Dolphins–Raiders rivalry

The Raiders were the Dolphins' first opponents during Miami's inaugural 1966 season. In that game, Joe Auer returned the opening kickoff 95 yards for a touchdown, but the Raiders went on to win 23–14.[2] The Raiders dominated the Dolphins in their first 21 meetings, going 16–4–1 in that span. The two teams would meet three times in the playoffs in the early 1970s, however.

The first of these meetings came in the 1970 Divisional Round. In that game, Raiders quarterback Daryle Lamonica sealed the game in the fourth quarter with an 82-yard touchdown pass to Rod Sherman, leading to a 21–14 Raiders victory.[1] The two teams would not face each other for two seasons, during which Miami became the only NFL team to finish an entire season undefeated during the 1972 season. Miami's winning streak would stretch to 18 games when they faced the Raiders on the road during the 1973 season. This game, which took place at California Memorial Stadium in Berkeley due to a scheduling conflict with the Oakland Athletics at the Oakland Coliseum, saw the Raiders defeat the Dolphins 12–7 behind four field goals from George Blanda.[3] Miami avenged this defeat, however, defeating the Raiders 27–10 in the AFC Championship Game en route to winning Super Bowl VIII.[1] In that game, Dolphins running back Larry Csonka ran for 266 yards and three touchdowns.[4]

The Dolphins entered the 1974 Divisional Round as two-time defending Super Bowl champions, while the Raiders were seeking to return to the AFC Championship Game. In what became known as The Sea of Hands game, Raiders quarterback Ken Stabler threw an eight-yard touchdown pass to a tightly defended Clarence Davis, leading Oakland to a 28–26 victory and ended Miami's quest for a third consecutive title.[1][5]

Though the Dolphins and Raiders would not meet in the postseason for the next 26 years, there were some notable moments that took place in between. In Week 2 of the 1975 season, Miami's 27-game home winning streak was snapped by the Raiders in a 31–21 defeat.[4] Then in Week 3 of the 1983 season Dolphins quarterback Dan Marino made his NFL debut against the newly-relocated Los Angeles Raiders, throwing his first touchdown passes in a 27–14 loss.[4][6] In Week 14 of the 1984 season, Marino threw for 470 yards and four touchdowns, but Raiders running back Marcus Allen ran for 155 yards and three touchdowns, two of which came in the fourth quarter, in the Raiders' 35–24 victory.[1]

After the Raiders returned to Oakland in 1995, the two teams resumed their playoff rivalry in the 2000 Divisional Round. However, this game ended rather quickly as the Raiders scored 20 first-half points and blanked the Dolphins in a 27–0 shutout.[1] The loss was only one of five Miami would suffer since 1992, as they won 15 games to close the gap in the series. One of those wins took place at Wembley Stadium in London during the 2014 season, with Miami taking a 38–14 decision.[1] The Dolphins also defeated the now-Las Vegas Raiders 26–25 at Allegiant Stadium in Week 16 of the 2020 season, ending the Raiders' playoff hopes.[7]

• National Football League rivalries