If you ask a Silver and Black die-hard about the Oakland Raiders record, you aren't just asking for a win-loss ratio. You're asking for a blood pressure reading of one of the most volatile franchises in professional sports history. The Raiders didn't just play football in Oakland; they staged a decades-long drama that involved lawsuits, Super Bowl trophies, and enough heartbreak to fill a shipping container at the Port of Oakland.
When people search for the Oakland Raiders record, they're usually looking for one of two things. Either they want the cold, hard stats of their final years before the Vegas move, or they want to know how the "Oakland" era stacks up against the rest of NFL history.
Honestly, the numbers are a bit of a rollercoaster.
During their two separate stints in Oakland—first from 1960 to 1981, and then again from 1995 to 2019—the team cultivated an identity that was inseparable from the city. They were the villains. They were the renegades. And for a long time, they were winners. But by the time the moving trucks headed for the desert, the record looked a lot different than it did during the John Madden glory days.
Breaking Down the Oakland Raiders Record by the Eras
To understand the full scope of the Oakland Raiders record, you have to split the timeline. You can't just lump the 1970s juggernaut in with the 2000s struggles. It doesn't work that way.
The first Oakland era (1960–1981) was basically a masterclass in winning. Under Al Davis and legendary coaches like John Madden and Tom Flores, the Raiders weren't just good; they were a menace. During this stretch, the team secured two Super Bowl titles (XI and XV) while calling Oakland home. Madden famously never had a losing season. Think about that. Ten years, zero losing records. In today's parity-driven NFL, that feels like a fever dream.
Then came the return.
When the team moved back from Los Angeles in 1995, fans expected a homecoming parade of victories. It started okay. But the post-1995 Oakland Raiders record is a tougher pill to swallow. Between 1995 and 2019, the team saw a lot of "rebuilding." There was that brilliant flash under Jon Gruden and Bill Callahan from 1999 to 2002, culminating in a Super Bowl appearance (and a devastating loss to Tampa Bay).
After that? It was rough.
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We’re talking about a nearly 15-year playoff drought that wasn't snapped until 2016. By the time they played their final game at the Coliseum—a 20-16 loss to the Jaguars in December 2019—the cumulative record for the second Oakland stint sat well below .500.
The Winning Tradition vs. The Modern Slump
Let's get into the nitty-gritty. If you aggregate every single regular-season game played specifically while the team was branded as the "Oakland Raiders," the winning percentage still hovers around a respectable level because the early years carry so much weight.
In the AFL years (1960–1969), they went 80-52-5.
In the post-merger Oakland years (1970–1981), they were a powerhouse, going 111-53-3.
Contrast that with the 1995–2019 era. If you exclude the L.A. years and the Vegas years, the "Oakland" specific record in that second window was 160-240. That is a lot of Sunday afternoons spent wondering what went wrong. It's a tale of two cities, even though it's the same city. The difference was the league changed, the scouting changed, and frankly, the "Raider Mystique" started to feel more like a ghost than a tangible advantage.
Why the 2006 Season Still Haunts the Record Books
You can't talk about the Oakland Raiders record without mentioning 2006. It was the nadir. 2 wins. 14 losses.
The offense was statistically one of the worst in the history of the modern NFL. They averaged 10.5 points per game. You have high school teams that put up better numbers. Art Shell returned for a second stint as head coach, but the game had passed the system by. That year alone did massive damage to the franchise's all-time win-loss percentage. It took years to dig out of that hole, and some might argue the Oakland iteration of the team never truly did.
The Impact of the "Tuck Rule" on the Franchise Trajectory
Statistics don't exist in a vacuum. Sometimes, one game—one single play—alters the record for a decade. On January 19, 2002, the Oakland Raiders record should have included a playoff win against the New England Patriots.
We all know what happened. Tom Brady fumbled. Or he didn't. Depending on who you ask and how much they hate the rulebook.
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If the Raiders win that game, maybe they don't trade Jon Gruden to the Buccaneers. Maybe they win the Super Bowl that year instead of losing it the next. If Gruden stays, the entire 2000s decade looks different. Instead, that game sent the Raiders into a spiral. It’s a reminder that a win-loss record isn't just a tally; it’s a series of "what ifs."
Comparing Oakland to the Vegas Era
Now that they've been in Nevada for a while, people like to compare. Is the Las Vegas record better than the final Oakland years?
Initially, the move provided a "new car smell" boost. In 2021, they actually made the playoffs, something they only did once in their final 17 years in Oakland. But the consistency still isn't there. The ghost of the Oakland Raiders record follows them. The team still struggles with the same issues: defensive inconsistency and a rotating door at quarterback.
