Conference Championships: Oakland Raiders travel to face San Diego Chargers at Jack Murphy Stadium, one win from a Super Bowl berth. Kickoff: Sun January 11, 1981 at 5:00pm. Winner advances to the Super Bowl. Loser carries one of the year's hardest what-ifs into the offseason.[1][2]
Oakland Raiders at San Diego Chargers in the Conference Championships, with a Super Bowl berth on the line. The conference title round is the one that turns nameplates into legacy. For San Diego Chargers, the home crowd at Jack Murphy Stadium is asked to be a player; for Oakland Raiders, the road environment is supposed to be the test that breaks lesser teams. Coaches will lean on what worked all year. Players will lean on what their bodies have left in them.
Oakland Raiders and San Diego Chargers have outlasted everyone else in their conference. One walks out of Jack Murphy Stadium with the conference title; the other walks out with a brutal what-if. Around the league, coaches are watching tape on both staffs for next year's prep. Every Super Bowl-bound team starts the offseason as the team to beat.
Oakland Raiders versus San Diego Chargers in the Conference Championships. 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-San Diego Chargers 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 |
1980 RAIDERS @ CHARGERS (1-1-81) AFC CHAMPIONSHIP
1980 Raiders at Chargers AFC Championship
1980 AFC Championship Game -Chargers vs Raiders
1980 @ CHARGERS 1-11-81 (34-27) AFC CHAMPIONSHIP**VIDEO ENHANCED**
1981-1-11 AFC Championship Oakland Raiders @ San Diego Chargers
NFL 1980 01-11-81 Oakland Raiders at San Diego Chargers pt 1 of 2 AFC Championship
NFL 1980 01-11-81 Oakland Raiders at San Diego Chargers pt 2 of 2 AFC Championship| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Raiders | Raymond Chester 65 yard pass from Jim Plunkett (Chris Bahr kick) | 7-0 |
| Chargers | Charlie Joiner 48 yard pass from Dan Fouts (Rolf Benirschke kick) | 7-7 |
| Raiders | Jim Plunkett 5 yard rush (Chris Bahr kick) | 14-7 |
| Raiders | Kenny King 21 yard pass from Jim Plunkett (Chris Bahr kick) | 21-7 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Raiders | Mark van Eeghen 3 yard rush (Chris Bahr kick) | 28-7 |
| Chargers | Charlie Joiner 8 yard pass from Dan Fouts (Rolf Benirschke kick) | 28-14 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Chargers | Rolf Benirschke 26 yard field goal | 28-17 |
| Chargers | Chuck Muncie 6 yard rush (Rolf Benirschke kick) | 28-24 |
| Raiders | Chris Bahr 27 yard field goal | 31-24 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Raiders | Chris Bahr 33 yard field goal | 34-24 |
| Chargers | Rolf Benirschke 27 yard field goal | 34-27 |
Oakland Raiders defeated San Diego Chargers 34-27 at Jack Murphy Stadium in the Conference Championships. The final scoring play was Chargers: Rolf Benirschke 27 yard field goal. Top line of the day: Dan Fouts: 336 pass yards on 22-of-45, 2 TD, 2 INT. Oakland Raiders advance to the Super Bowl.[1][2]
Oakland Raiders walked out of Jack Murphy Stadium as the team that survived a Conference Championships San Diego Chargers will replay in its head for the entire offseason. The scoreboard says 34-27. 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 Chargers: Rolf Benirschke 27 yard field goal. 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 are bound for the Super Bowl.
Oakland Raiders 34, San Diego Chargers 27.
Round: Conference Championships.
Q1: 4 scoring plays.
Q2: 2 scoring plays.
Q3: 3 scoring plays.
Q4: 2 scoring plays.
Top performers:
- Dan Fouts: 336 pass yards on 22-of-45, 2 TD, 2 INT
- Mark van Eeghen: 85 rush yards on 20 carries
- Charlie Joiner: 6 catches for 130 yards
Conference Championships, played at Jack Murphy Stadium. Final: Oakland Raiders 34, San Diego Chargers 27, with Oakland Raiders taking the result by 7.
