Historic Raiders Duo Recognized As Best Ever
The Las Vegas Raiders have had some of the greatest defensive players the game has ever seen over the span of the franchise's long existence.
The defense was especially crucial for the club when it won its three Super Bowl titles, particularly in 1983 with one of the greatest secondaries ever that helped win Super Bowl XVIII.
That defensive backfield was led by the tandem of Mike Haynes and Lester Hayes, two members of the NFL All-1980s Team.
Each week, Power Poll NFL surveys media members and other professionals affiliated with the league, allowing for their feedback and votes on specific topics that change weekly.
Our own Hondo S. Carpenter Sr. is one of the weekly voters.
This week, the polls were centered around the subject of historic NFL cornerbacks.
Haynes and Hayes were one of the options for the first poll posed to the voters: "What was the best cornerback coverage tandem in history?"
The legendary Raiders duo won by a mile. Out of 171 votes, Haynes and Hayes received 99, a whopping 58 percent of the votes out of eight choices.
Another Raiders tandem of Willie Brown and Dave Grayson was also represented, but they finished with only four votes.
Brown is in the Pro Football Hall of Fame along with Hayes and Haynes.
Hall-of-Fame Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Drew Pearson gave his take on the Haynes-Hayes duo in Power Poll's article:
“Lester Hayes and Mike Haynes played well off each other," Pearson said. "Lester’s man coverage ability usually got caught up in the stick-um discussion but trust me – the man really had coverage skills. Haynes’ size allowed him to get leverage on wide receivers, making it very difficult to shake him in man coverage.”
Per its website: "Power Poll was founded in 2019 as a civic engagement platform that brings together the most influential and powerful leaders across business, civic, media and political industries. We survey, hold conversations with, and engage our members to understand their collective positions, opinions, and thought leadership on critical issues. Power Poll publishes what America’s leadership is thinking to create solutions and bring action to these problems, challenges and opportunities."
The Raiders' offseason workout schedule is as follows:
OTA Offseason workouts: May 22-23, May 25, May 31-June 2, June 12-15
Mandatory Minicamp: June 6-8
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