AFC Divisional: Oakland Raiders at Pittsburgh Steelers (Three Rivers Stadium), with a Conference Championship spot at stake. Kickoff time: 1:00pm. Winner advances to the Conference Championship. The losing team's season is over.
The divisional round is where the bracket is supposed to take its real shape. Oakland Raiders traveling to Pittsburgh Steelers at Three Rivers Stadium, with the league watching to see whether the better team or the better matchup wins. Bye-week home favorites carry the weight of expectation; the visiting wild-card winner walks in with no one expecting them and nothing to lose.
The bracket has narrowed to the teams that survived the regular season. Oakland Raiders and Pittsburgh Steelers are two of them; the rest of the league is in scouting mode for the offseason. What happens in Three Rivers Stadium shifts the rest of the tree: a road favorite winning rearranges seeding expectations; a home upset shows the bracket math underweights heart.
Oakland Raiders versus Pittsburgh Steelers in the AFC Divisional. The teams who reach this round have already proven they survive a long schedule; the stats that matter most now are the ones that compress: scoring differential, red-zone efficiency, turnover margin. At this stage of the year, the simple math is that defenses tighten and the team that protects the ball wins more often than the team that scores the most. Whichever side of Oakland Raiders-Pittsburgh Steelers cleans up the careless plays first usually walks out with the result. Conservative-game expectations should not surprise the reader; both staffs know exactly what worked all season and will lean hard on what travels. The early answer is the kicking game, where any swing of field position compounds.
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 11-3 | W4 |
| Cleveland Browns | 10-4 | W2 |
| Cincinnati Bengals | 8-6 | W1 |
| Houston Oilers | 1-13 | L11 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Miami Dolphins | 14-0 | W14 |
| New York Jets | 7-7 | L2 |
| Baltimore Colts | 5-9 | L2 |
| Buffalo Bills | 4-9-1 | W1 |
| New England Patriots | 3-11 | L1 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Oakland Raiders | 10-3-1 | W6 |
| Kansas City Chiefs | 8-6 | W3 |
| Denver Broncos | 5-9 | W2 |
| San Diego Chargers | 4-9-1 | L3 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| San Francisco 49ers | 8-5-1 | W2 |
| Atlanta Falcons | 7-7 | L2 |
| Los Angeles Rams | 6-7-1 | L2 |
| New Orleans Saints | 2-11-1 | L3 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Green Bay Packers | 10-4 | W3 |
| Detroit Lions | 8-5-1 | W1 |
| Minnesota Vikings | 7-7 | L2 |
| Chicago Bears | 4-9-1 | L1 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Washington Redskins | 11-3 | L2 |
| Dallas Cowboys | 10-4 | L1 |
| New York Giants | 8-6 | W1 |
| St. Louis Cardinals | 4-9-1 | W2 |
| Philadelphia Eagles | 2-11-1 | L5 |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oakland Raiders | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 00077 |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 0 | 0 | 3 | 10 | 0031313 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| No scoring this quarter. | ||
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| No scoring this quarter. | ||
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Steelers | Roy Gerela 18 yard field goal | 0-3 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Steelers | Roy Gerela 29 yard field goal | 0-6 |
| Raiders | Ken Stabler 30 yard rush ( George Blanda kick) | 7-6 |
