1967 Oakland Raiders season

1967 Oakland Raiders season
Head coach	John Rauch
Owner	F. Wayne Valley
Home field	Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum
Results
Record	13–1
Division place	1st AFL Western
Playoff finish	Won AFL Championship Lost Super Bowl II

The 1967 Oakland Raiders season was the team's eighth in Oakland. Under the command of second-year head coach John Rauch, the Raiders went 13–1 (an AFL record) and captured their first Western Division title. The addition of strong-armed quarterback Daryle Lamonica greatly energized the Raiders' vertical passing game. Additionally, the Raiders added Gene Upshaw, Willie Brown, and George Blanda to their roster during the 1967 offseason. All three players would eventually be elected to the Hall of Fame.

The Raiders routed the Houston Oilers in the 1967 AFL Championship Game. The victory allowed them to advance to Super Bowl II, where they were soundly defeated by the NFL champion Green Bay Packers. The Raiders would ultimately finish the season with a record of 14–2.

The 1967 season was a massive breakthrough for the Raiders organization. Between 1967 and 1985, the team would go on win twelve division titles and three championships.

Team leaders

Passing

Daryle Lamonica – 3,228 yds., 30 TD, 20 INT, 80.8 rating

Rushing

Clem Daniels – 130 att., 575 yds., 4 TD

Receiving

Fred Biletnikoff – 40 rec., 876 yds., 5 TD

Regular season

Over the course of a fourteen-game regular season schedule, the Raiders faced six of the other eight AFL teams twice, with one game against the Eastern Division's Houston Oilers and Miami Dolphins. The AFL had no playoff rounds; only a championship game between the league's two division winners.

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Record	Attendance
1	September 10, 1967	Denver Broncos	W 51–0	1-0	25,423
2	September 17, 1967	Boston Patriots	W 35–7	2-0	26,289
3	October 1, 1967	Kansas City Chiefs	W 23–21	3-0	50,268
4	October 7, 1967	at New York Jets	L 14–27	3-1	63,106
5	October 15, 1967	at Buffalo Bills	W 24–20	4-1	45,758
6	October 22, 1967	at Boston Patriots	W 48–14	5-1	25,057
7	October 29, 1967	San Diego Chargers	W 51–10	6-1	53,474
8	November 5, 1967	at Denver Broncos	W 21–17	7-1	29,043
9	November 19, 1967	Miami Dolphins	W 31–17	8-1	37,295
10	November 23, 1967	at Kansas City Chiefs	W 44–22	9-1	44,020
11	December 3, 1967	at San Diego Chargers	W 41–21	10-1	53,474
12	December 10, 1967	at Houston Oilers	W 19–7	11-1	36,375
13	December 17, 1967	New York Jets	W 38–29	12-1	53,011
14	December 24, 1967	Buffalo Bills	W 28–21	13-1	30,738

Postseason

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Attendance
AFL Championship	December 31, 1967	Houston Oilers	W 40–7	53,330
Super Bowl II	January 14, 1968	Green Bay Packers	L 33–14	75,546

Standings

AFL Western Division
	W	L	T	PCT	DIV	PF	PA	STK
Oakland Raiders	13	1	0	.929	6–0	468	233	W10
Kansas City Chiefs	9	5	0	.643	2–4	408	254	W3
San Diego Chargers	8	5	1	.615	4–2	360	352	L4
Denver Broncos	3	11	0	.214	0–6	256	409	L1

Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.

Game summaries

Week 1

1 2 3 4 Total Broncos 0 0 0 0 0 • Raiders 7 13 14 17 51 Date: September 10

With only one game played during the AFL's opening week, the Raiders' season began on September 10, 1967, with a 51–0 wipeout of the Denver Broncos in front of a home crowd of just more than 25,000. Running back Hewritt Dixon caught one touchdown pass and ran for another. Warren Powers capped the scoring with a 36-yard interception return for a touchdown.