- Oakland Titles: 2 (Super Bowl XI, XV)
- Oakland Hall of Famers: Dozens, from Upshaw to Brown.
- Total Oakland Playoff Appearances: 19
The bar set in the East Bay is incredibly high. Even when the team was losing, the culture of "Oakland" was the bedrock. In Vegas, they have the stadium, but they're still searching for the soul that produced those 1970s win percentages.
How the Coliseum Played a Role
People joke about the dirt infield and the sewage leaks at the O.co Coliseum. But for the Oakland Raiders record, that stadium was a weapon.
Visiting teams hated it. The Black Hole was intimidating, and the field conditions were often a mess until baseball season ended. The Raiders' home record in Oakland was significantly better than their road record for the majority of their existence. There was a specific "Coliseum Factor" that accounted for about 3 points on the spread. When they left for the climate-controlled Allegiant Stadium, they lost that gritty, "us against the world" environmental edge.
Statistical Breakdown of the Final Decade in Oakland
If you look at the last ten years in Oakland (2010–2019), the record is a fascinating study in mediocrity punctuated by one outlier year.
- 2010: 8-8 (The "undefeated in the division" year where they still missed the playoffs)
- 2011: 8-8 (Hue Jackson’s chaotic year)
- 2012: 4-12
- 2013: 4-12
- 2014: 3-13 (The rookie Derek Carr/Khalil Mack year)
- 2015: 7-9
- 2016: 12-4 (The year the magic returned, until Carr broke his leg)
- 2017: 6-10
- 2018: 4-12
- 2019: 7-9
Basically, outside of 2016, the fans were cheering for a team that struggled to reach the .500 mark. It’s a testament to the loyalty of the Oakland fan base that they stayed as loud as they did.
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The Al Davis Factor
You can't discuss the record without the man who ran the show. Al Davis’s philosophy was "Just Win, Baby." For the first 30 years, it worked. For the last 10 years of his life, it... didn't.
His refusal to hire a traditional General Manager and his obsession with vertical speed (drafting players like Darrius Heyward-Bey over more polished prospects) took a toll on the Oakland Raiders record. By the time Mark Davis took over and eventually hired Reggie McKenzie, the roster was in such salary cap hell that the team had to "deconstruct" for two years. Those 4-12 seasons were the cost of fixing the books.
Nuance in the Numbers: Strength of Schedule
One thing that often gets overlooked when debating the Oakland Raiders record is who they had to play. Being in the AFC West meant facing the Denver Broncos and Kansas City Chiefs twice a year.
During the 2010s, the Chiefs became a dynasty and the Broncos had the Peyton Manning era. The Raiders were essentially playing four games a year against Hall of Fame-caliber operations while they were trying to figure out if EJ Manuel or Matt Flynn was a viable backup. Context matters. A 7-9 record in the AFC West in 2015 was arguably more impressive than a 9-7 record in a weaker division.
Actionable Insights for Fans and Historians
If you're tracking the Oakland Raiders record for historical research or just to settle a bar bet, keep these nuances in mind:
- Check the Location: Always clarify if the "all-time record" includes the Los Angeles years (1982–1994). Including L.A. inflates the win count because of the 1983 Super Bowl win.
- The Madden Threshold: Use John Madden’s .759 winning percentage as the benchmark. Anything less is technically a decline from the franchise "gold standard."
- Split the Stats: If you're analyzing the team's move to Vegas, use 2019 as your hard cutoff for Oakland data.
- Look Beyond Wins: The Raiders’ record in Oakland includes three AFL Championships (1967, 1968, 1969) which are often forgotten in "Super Bowl era" conversations.
The Oakland Raiders record is a graveyard of "almosts" and a cathedral of "remember whens." It’s 60 years of a city’s identity poured into a win-loss column. While the team now plays in a billion-dollar "Death Star" in the desert, the numbers they put up in the mud of the Coliseum remain the true heartbeat of the franchise.
To truly understand the record, you have to look past the losses of the late 2000s and see the winning culture that Al Davis built from scratch in 1960. It was a culture that, for a long time, made the Oakland Raiders the winningest team in professional sports. That legacy doesn't disappear just because the address changed.
For anyone looking to dive deeper, the Pro Football Reference database remains the most accurate source for game-by-game breakdowns, while the Raiders' own digital archives provide context on the AFL-era victories that predated the modern NFL standings. Focus on the 1963-1980 window to see the franchise at its absolute peak of statistical dominance.