NFL – 1985 – AFC Divisional Championship – New England Patriots Vs Los Angeles Raiders

DOG ASIDE:   

The 1985 New England Patriots season was the 16th season for the team in the National Football League and 26th season overall. The Patriots had a record of 11 – 5….while finishing tied for 2nd in the AFC East Division…..as they then became the first team in NFL history ever to advance to the Super Bowl by winning 3 playoff games on the road…while defeating the New York Jets 26–14….then the Los Angeles Raiders by a score of 27–20….as seen in this video herewith….and then they went on to stun the football world and did the impossible as they pulled out a massive and stunning upset over the Miami Dolphins by a score of 31–14 in the AFC Championship game….in a game that was the Pats’ 1st win in Miami since that stadium was built in 1969….which has gone down as one of the greatest upsets in NFL history, as the Dolphins were heavily favored.        

The 1985 Los Angeles Raiders season was their 26th in the NFL….as they improved upon their previous season’s output of 11–5 by winning 12 games in this season. The team qualified for the playoffs for the 4th straight season….when two close victories over Denver towards the end of the season gave Los Angeles the division title….while Denver missed the playoffs despite an 11-5 record. The Raiders’ RB Marcus Allen earned the 1985 league MVP….after starting all 16 games….in which he caught the ball 99 times for 1,759 yards and 7 touchdowns….whith his longest reception being 61 yards….and his receiving average 11.6 yards per catch. He also completed 2 of 2 passes for 32 yards for zero touchdowns….The 1985 Raiders had four players make it to the Pro Bowl…..including Marcus Allen, Todd Christensen, Mike Haynes, and Howie Long…..of which 3 would go into the Hall of Fame (Allen, Haynes and Long). 

This was a very good game….as two long-standing great franchises in the NFL went head to head on January 5, 1985 at the Los Angeles Coliseum….in a game covered by NBC’s lead NFL broadcast team of Dick Enberg and Merlin Olsen….with Bob Costas, Pete Axethelm and Ahmad Rashad.   

The sports world lost one of the trie legends of sports broadcasting on December 21, 2017….as Dick Enberg left a legacy unsurpassed….and ImaSportsphile is proud to have dozens and dozens of vintage events with Dick Enberg on the mike….which makes this and all Enberg called events MUST SEE TV by any true sports fan….as he flew with the eagles of broadcasting for the better part of 43 years.