January 25, 1981: The Redemption of Jim Plunkett

January 25, 1981: The Oakland Raiders become the 1st team that made the NFL Playoffs through a Wild Card berth to win the Super Bowl. Their quarterback, Jim Plunkett, is named the game's Most Valuable Player. It is the culmination of a long and difficult journey.

Plunkett's paternal grandfather was of Irish descent, but his other 3 grandparents were Mexican, making him one of the earliest Hispanic stars in American football. In 1970, the San Jose, California native led Stanford University to the Pacific-8 Conference title and the Rose Bowl, and edged Notre Dame quarterback Joe Theismann for the Heisman Trophy.

The New England Patriots made him the 1st pick in the 1971 NFL Draft, but his tenure in Foxborough was mixed. A shoulder injury in 1975 led to his replacement by Steve Grogan, and he was traded to his "hometown" San Francisco 49ers. The Patriots won the AFC Eastern Division with Grogan as their quarterback in 1976, while the 49ers floundered under Plunkett, and they released him before the 1978 season. This would eventually lead to Joe Montana leading them to glory.

Plunkett caught three breaks. First, he was signed by the Oakland Raiders, who were run by Al Davis, coached by John Madden, and quarterbacked by Ken Stabler. In 1979, Madden resigned, and was replaced by one of his assistants, Tom Flores, who had been the team's 1st starting quarterback, from 1960 to 1966. Flores and Plunkett were both Hispanics from Northern California (Flores was from Sanger, outside Fresno), and hit it off.

Then, prior to the 1980 season, unable to come to terms with Stabler over a new contract, Davis traded him to the Houston Oilers for their quarterback, Dan Pastorini, who broke his leg 5 games into the season. Thinking that the other backup, Marc Wilson, wasn't ready, Flores made Plunkett the starting quarterback. He went 9-2 as their starter, getting them into the Playoffs as a Wild Card.

With the Pittsburgh Steelers' dynasty finally having gotten old, the door was open for a new AFC Champion. First, they beat Stabler and the Oilers, 27-7 at the Oakland Coliseum. Then, they went on the road, and beat the Cleveland Browns, 14-12, in what became known as the "Red Right 88" game. Then, away to the team that won their Division, the AFC West, they beat the San Diego Chargers, 34-27, to get back into the Super Bowl for the 1st time in 4 years.

Flores let his Raiders relax in New Orleans, America's foremost party city. Dick Vermeil kept his Philadelphia Eagles on a tight leash, perhaps too tight. When the teams took the field at the Louisiana Superdome on January 25, 1981, their mindsets carried over: The Raiders were relaxed, and the Eagles were uptight.

Plunkett threw 2 touchdown passes to Cliff Branch, and 1 to Kenny King. Rod Martin intercepted Eagle quarterback Ron Jaworski 3 times. The Raiders won, 27-10, and won their 2nd Super Bowl.

The Raiders moved to Los Angeles for the 1982 season. In the 1983 season, Plunkett again took them to the Super Bowl, beating the Washington Redskins, 38-19 in Super Bowl XVIII in Tampa. Plunkett remained with the Raiders through the 1986 season, and retired.

Plunkett has been elected to the College Football Hall of Fame, the Rose Bowl Hall of Fame, the Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame and the California Sports Hall of Fame -- but not, as yet, the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Stanford have retired his Number 16. The Raiders, now in Las Vegas, do not retire uniform numbers.

UPDATE: Through the 2025 season, the Eagles have elected the following figures from their 1980 team to their team Hall of Fame: Harold Carmichael, Wilbert Montgomery, Bill Bergey, Jerry Sisemore, Stan Walters, Ron Jaworski, head coach Dick Vermeil, trainer Otho Davis, executive Jim Gallagher, ticket manager Leo Carlin, and broadcaster Merrill Reese.

Carmichael, Montgomery, Bergey, Sisemore, Walters, Jaworski, Vermeil, Reese, and Veterans Stadium public address announcer Dan Baker have also been elected to the Philadelphia Sports Hall of Fame.

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January 25, 1981 was, like all Super Bowl days, a Sunday. Soccer player Francis Jeffers and singer Alicia Keys were born.

Baseball was out of season. There were no games scheduled in the NHL. There were 4 games in the NBA:

* The New Jersey Nets lost to the Washington Bullets, 118-100 at the Rutgers Athletic Center (now the Jersey Mike's Arena) at the Meadowlands.

* The Boston Celtics beat the Seattle SuperSonics, 115-106 at the Boston Garden. Robert Parish had 32 points and 17 rebounds.

* The Philadelphia 76ers beat the Phoenix Suns, 98-93 at The Spectrum in Philadelphia.

* And the Portland Trail Blazers beat the San Antonio Spurs, 118-100 at the Portland Memorial Coliseum.