Wake the town and tell the people. The Oakland Raiders have defeated the San Diego Chargers.
Gone forever are the days of reminiscing about that 34-31 OT win in week 4 of the 2003 season when the Raiders scored 17 unanswered points to improve to 2-2, and people hadn't ruled out the possibility of a rematch with Tampa Bay.
Nnamdi Asomugha was a rookie. Rich Gannon, Barrett Robbins, and both Woodsons were all still Raiders. Lady Gaga was a senior in high school. Those who are seniors now were in 5th grade. There was one Justin; Timberlake.
After all, Bieber was only 9.
"It’s just a good win," said Raiders head coach Tom Cable. "We start out in the division 1-0, which I think is a very important deal for us. And we go to work tomorrow and get ready for the next one."
Sunday's Raider/Charger Game
A first quarter loaded with gifts from God put the Raiders ahead 12-0. Two blocked punts were quickly converted to 9 points - a safety and a touchdown. San Diego coughed up a ball on the Raider 1-yard line that Oakland recovered for the first of multiple turnovers. The Chargers did eventually score two second-quarter touchdowns, knocked Raider quarterback Bruce Gradkowski out of the game, and led at the half 17-15.
But Oakland started this matchup with San Diego too well to let it slip away entirely. With players still remaining on the roster from the heartbreaking home loss in 2004, the bizarre forward-pass abomination in '06, and last season's Monday Night opener that San Diego won in the closing seconds, there would be no Faiding in this new decade for the Team of the Decades.
After both teams scored a touchdown apiece in the third quarter, San Diego still led by two. The Raiders, with backup QB Jason Campbell at the reins, jumped in front 28-27 late in the fourth.
Then with just over a minute to play, San Diego quarterback Phillip Rivers, from the Raider 33, dropped back to pass.
Would he engineer another last-minute Raider-crushing drive?
Oakland safety Michael Huff hit Rivers in the arm, forcing him to fumble. The ball was recovered by Tyvon Branch, and, despite an ensuing referee review (of course, it's a Raider game), Branch picked it up and forever buried seven years of misery with a game-sealing insurance touchdown.
It concluded the scoring as Oakland won 35-27.
"It definitely meant a lot," said Campbell. "Just seeing the guys on the sideline, how hard they were fighting. The one thing I said was, ‘You didn’t give up.’"
13-game Streak in Retrospect
As much as Charger fans will beat their chests about winning 13 straight against their most hated foe...all things considered...it's not much to brag about.
The top case in point, the records of the two over the past six seasons. Secondly (pardon the pun), it was the second longest active skid by one team versus another. What's more, the Buffalo Bills still have yet to snap their 14 game losing streak to New England.
Third, turning back the clock...from 1968-77, Oakland won 15 of 17 from San Diego, with the other two games being ties. So the Chargers once endured a 17-game stretch without beating the Silver and Black.
For those keeping tally, the Raiders still maintain a commanding lead in the overall series...55-43-2.
Mark Fontes - Mark Fontes joined the team at WZBN-TV in March, 2008. His first two years there he covered stories ranging from shootings and fires to ...
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