Week 2

1 2 3 4 Total Patriots 7 0 0 0 7 • Raiders 7 14 14 0 35 Date: September 17

Newly acquired quarterback Daryle Lamonica threw three touchdowns and ran for another as Oakland's high-powered offense easily handled the Boston Patriots. Former Raiders quarterback Babe Parilli connected with Art Graham on a 19-yard touchdown pass for Boston's only score.

Week 3

1 2 3 4 Total Chiefs 0 7 0 14 21 • Raiders 0 10 3 10 23 Date: October 1

The Raiders stayed undefeated on the young season on the strength of two Daryle Lamonica touchdown passes and three field goals from 40-year-old George Blanda. A late touchdown run by Mike Garrett was not enough for Kansas City, who lost their first game of the season.

Week 4

1 2 3 4 Total Raiders 0 0 7 7 14 • Jets 7 10 3 7 27 Date: October 7

In front of a crowd of more than 63,000 at Shea Stadium, the New York Jets spoiled Oakland's perfect season. New York's running game provided three touchdowns—two by Emerson Boozer and one by Bill Mathis. Daryle Lamonica connected with Bill Miller and Warren Wells for two second-half touchdowns.

Week 5

1 2 3 4 Total • Raiders 0 17 0 7 24 Bills 7 0 7 6 20 Date: October 15

Oakland rebounded from the previous week's defeat by edging the Buffalo Bills in War Memorial Stadium. The Raiders built a 17–7 halftime lead on a George Blanda field goal, a Fred Biletnikoff touchdown catch, and a 30-yard interception return for a touchdown by Dan Conners. Daryle Lamonica found Billy Cannon for a 3-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter, which provided the margin of victory.

Week 6

1 2 3 4 Total • Raiders 14 6 7 21 48 Patriots 0 0 7 7 14 Date: October 22

In a Week 3 rematch at Fenway Park the Raiders once again easily defeated the Patriots. Daryle Lamonica threw for four touchdowns, while George Blanda accounted for one touchdown pass and two field goals. Roger Hagberg caught one touchdown and ran for another for Oakland.

Week 7

1 2 3 4 Total Chargers 0 10 0 0 10 • Raiders 9 7 14 21 51 Date: October 29

Oakland broke the 50-point mark for the second time in 1967, as the Raiders crushed the San Diego Chargers in their first meeting of the season. Daryle Lamonica and George Blanda combined for three touchdown passes, while Lamonica ran for two more scores. Lance Alworth caught a 71-yard touchdown for the Chargers.

Week 8

1 2 3 4 Total • Raiders 3 15 3 0 21 Broncos 0 7 0 10 17 Date: November 5

Oakland held off a late comeback by the Broncos to preserve a narrow victory at Bears Stadium. The Raiders built an 18–7 halftime lead on the strength of two touchdown receptions by Bill Miller, but could only manage one field goal in the second half. Jim LeClair ran for a 1-yard Denver touchdown in the final period.

Week 9

1 2 3 4 Total Dolphins 3 7 0 7 17 • Raiders 0 7 7 17 31 Date: November 19

The Raiders scored 17 points in the final period to pull away from the expansion Miami Dolphins. Daryle Lamonica connected with Billy Cannon for three scores, while Clem Daniels ran for another. Bob Griese threw a 5-yard touchdown pass to tight end Doug Moreau in the second quarter to give the Dolphins a three-point lead at halftime.

Week 10

1 2 3 4 Total • Raiders 17 6 7 14 44 Chiefs 10 0 2 10 22 Date: November 23

Oakland improved to 9–1 by doubling up on the Chiefs in front of more than 44,000 in Municipal Stadium. Five different Raiders (Fred Biletnikoff, Willie Brown, Pete Banaszak, Warren Powers, and Larry Todd) scored touchdowns, while the Chiefs got touchdown receptions from Frank Pitts and Otis Taylor.