| Steelers | Franco Harris 60 yard pass from Terry Bradshaw ( Roy Gerela kick) | 7-13 |
| Raiders | Steelers | |
|---|---|---|
| Team totals | ||
| First Downs | 13 | 13 |
| Total Yards | 216 | 252 |
| Turnovers | 4 | 1 |
| Passing | ||
| Comp/Att | 12/30 | 11/25 |
| Pass yards | 102 | 175 |
| Pass TD | 0 | 1 |
| Interceptions | 2 | 1 |
| Sacks taken | 4 | 3 |
| Sack yards lost | 24 | 31 |
| Net pass yards | 78 | 144 |
| Rushing | ||
| Rushes | 31 | 36 |
| Rush yards | 138 | 108 |
| Rush TD | 1 | 0 |
| Discipline | ||
| Fumbles | 3 | 0 |
| Fumbles lost | 2 | 0 |
| Penalties | 2 | 1 |
| Penalty yards | 15 | 5 |
| Player | C/A | Yds | TD | Int | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| OAK | |||||
| Ken Stabler | 6/12 | 57 | 0 | 0 | |
| Daryle Lamonica | 6/18 | 45 | 0 | 2 | |
| PIT | |||||
| Terry Bradshaw | 11/25 | 175 | 1 | 1 | |
| Player | Att | Yds | TD | Long |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| OAK | ||||
| Charlie Smith | 14 | 57 | 0 | 9 |
| Marv Hubbard | 14 | 44 | 0 | 10 |
| Ken Stabler | 1 | 30 | 1 | 30 |
| Clarence Davis | 2 | 7 | 0 | 5 |
| PIT | ||||
| Franco Harris | 18 | 64 | 0 | 14 |
| John Fuqua | 16 | 25 | 0 | 5 |
| Terry Bradshaw | 2 | 19 | 0 | 12 |
| Player | Rec | Yds | TD | Long |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| OAK | ||||
| Raymond Chester | 3 | 40 | 0 | 19 |
| Fred Biletnikoff | 3 | 28 | 0 | 12 |
| Pete Banaszak | 1 | 12 | 0 | 12 |
| Charlie Smith | 2 | 8 | 0 | 5 |
| Mike Siani | 1 | 7 | 0 | 7 |
| Jim Otto | 1 | 5 | 0 | 5 |
| Marv Hubbard | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| PIT | ||||
| Franco Harris | 5 | 96 | 1 | 60 |
| Ron Shanklin | 3 | 55 | 0 | 23 |
| John Fuqua | 1 | 11 | 0 | 11 |
| John McMakin | 1 | 9 | 0 | 9 |
| Al Young | 1 | 4 | 0 | 4 |
Pittsburgh Steelers defeated Oakland Raiders 13-7 at Three Rivers Stadium in the AFC Divisional. The final scoring play was Steelers: Franco Harris 60 yard pass from Terry Bradshaw ( Roy Gerela kick). Top line of the day: Terry Bradshaw: 175 pass yards on 11-of-25, 1 TD, 1 INT. Pittsburgh Steelers move on to the conference final.
Pittsburgh Steelers walked out of Three Rivers Stadium as the team that survived an AFC Divisional Oakland Raiders will replay in its head for the entire offseason. The scoreboard says 13-7. A one-score game throughout. The decisive points came on the fewest possible margin, which is how these matchups usually resolve. The final scoring play came from Steelers: Franco Harris 60 yard pass from Terry Bradshaw ( Roy Gerela kick). Whether it was the game-decider or just the period at the end of the sentence depends on what the camera caught earlier. Pittsburgh Steelers move on to a conference championship.
Pittsburgh Steelers 13, Oakland Raiders 7. Round: AFC Divisional. Q3: 1 scoring play. Q4: 3 scoring plays. Top performers: - Terry Bradshaw: 175 pass yards on 11-of-25, 1 TD, 1 INT - Franco Harris: 64 rush yards on 18 carries - Franco Harris: 5 catches for 96 yards
AFC Divisional, played at Three Rivers Stadium. Final: Oakland Raiders 7, Pittsburgh Steelers 13, with Pittsburgh Steelers taking the result by 6. **Third quarter**
- Steelers: Roy Gerela 18 yard field goal
**Fourth quarter**
- Steelers: Roy Gerela 29 yard field goal - Raiders: Ken Stabler 30 yard rush ( George Blanda kick) - Steelers: Franco Harris 60 yard pass from Terry Bradshaw ( Roy Gerela kick)
**Top performers**
- Terry Bradshaw: 175 pass yards on 11-of-25, 1 TD, 1 INT - Franco Harris: 64 rush yards on 18 carries - Franco Harris: 5 catches for 96 yards