AFC Divisional: Oakland Raiders at Cleveland Browns (Cleveland Municipal Stadium), with a Conference Championship spot at stake. Kickoff time: 12:30pm. 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 Cleveland Browns at Cleveland Municipal 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 Cleveland Browns are two of them; the rest of the league is in scouting mode for the offseason. What happens in Cleveland Municipal 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 Cleveland Browns 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-Cleveland Browns 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Cleveland Browns | 11-5 | W1 |
| Houston Oilers | 11-5 | W3 |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 9-7 | L1 |
| Cincinnati Bengals | 6-10 | L1 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Buffalo Bills | 11-5 | W1 |
| New England Patriots | 10-6 | W2 |
| Miami Dolphins | 8-8 | L1 |
| Baltimore Colts | 7-9 | L3 |
| New York Jets | 4-12 | W1 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Oakland Raiders | 11-5 | W2 |
| San Diego Chargers | 11-5 | W2 |
| Denver Broncos | 8-8 | W1 |
| Kansas City Chiefs | 8-8 | W1 |
| Seattle Seahawks | 4-12 | L9 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Atlanta Falcons | 12-4 | L1 |
| Los Angeles Rams | 11-5 | W2 |
| San Francisco 49ers | 6-10 | L2 |
| New Orleans Saints | 1-15 | L1 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Detroit Lions | 9-7 | W2 |
| Minnesota Vikings | 9-7 | L1 |
| Chicago Bears | 7-9 | W1 |
| Green Bay Packers | 5-10-1 | L4 |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 5-10-1 | L3 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Dallas Cowboys | 12-4 | W1 |
| Philadelphia Eagles | 12-4 | L1 |
| Washington Redskins | 6-10 | W3 |
| St. Louis Cardinals | 5-11 | L2 |
| New York Giants | 4-12 | L2 |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oakland Raiders | 0 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 0771414 |
| Cleveland Browns | 0 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 06121212 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| No scoring this quarter. | ||
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Browns | Ron Bolton 42 yard interception return | 0-6 |
| Raiders | Mark van Eeghen 1 yard rush ( Chris Bahr kick) | 7-6 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Browns | Don Cockroft 30 yard field goal | 7-9 |
| Browns | Don Cockroft 30 yard field goal | 7-12 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Raiders | Mark van Eeghen 1 yard rush ( Chris Bahr kick) | 14-12 |
| Raiders | Browns | |
|---|---|---|
| Team totals | ||
| First Downs | 12 | 17 |
| Total Yards | 208 | 254 |
| Turnovers | 3 | 4 |
| Passing | ||
| Comp/Att | 14/30 | 13/40 |
| Pass yards | 149 | 183 |
| Pass TD | 0 | 0 |
| Interceptions | 2 | 3 |
| Sacks taken | 2 | 2 |
| Sack yards lost | 17 | 14 |
| Net pass yards | 132 | 169 |
| Rushing | ||
| Rushes | 38 | 27 |
| Rush yards | 76 | 85 |
| Rush TD | 2 | 0 |
| Discipline | ||
| Fumbles | 2 | 6 |
| Fumbles lost | 1 | 1 |
| Penalties | 5 | 2 |
| Penalty yards | 39 | 10 |
| Player | C/A | Yds | TD | Int | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| OAK | |||||
| Jim Plunkett | 14/30 | 149 | 0 | 2 | |
| CLE | |||||
| Brian Sipe | 13/40 | 183 | 0 | 3 | |
| Player | Att | Yds | TD | Long |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| OAK | ||||
| Mark van Eeghen | 20 | 45 | 2 | 14 |
| Kenny King | 12 | 23 | 0 | 7 |
| Jim Plunkett | 4 | 8 | 0 | 9 |
| Arthur Whittington | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Derrick Jensen | 1 | -1 | 0 | -1 |
| CLE | ||||
| Mike Pruitt | 13 | 48 | 0 | 14 |
| Calvin Hill | 2 | 23 | 0 | 18 |
| Brian Sipe | 6 | 13 | 0 | 10 |
| Greg Pruitt | 4 | 11 | 0 | 6 |
| Cleo Miller | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Paul McDonald | 1 | -11 | 0 | -11 |
| Player | Rec | Yds | TD | Long |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| OAK | ||||
| Raymond Chester | 3 | 64 | 0 | 27 |
| Mark van Eeghen | 3 | 23 | 0 | 13 |
| Cliff Branch | 2 | 23 | 0 | 19 |
| Bob Chandler | 1 | 15 | 0 | 15 |
| Kenny King | 4 | 14 | 0 | 6 |
| Arthur Whittington | 1 | 10 | 0 | 10 |
| CLE | ||||
| Greg Pruitt | 3 | 54 | 0 | 25 |
| Ozzie Newsome | 4 | 51 | 0 | 29 |
| Reggie Rucker | 2 | 38 | 0 | 20 |
| Dave Logan | 2 | 36 | 0 | 21 |
| Calvin Hill | 2 | 4 | 0 | 4 |
Oakland Raiders defeated Cleveland Browns 14-12 at Cleveland Municipal Stadium in the AFC Divisional. The final scoring play was Raiders: Mark van Eeghen 1 yard rush ( Chris Bahr kick). The result came down to the final possession; Oakland Raiders won by 2. Top line of the day: Brian Sipe: 183 pass yards on 13-of-40, 0 TD, 3 INT. Oakland Raiders move on to the conference final.
Oakland Raiders walked out of Cleveland Municipal Stadium as the team that survived an AFC Divisional Cleveland Browns will replay in its head for the entire offseason. The scoreboard says 14-12. The game stayed within 2 points throughout, the kind of contest where every drive felt like a referendum and every defensive stop carried twice its usual weight. The final scoring play came from Raiders: Mark van Eeghen 1 yard rush ( Chris Bahr kick). Whether it was the game-decider or just the period at the end of the sentence depends on what the camera caught earlier. Oakland Raiders move on to a conference championship.
Oakland Raiders 14, Cleveland Browns 12.
Round: AFC Divisional. Q2: 2 scoring plays. Q3: 2 scoring plays. Q4: 1 scoring play.
Top performers: - Brian Sipe: 183 pass yards on 13-of-40, 0 TD, 3 INT - Raymond Chester: 3 catches for 64 yards
AFC Divisional, played at Cleveland Municipal Stadium. Final: Oakland Raiders 14, Cleveland Browns 12, with Oakland Raiders taking the result by 2.
**Second quarter**
- Browns: Ron Bolton 42 yard interception return - Raiders: Mark van Eeghen 1 yard rush ( Chris Bahr kick)
**Third quarter**
- Browns: Don Cockroft 30 yard field goal - Browns: Don Cockroft 30 yard field goal
**Fourth quarter**
- Raiders: Mark van Eeghen 1 yard rush ( Chris Bahr kick)
**Top performers**
- Brian Sipe: 183 pass yards on 13-of-40, 0 TD, 3 INT - Raymond Chester: 3 catches for 64 yards
A 2-point margin in AFC Divisional is the kind of result that defines reputations on both sidelines.