Getting there wasn’t going to be enough.
In order for Jim Plunkett and Tom Flores to prove themselves worthy heirs to the legacies of Ken Stabler and John Madden, the quarterback-coach combo was going to have to win Super Bowl XV.
But heading into the 1980 season, a Super Sunday appearance for Oakland seemed as likely as an end to the ongoing American hostage crisis in Iran.
Plunkett, the No. 1 overall pick out of Stanford in 1971, had joined the Raiders as a backup in 1979 after a pair of forgettable seasons with the 49ers.