NFL History: Ranking the 30 best wild card teams in NFL history

EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ - OCTOBER 06: (NEW YORK DAILIES OUT) Eli Manning #10 and Brandon Jacobs #34 of the New York Giants in action against the Philadelphia Eagles on October 6, 2013 at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The Eagles defeated the Giants 36-21. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images) /

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Oakland Raiders quarterback Jim Plunkett #16. (Photo by Focus on Sport/Getty Images) /

Ranking the 30 best wild card teams in NFL history: 6. 1980 Oakland Raiders

The 1980 Oakland Raiders season was a wild one. Obviously, it’s Al Davis and the Raiders, so of course, it was, but there was literal fan protesting throughout this season. There were rumors the Raiders would be leaving Oakland, and the fans were not happy. Despite that distraction, the Raiders had a championship contender, and they wanted to live up to those expectations.

Jim Plunkett took over the Raiders offense in the middle of the season after they started with Dan Pastorini. That was the secret sauce to making the Raiders one of the best teams in the league. He took a 2-3 team and gave it some juice.

The Raiders were insane at causing turnovers, and they finished the season with 52 (!!!). They led the league (obviously).

The Raiders won six straight games to go into the postseason with a ton of momentum. They faced an old friend in Kenny Stabler who was now the starting quarterback of the Oilers. It was a pretty precipitous takedown as the Raiders won 27-7. They would go on to win nailbiters against the Cleveland Browns and San Diego Chargers before taking on the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl XV.

The Raiders were just the best team in the playoffs that season and two first-quarter touchdowns were enough with that Raiders defense to win.

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