The 1980 AFC Championship Game pitted two AFC West rivals against each other as the San Diego Chargers played host to the Oakland Raiders for the right to represent the AFC in Super Bowl XV.
The Chargers being in the AFC title game was not a surprise but the Raiders being there was a shock, especially with how the year started for the team.
Oakland entered the 1980 season coming off back-to-back 9-7 seasons as the franchise was seen to be as rebuilding as they were under second-year head coach Tom Flores and had a new starting quarterback for the ‘80 season in Dan Pastorini, who they got in a trade with the Houston Oilers for quarterback Ken Stabler, who had been Oakland’s starting quarterback for the past seven seasons.
But in the fifth game of the season, Pastorini broke his leg and the Raiders had to turn Jim Plunkett, a man who had been the #1 pick in the 1971 NFL draft with the New England Patriots and was seen as the time as a “bust”.
Plunkett looked like a man who had only thrown 15 passes over the past two seasons as he was intercepted five times in the game he replaced Pastorini, a 31-17 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs which dropped the Raiders to 2-3.
However, Flores decided to stick with Plunkett and the former Heisman Trophy winner rewarded him by leading the Raiders to a 9-2 record over the rest of the regular season and the team’s first playoff berth since 1977.
Even though Plunkett only completed 22 of 53 passes in two games, the wild card Raiders were still able to advance to the AFC Championship Game as they defeated the Houston Oilers 27-7 in the Wild Card Round, then went on the road and upset the Cleveland Browns 14-12 in the Divisional Round, thanks to Mike Davis’ end zone interception in the final seconds on the infamous “Red Right 88”.
If the Raiders were going to knock off the Chargers, Plunkett was going to need to have a big game as Oakland was going to up against the most explosive offense in the NFL.
The Chargers entered the 1980 season as Super Bowl contenders as they had gone 12-4 the previous season under head coach Don Coryell and his passing offense which was known as “Air Coryell” and led by quarterback Dan Fouts, who set the NFL’s single season passing yards record in 1979 with 4, 082 yards.
Fouts would break his own record in 1980 as his 4, 715 yards lead the Chargers to a 11-5 record and their second straight AFC West title.
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| Jim Plunkett had the fourth highest quarterback rating in a NFL playoff game, 155.8, in the 1980 AFC Championship Game.
After receiving the opening kickoff and returning it to their 29-yard-line, the Raiders gained six yards on the first two plays of the game to set up a 3rd-and-4.
That is when Plunkett fired a pass five yards downfield for running back Kenny King, but the ball bounced off King’s hands and into the hands of teammate Raymond Chester, who made the catch and then outran the Charger defense for a shocking 65-yard touchdown that put Oakland ahead 7-0 just 95 seconds into the game.
The Chargers responded quickly to the touchdown on the first play of their opening drive as Fouts connected with Ron Smith for a 55-yard completion that put San Diego at the Oakland 28-yard-line.
However, four plays later, Fouts was picked off by Raiders cornerback Lester Hayes, who returned his 18th interception of the season 16 yards to the Oakland 25-yard-line.
The Raiders were unable to move the ball and were forced to punt the ball back to the Chargers who took over at their own 40-yard-line when wide receiver Charlie Joiner made his presence felt.
Joiner caught a 12-yard pass on the first play of the drive, then made a spectacular catch with two Raider defenders between him for a 48-yard touchdown that tied the game 7-7 midway through the first quarter.
The Raiders struck back with a 7-play, 76 yard drive that included a 48-yard pass from Plunkett to Cliff Branch to the San Diego 37-yard-line and a 21-yard pass interference penalty on Chargers linebacker Ron Preston on a 3rd-and-6, leading to a five-yard touchdown run by Plunkett that put Oakland back on top 14-7 with 3:46 left in the opening quarter.
After forcing the Chargers offense to go three-and-out, the Raiders took over at the San Diego 49-yard-line where it took them only four plays to get back into the end zone as Plunkett found King for a 21-yard touchdown to increase the Oakland lead to 21-7 with 1:35 left in the first quarter.
Now facing their largest deficit of the season, the Chargers drove down the field in hopes of cutting the lead, only to have Fouts threw his second red zone interception of the game, with Raiders safety Burgess Owens being the culprit this time, as he picked off Fouts’ pass intended for John Jefferson at the one-yard-line.