First quarter
- Raiders: Raymond Chester 65 yard pass from Jim Plunkett (Chris Bahr kick)
- Chargers: Charlie Joiner 48 yard pass from Dan Fouts (Rolf Benirschke kick)
- Raiders: Jim Plunkett 5 yard rush (Chris Bahr kick)
- Raiders: Kenny King 21 yard pass from Jim Plunkett (Chris Bahr kick)
Second quarter
- Raiders: Mark van Eeghen 3 yard rush (Chris Bahr kick)
- Chargers: Charlie Joiner 8 yard pass from Dan Fouts (Rolf Benirschke kick)
Third quarter
- Chargers: Rolf Benirschke 26 yard field goal
- Chargers: Chuck Muncie 6 yard rush (Rolf Benirschke kick)
- Raiders: Chris Bahr 27 yard field goal
Fourth quarter
- Raiders: Chris Bahr 33 yard field goal
- Chargers: Rolf Benirschke 27 yard field goal
Top performers
- Dan Fouts: 336 pass yards on 22-of-45, 2 TD, 2 INT
- Mark van Eeghen: 85 rush yards on 20 carries
- Charlie Joiner: 6 catches for 130 yards
| Raiders | Chargers | |
|---|---|---|
| Team totals | ||
| First Downs | 21 | 26 |
| Total Yards | 362 | 434 |
| Turnovers | 0 | 3 |
| Passing | ||
| Comp/Att | 14/18 | 23/46 |
| Pass yards | 261 | 364 |
| Pass TD | 2 | 2 |
| Interceptions | 0 | 2 |
| Sacks taken | 6 | 2 |
| Sack yards lost | 37 | 13 |
| Net pass yards | 224 | 351 |
| Rushing | ||
| Rushes | 42 | 23 |
| Rush yards | 138 | 83 |
| Rush TD | 2 | 1 |
| Discipline | ||
| Fumbles | 0 | 5 |
| Fumbles lost | 0 | 1 |
| Penalties | 7 | 6 |
| Penalty yards | 54 | 45 |
| Player | C/A | Yds | TD | Int | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| OAK | |||||
| Jim Plunkett | 14/18 | 261 | 2 | 0 | 155.8 |
| SDG | |||||
| Dan Fouts | 22/45 | 336 | 2 | 2 | 70.2 |
| Kellen Winslow | 1/1 | 28 | 0 | 0 | 118.7 |
| Player | Att | Yds | TD | Long |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| OAK | ||||
| Mark van Eeghen | 20 | 85 | 1 | 10 |
| Kenny King | 11 | 35 | 0 | 8 |
| Derrick Jensen | 2 | 7 | 0 | 4 |
| Jim Plunkett | 4 | 6 | 1 | 5 |
| Arthur Whittington | 5 | 5 | 0 | 2 |
| SDG | ||||
| Mike Thomas | 12 | 48 | 0 | 9 |
| Chuck Muncie | 9 | 34 | 1 | 16 |
| Dan Fouts | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Ron Smith | 1 | -1 | 0 | -1 |
| Player | Rec | Yds | TD | Long |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| OAK | ||||
| Raymond Chester | 5 | 102 | 1 | 65 |
| Cliff Branch | 3 | 78 | 0 | 48 |
| Kenny King | 2 | 43 | 1 | 22 |
| Bob Chandler | 2 | 27 | 0 | 16 |
| Arthur Whittington | 2 | 11 | 0 | 6 |
| SDG | ||||
| Charlie Joiner | 6 | 130 | 2 | 48 |
| Ron Smith | 3 | 76 | 0 | 55 |
| John Jefferson | 4 | 71 | 0 | 28 |
| Kellen Winslow | 3 | 42 | 0 | 21 |
| Mike Thomas | 5 | 40 | 0 | 24 |
| Chuck Muncie | 2 | 5 | 0 | 3 |
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