Oakland Raiders: 30 Iconic Moments In Franchise History

Sep 28, 2014; London, UNITED KINGDOM; Oakland Raiders fans wave Raider Nation flags against Miami Dolphins in the NFL International Series game at Wembley Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

14. January 2, 1994 – Winner Takes All

The Raiders and Denver Broncos headed into the final game of the 1993 season with identical 9-6 marks. Two would enter and only one would walk out to fight another day – a playoff berth was on the line. Pretty high stakes.

From the outset, the Broncos – led by John Elway – were in control of the game. They jumped out to a 13-0 lead, and then 20-7, 27-13, and stretched that lead to 30-13 in the third quarter. The Raiders were behind and seemingly couldn’t find a way to catch up. But they did manage to hang around.

But slowly, methodically, quarterback Jeff Hostetler began to bring the Raiders back, yard by yard, point by point. When the fourth quarter opened, the Raiders were down just ten points, 30-20. With just over nine minutes left, the Raider kicked a field goal to cut the lead even further, 30-23.

With three minutes left in the game, the Raiders needed to convert a 70-yard drive into a touchdown if they wanted to tie the score. With eight seconds left in the game, Hostetler found Alexander Wright for the game-tying score. The Broncos were left stunned.
In the overtime period, the Broncos moved down the field quickly but missed a game winning field goal. It opened the door for the Raiders who weren’t going to let that game slip through their fingers. The Raiders drove down to the Denver 29 yard line and kicker Jeff Jaeger booted through the game winning field goal, sending the Raiders to the playoffs and the Broncos home for the year.

Next: November 17, 1968