The Raiders were able to drive to their 29-yard-line before punting the ball back as Ray Guy kicked the longest punt in postseason history, a 71-yarder that ended up in the end zone for a touchback.
Then on the second play of the Chargers’ ensuing possession, San Diego suffered its third turnover of the game as running back Mike Thomas fumbled the football when he was hit by Raiders defensive tackle John Matuszak, with linebacker Ted Hendricks recovering the loose ball at the Chargers’ 29-yard-line.
Seven plays later, the Raiders were back in the end zone as Mark van Eeghen punched it in from three yards out to push the Oakland lead to 28-7 with 6:26 to go in the first half.
Desperately needing a score to get back into the game, the “Air Coryell” offense put together a 13-play, 64-yard drive which ended with a 8-yard touchdown pass from Fouts to Joiner which cut the Oakland lead to 28-14 with 1:05 left before halftime.
It looked like the Chargers were going to have a chance to cut into the deficit before the end of the half as the Raiders’ Arthur Whittington fumbled the ensuing kickoff which was recovered by the Chargers at the Oakland 14-yard-line.
But the Chargers were called for offsides, nullifying the kickoff and the recovered fumble, leading to a rather anticlimactic finish to the first half as both teams traded punts to end the first 30 minutes with the Raiders still on top 28-14.
Though he threw for 336 yards and two touchdown passes, Dan Fouts' two interceptions in the red zone proved costly for the Chargers.
The Chargers got the ball to start the second half and drove 68 yards in 12 yards, but had to settle for a 26-yard field goal by Rolf Benirschke to trim the deficit to 11 points at 28-17.
The Chargers were able to keep the momentum going as the defense forced the Raiders offense to go three-and-out on their ensuing possession, punting the ball back to San Diego where they took over at the Oakland 41-yard-line following a 28-yard return by Mike Fuller.
Six plays later, the Chargers were in the end zone as Chuck Muncie ran it in for a six-yard touchdown that brought San Diego to within four points, 28-24 with 6:13 left in the third quarter.
That is when Plunkett and the Raiders offense woke up and put a halt to the Chargers’ comeback as they drove 68 yards in nine plays, with Plunkett hitting two key passes on the drive, one for 33 yards to King and another for 18 yards to Chester, leading to a 27-yard field goal by Chris Bahr that pushed the Raider lead back to seven points, 31-24 with 49 seconds left in the third quarter.
Then after forcing the Chargers to go three-and-out, the Raiders took another five minutes off the clock and got three more points on the board as Bahr made a 33-yard field goal to push the lead back to double digits at 34-24 with 9:46 to go in the fourth quarter.
Needing at least a touchdown and a field goal to force overtime, the Chargers put together a 12-play, 72-yard drive, which ended with a 27-yard field goal by Benirschke to bring San Diego to within a touchdown, 34-27.
There was still plenty of time left for the Chargers to force overtime, as the Raiders took possession at their own 25-yard-line with 6:43 to go.
A quick stop by the San Diego defense would give the ball back to Fouts and the offense with a chance for the game-tying score.
But the Chargers never got that stop as the Raiders ran 15 plays, 14 of them on the ground, and drove 53 yards, but most importantly were able to run out the clock and hold on for the 34-27 win to clinch the franchise’s third trip to the Super Bowl.
The Raiders had needed a big game from Plunkett and they got it as he completed 14 of 18 passes for 261 yards with three touchdowns(two in the air, one on the ground) and zero interceptions.
Two weeks later, the Raiders would defeat the Philadelphia Eagles 27-10 in Super Bowl XV as Plunkett was named the Super Bowl MVP as he threw touchdown pasess on 13-of-21 passing for 261 yards and zero interceptions.
The following season would not be as good as for Plunkett as he lost the starting quarterback job to Marc Wilson as the Raiders missed the playoffs while the Chargers returned to the AFC Championship Game only to lose to the Cincinnati Bengals 27-7 in the “Freezer Bowl” a game that was played in -59 degree wind chill.
Plunkett came off the bench again in 1983 to help lead the Raiders to another Super Bowl title, which was followed by only 17 more starts in the next three seasons before the former Heisman winner finally retired after the 1986 season.
The Raiders celebrate after their 34-27 win over the San Diego Chargers sent them to their second Super Bowl in five years.
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