Week 11

1 2 3 4 Total • Raiders 17 14 7 3 41 Chargers 7 14 0 0 21 Date: December 3

The Raiders' offense continued to pile up points on the season, as Daryle Lamonica threw for four more touchdowns. Billy Cannon caught two, while Bill Miller and Fred Biletnikoff caught one each. Charger quarterback John Hadl passed for two scores and ran for another.

Week 12

1 2 3 4 Total • Raiders 0 0 3 16 19 Oilers 0 7 7 0 14 Date: December 10

Four George Blanda field goals and a 27-yard touchdown run by Hewritt Dixon lifted Oakland to its eleventh win of the season, while the Raiders defense held the Houston Oilers to just one touchdown. The game was played at Rice Stadium.

Week 13

1 2 3 4 Total Jets 3 7 0 15 25 • Raiders 3 7 14 14 38 Date: December 17

The Raiders avenged their only loss of the season in front of a home crowd of 53,011. The Jets scored first on a 28-yard pass from Joe Namath to Don Maynard. Daryle Lamonica threw for three touchdowns, while Roger Hagberg and Hewritt Dixon ran for one touchdown each.

Week 14

1 2 3 4 Total Bills 10 0 3 8 21 • Raiders 7 7 7 7 28 Date: December 24 Location: Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum

A 6-yard touchdown run by Hewritt Dixon broke a 21–21 tie in the fourth quarter, as the Raiders edged the Bills to end their regular season with a 13–1 mark, the best in franchise history. The Oakland defense capitalized on Buffalo turnovers, converting two fumble recoveries into touchdowns in the second and third quarters. Daryle Lamonica found Billy Cannon for a 23-yard touchdown pass in the first period.

Regular season team statistics

In the 1967 regular season, the defense led the league with 67 sacks and 665 yards lost, the latter still an all-time record, the Raiders leading the league in sacks from 1966 to 1968, also an all-time record.

Postseason

With a 13–1 record, the Raiders captured their first AFL Western Division title and advanced to the 1967 AFL Championship against the Eastern Division champion Houston Oilers. Oakland edged Houston in a Week 15 matchup on December 10. By virtue of the game's annual rotation, the game was played in Oakland.

AFL championship game

1 2 3 4 Total Oilers 0 0 0 7 7 • Raiders 3 14 10 13 40 Date: December 31 Location: Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, Oakland, California Game weather: 45°F • Wind 3

Scoring summary 1 OAK George Blanda 37 yard field goal Raiders 3–0 2 OAK Hewritt Dixon 69 yard run (George Blanda kick) Raiders 10–0 2 OAK Dave Kocourek 17 yard pass from Daryle Lamonica (George Blanda kick) Raiders 17–0 3 OAK Daryle Lamonica 1 yard run (George Blanda kick) Raiders 24–0 3 OAK George Blanda 40 yard field goal Raiders 27–0 4 OAK George Blanda 42 yard field goal Raiders 30–0 4 HOU Charley Frazier 5 yard pass from Pete Beathard (John Wittenborn kick) Raiders 30–7 4 OAK George Blanda 36 yard field goal Raiders 33–7 4 OAK Bill Miller 12 yard pass from Daryle Lamonica (George Blanda kick) Raiders 40–7

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Super Bowl II

1 2 3 4 Total • Packers 3 13 10 7 33 Raiders 0 7 0 7 14 Date: January 14 Location: Orange Bowl, Miami, Florida

Scoring summary

• GB – FG Chandler 39
• GB – FG Chandler 20
• GB – Dowler 62 pass from Starr (Chandler kick)
• OAK – Miller 23 pass from Lamonica (Blanda kick)
• GB – FG Chandler 43
• GB – Anderson 2 run (Chandler kick)
• GB – FG Chandler 31
• GB – Adderley 60 interception return (Chandler kick)
• OAK – Miller 23 pass from Lamonica (Blanda kick)

Sources

• 1967 Oakland Raiders at databaseFootball.com
• SI Vault
• NFL team records

References

1. Pro-Football-Reference.com