Raiders QB Stabler Became Armed and Dangerous

Quarterback Kenny Stabler of the Oakland Raiders probably threw more passes in his first six seasons with the Silver and Black than he did in the rest of his career.

That’s because Stabler was the No. 3 quarterback behind starter Daryle Lamonica and backup George Blanda during that time after the Raiders selected him in the second round (No. 52 overall) out of Alabama in the 1968 NFL Draft.

“I was the No. 3 guy, so I threw before practice, during practice, and after practice,” Stabler recalled several years ago. “They wanted to limit the number of passes that Lamonica and Blanda threw to save their arms for the regular season games.

“That was OK and it was good for me because I was just a skinny, little guy from Alabama, and even though I think I was a pretty good passer, I didn’t have all that strong of an arm and that helped me strengthen it. In the long run, it was good for me, along with lifting weights, and really helped me later on.”

What really made a difference for Stabler was that he became close friends with Blanda, the future Hall of Fame kicker and a quarterback who played in the NFL for 26 seasons before retiring in 1976 at the age of 48.

Stabler knelt alongside Blanda during games when Lamonica was on the field with the offense and also stood next to him during Raider practice, soaking up valuable information from the NFL’s “Grand Old Man.”

What he learned from the old timer was invaluable when Stabler finally took over as the starting quarterback of the Raiders early in the 1973 season.

“We had a natural bond for a couple of reasons,” said Stabler, who was an All- American at Alabama. “We both played for Coach (Paul “Bear”) Bryant in college (Blanda at Georgia), and we were both quarterbacks with the same philosophy about the game. He definitely grabbed me and gave me the advice I needed when I came to the Raiders.

“George talked to me and was always there for me. Daryle was the starter, so George and I spent a lot of time on the sidelines during games and behind the huddle during practice. He did most of the talking and I did most of the listening. They were good lessons learned.

“I wanted to play right away, but George, who had been through the same thing with the Chicago Bears early in his career, told me to take my time, keep my eyes open and learn the game. He was right.”

But future Hall of Fame Coach John Madden knew what he had in Stabler, who finally became the full-time starter for the Raiders in the fourth game of the 1973 season after they got off to a 1-2 start under Lamonica ad Snake led the Raiders to a 17-10 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals on the road in his first start, starting a 4-0-1 run for the Silver and Black.

The Raiders finished 9-4-1 that season to reach the playoffs, and went 12-2 and 11-3 the next two seasons with Stabler at the controls, but lost in the AFC Championship Game all three years.

“We developed the tag of a team that couldn’t win the big one,” Stabler said. “And, I guess we couldn’t. But we knew we were good enough and that one year we were going to get to the Super Bowl—and win.

“We had that tag around our necks and had to get rid of it.”

That finally happened when Stabler led the Raiders to a 13-1 record in 1976 before beating the New England Patriots, 24-21, in the first round of the playoffs and defeating the two-time defending Super Bowl champion Pittsburgh Steelers, 24-7, in the AFC Championship Game.

Super Bowl XI was not even close, as the Silver and Black routed the Minnesota Vikings, 32-14, in Stabler’s greatest moment with the Raiders, as he completed a modest 12-of-19 passes for 180 yards and a touchdown to tight end Dave Casper.

However, Stabler engineered the victory, calling many of the plays at the line of scrimmage.

Said legendary Raiders radio play-by-play announcer on the air: “Jascha Heifetz never played the violin with more dexterity than Kenny Stabler is playing the Minnesota Vikings defense today in the Rose Bowl stadium in Pasadena.”

Unfortunately, the Raiders never again reached such heights with Stabler, who had a 69-26-1 record for the Silver and Black, while passing for 19,070 yards and 30 touchdowns with Oakland before finishing his career with the Houston Oilers and New Orleans Saints.

Stabler was voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio, in 2016, a year after he died from colon cancer.

Said Madden after his favorite quarterback passed away: “I’ve often said, if I had one drive to win a game and I had one quarterback to pick, I would pick Kenny. The Snake was a lot cooler than I was. He was a perfect quarterback and a perfect Raider. When you think about the Raiders you think about Ken Stabler.”

That echoes the sentiments of all longtime members of Raider Nation.