Raiders-Patriots Memorable Moments

The most intriguing aspect of this Sunday’s game at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas is the match-up between first-year Coach Josh McDaniels of the Las Vegas Raiders and his mentor, Coach Bill Belichick of the New England Patriots.

McDaniels and the Denver Broncos beat Belichick and the Patriots, 28-10, in 2009 in their only previous meeting when the student was in his first stint as a head coach in the National Football League.

This one appears to be much more difficult, as the Raiders (5-8) are struggling, while the Patriots (7-6) are right in the middle of the fight for an AFC playoff spot.

The Raiders and Patriots have seen each other already this season, as they held joint practices during the preseason before the Silver and Black rolled to a 23-6 victory at Allegiant Stadium in the final game before the regular season started.

However, that game won’t mean anything this week, as neither team played its regulars.

The Patriots lead the all-time series, which dates to 1960 and the first season of the American Football League, when the Raiders claimed a 27-14 victory at Kezar Stadium in San Francisco as Jack Larscheid ran 87 yards for a touchdown and Billy Lott went 40 yards for the clincher.

The Raiders dominated the series at one time, but the Patriots have beaten them the last six times the teams have played and nine of the last 12 to hold a 20-15-1 margin.

Of course, this time, the Raiders won’t have to deal with quarterback Tom Brady, as he has moved on to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers after leading New England to most of those victories over the Silver and Black.

The last time the teams met during the regular season, Cam Newton had replaced Brady at quarterback. He threw an 11-yard touchdown pass to running back Rex Burkhead, who also rushed for scores of two and five yards, as the Patriots claimed a 36-20 victory over the Raiders at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, Mass., in 2020.

Quarterback Derek Carr of the Raiders passed for 261 yards and touchdowns of one yard to tight end Foster Moreau and 13 yards to wide receiver Hunter Moreau, but that wasn’t nearly enough as both teams went to 2-1.

Of course, the most famous game in the series was “The Tuck Rule Game,” a 2001 AFC Divisional playoff encounter. Brady seemed to fumble while being sacked by cornerback Charles Woodson, with linebacker Greg Biekert recovering, apparently clinching the victory for the Raiders.

Brady got up and ran off the field without any dispute because he knew he had fumbled. Still, after looking at replays, officials cited something called “The Tuck Rule,” and called it an incomplete pass even though Brady was trying to protect the ball at the time and had no intention of throwing a pass when Woodson was sacking him.

“The Tuck Rule” was taken off the books soon after.

Adam Vinatieri kicked a 45-yard field goal in the snow with 27 seconds left in regulation to tie the score and added a 23-yard field goal in overtime for a 16-13 victory which sent the Patriots on the way to capturing their first Super Bowl, 20-17, over the St. Louis Rams on Vinatieri’s 48-yard field goal.

The favorite game for fans of Raider Nation in the series came in another Divisional Playoff in 1976, when quarterback Kenny “Snake” Stabler ran one yard for a touchdown behind pulling guard Gene Upshaw with 10 seconds remaining to give the Raiders a 24-21 victory at the Oakland Coliseum.

The Patriots cried foul that time because they were penalized 15 yards a few plays before Stabler’s touchdown when defensive lineman Ray “Sugar Bear” Hamilton was penalized 15 yards for hitting Snake in the head on a sack.

“It was just football,” Stabler said, as that was the first season the NFL ruled hitting the quarterback in the head was a penalty. “If they hadn’t called the penalty, it wouldn’t have bothered me because we had a couple plays left and I believe we would have figured out a way to score.”

The Raiders went on to rout the Minnesota Vikings, 32-14, in Super Bowl XI.

The Raiders return to action at Allegiant Stadium on Sunday, Dec. 18, 2022, when they host the New England Patriots. That game will kick off at 4:05 p.m. EST/1:05 p.m. PST and can be seen on FOX.

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