Broncos vs Raiders over the years

Good morning, Broncos Country!

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The next chapter of this classic NFL rivalry gets written today.

Thankfully Khalil Mack is gone, thus removing a player who has wrecked the Denver Broncos since he entered the league. As Pro Football Focus Broncos tweeted, Denver will face a Mack-less Oakland Raiders for the first time since 2013. In its tweet, it added that 42 of Mack’s career pressures came against the Broncos from 2014-17. On average, he beat Denver’s offensive lineman once every 4.6 pass-rush snaps. Thank you, Jon Gruden.

On the latest MHR Radio Podcast, Adam Malnati and I were joined by Brandon Perna from That’s Good Sports. We previewed today’s game and spent a good deal laughing at Oakland for trading Mack. I also previewed the game with Michael Klahr and Marc Knudson on my weekly segment (starts at the 25-minute mark).

Before the next chapter gets written, let’s look back at the history between these two teams, as well as news and notes for today’s game courtesy of the Broncos weekly release.

• Today marks the 116th regular-season game between the Broncos and Raiders. Denver owns a 51-62-2 all-time record vs Oakland; a 26-29-2 mark in Denver and 25-33 on the road. The first game in the rivalry was on Oct. 2, 1960, in Denver, a 31-14 Broncos win.
• The last Broncos home win over the Raiders was also the last win in the series, when they beat Oakland 16-10. The last home loss was on Dec. 13, 2015, a 15-12 Oakland win (when Mack got five sacks). My cousin and I were at that game.
• The last Broncos road win was on Oct. 11, 2015, a 16-10 victory. The last road loss to the Raiders was last season, 21-14. Interesting note: Denver hasn’t won a road game in the AFC West since Peyton Manning retired (Dec. 6, 2015, 17-3 in San Diego).
• The longest winning streak for the Broncos over the Raiders is eight games, from Nov. 6, 2011-Dec. 13, 2015. The longest winning streak for the Raiders over the Broncos is 14 games, from Nov. 21, 1965-Dec. 19, 1971.
• The Broncos have netted two shutouts in this series. The last one was on Oct. 16, 1995 in Denver, 27-0. The Raiders also have netted two shutouts in this series. The last one was Nov. 22, 1992, in LA, 24-0.
• The largest win for the Broncos over the Raiders is 37 points, a 44-7 victory on Oct. 5, 1962, in Denver at then-Bears Stadium. The largest win for the Raiders is 51, a 51-0 Oakland shutout on Sept. 10, 1967, in Oakland.
• The most points the Broncos have scored in the series vs the Raiders is 47. It happened on Dec. 28, 2014, in Denver, a 47-14 win. The most points the Raiders have scored in the series is 59. That happened on Oct. 24, 2010, in Denver, the infamous 59-14 game. That was the beginning of the end for the guy we don’t name here.
• The most combined points for the Broncos and Raiders is 74, a 38-36 Denver win on Sept. 7, 1986, in Oakland. Again, this is for the regular season. The fewest combined points for the Broncos and Raiders is 12, a 9-3 Oakland win on Dec. 1, 1980, in Oakland.
• The Broncos and Raiders have met twice in the playoffs. The magical 20-17 Denver win on Jan. 1, 1978, at Mile High in the AFC title game. Knowing the history of the franchise and how much the Broncos struggled vs the Raiders, that game is why this rivalry means so much.
• The other postseason game was a 42-24 Raiders win over the Broncos on Jan. 9, 1994, in LA in the AFC Wild Card game. As Peter King noted in his story from the game, there were five on-field fights in that game. As Dennis Smith said, “We hate each other’s guts, and it was kind of crazy out there.”
• Pat Bowlen can earn his 350th overall win as owner of the Broncos. How fitting it would be to have it happen against the Raiders. The win over Seattle allowed Mr. B to pass Al Davis for fifth in NFL history.
• Broncos cornerback and returner Adam Jones needs 69 punt return yards to become the 39th player in NFL history with 2,000 punt return yards.
• Broncos quarterback Case Keenum needs one passing touchdown to reach 50 for his career. Keenum’s 329 yards vs Seattle represent the most passing yards by a quarterback in his Broncos starting debut.
• Broncos running back Phillip Lindsay became the third undrafted player in the common draft era (since 1967) to total at least 100 yards and a touchdown from scrimmage in his NFL debut. He’s also the first running back to do that.
• Broncos safety Darian Stewart needs seven tackles to reach 400 for his career.
• Broncos linebacker Von Miller needs one sack to tie Leonard Little (87.5) for 48th on the NFL’s all-time sack list.
• Miller leads the NFL with 86.5 sacks since entering the league in 2011. His career average of 0.83 sacks per games ranks second in NFL history.
• The Broncos are looking to hold their opponent to 300 or fewer net passing yards for the 36th consecutive game. That would be the longest streak by an NFL team since Pittsburgh (36, 2010-12).

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Horse Tracks

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Raiders Tracks

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AFC West Tracks

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NFL Tracks

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