CB Peters Joins Raiders Like Brown, Haynes

The Las Vegas Raiders signed Marcus Peters earlier in camp, and this might be the third time in team history that the Silver and Black have added the best cornerback in the National Football League as a free agent.

The 6-foot, 200-pound Peters was selected in the first round of the 2015 NFL Draft (No. 15 overall) and has played for the Los Angeles Rams and Baltimore Ravens. He was the 2015 NFL Rookie of the Year, has made the All-Pro team four times, and has played in the Pro Bowl three times.

“I spoke to Marcus Peters at the Pro Bowl and he made it clear to me a desire to play for his childhood team the Las Vegas Raiders,” one writer said. “He is the best cornerback in the NFL right now.”

That was similar to what people were saying after the Raiders signed cornerback Willie Brown as a free agent from the Denver Broncos in 1967 and Mike Haynes of the New England Patriots in 1983.

Brown and Haynes are enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame today.

All the 6-1, 195-pound Brown did was step right into the starting lineup of the famed Eleven Angry Men defense as the Raiders won the 1967 AFL Championship Game by beating the Oilers, 40-7, as he made an interception, before they lost to the Green Bay Packers, 33-14, in Super Bowl II to finish the season with an overall 14-2 record.

Brown made All-AFL or All-Pro in seven straight seasons starting in 1967 and was an All-Star in 10 of the 16 pro seasons he played. Once again, we don’t know how many tackles he made in his career because the NFL did not keep those statistics in those days, but he had 54 interceptions that he returned for 472 yards and two touchdowns, both with the Raiders in 1967 and 1968, and four fumble recoveries—all with the Silver and Black.

“Willie Brown was the best cornerback in the 10-year history of the American Football League, and he kept on going after that,” Raider Coach John Madden said. “Willie was the best at the position I ever saw.”

Said Brown: “Probably the greatest memory as a Raider was simply coming to the Raiders, and meeting Al Davis in Denver. I was playing with Denver and went to the Raiders. He took the time to come to Denver, fly-in and talk to me about joining the Raiders. That’s probably the greatest moment.”

In addition, Brown was selected to the All-Time American Football League (1960-69) team, the NFL 1970s All-Decade Team, the NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team and was elected to the NFL Hall of Fame in 1984, his first year of eligibility.

The signature play of Brown’s career was a 75-yard interception return against quarterback Fran Tarkenton at 37 to put the finishing touches on the Raiders’ 32-14 victory over the Minnesota Vikings in Super Bowl XI. “Old Man Willie, he’s going all the way,” laughed Bill King, the Raiders’ legendary play-by-play announcer, as Brown ran down the right sideline at the Rose Bowl stadium in Pasadena, Calif.

Haynes was already a star when he came to the Raiders in 1983, and once there, he teamed with Lester Hayes to form one of the best cornerback combos in NFL history.

Haynes was selected with the fifth overall pick of the 1976 NFL Draft by the New England Patriots after being a two-time All-American at Arizona State and showed right away that the choice was merited by being named NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year and United Press International.

In addition, Hayes made the All-Pro team as a rookie and played in the Pro Bowl, making a career-high eight pass interceptions as a rookie, as quarterbacks threw his way fewer times, much like Brown because the football might soon be going back the other way.

Haynes had 46 interceptions in his career, including 18 with the Raiders, including six for a whopping 220 yards, and a 97-yard touchdown against the Miami Dolphins in 1984. He also had 11 forced fumbles and recovered 11 in 177 career games with the Raiders between 1976 and 1989, and scored five touchdowns, two on punt returns of 89 and 62 yards.

In 1983, Haynes played out his option with the Patriots and went to the Raiders in November, arriving just in time to play the last five games of the regular season.

After that, Haynes played critical roles in a 24-10 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers to open the 1983 playoffs, a 21-14 victory over the Seattle Seahawks in the American Football Conference Championship Game, and a 38-9 rout of the Washington Redskins in Super Bowl XVIII.

The Raiders were 8-3 when Haynes arrived, including a 37-35 loss to the Redskins early in the season, but went 7-1 with him in the lineup. In the Super Bowl, Haynes and Hayes virtually shut down the Redskins outside the passing game, and Haynes had an interception and sack against quarterback Joe Theismann.

“I could see the fear in Theismann’s face,” Raiders defensive end Howie Long said.

The Raiders are hoping for the same from Peters.

The Silver and Black open the preseason by hosting the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday, Aug. 13, at 4 p.m. EDT/1 p.m. PDT.

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