laughter! A few years later he married actress Susan Clark a red-haired beauty.
It's great during this time of no sports to be able to go back and see Snake and company do it again. I miss the old days of real football before it became all about the money.
That's because they WERE intended to look like the Browns helmets!! Paul Brown left the Browns and started the Bengals with almost the same colors to spite CLEVELAND!!
Absolutely. The Raiders earned a lot of respect for not laying down in this one, knowing that they were opening the door for the Steelers. They wanted to beat the best in the playoffs, and they did. And this comes from an avid Steelers fan.
@Greg Hubbard Greg, I'm a huge Steelers fan, but give the '76 Raiders credit, they were a great team, not lucky. Had Franco and Rocky been healthy, it might have been different, but injuries are part of it. The Raiders also beat the Steelers in the '73 playoffs, at Oakland.
@Greg Hubbard its cool how you're still mad at the Raiders... I still want the Steelers to lose, in these old videos, because I still love the Oilers, like it was 1974. Thats how you know Football was truly great back then. - EastSide Houston.
