McCallum, Hostetler Led Raiders to Memorable '93 Playoff Win

In the long and illustrious history of the Las Vegas Raiders, many overlook at 1993 playoff win led by Silver and Black greats Jeff Hostetler and Napoleon McCallum.

The Las Vegas-Oakland-Los Angeles Raiders have played many outstanding games in their 63 seasons, especially since they have played in five Super Bowls and won three.

That means that the Silver Black was involved in many other great playoff games on their way to make it to the National Football League’s ultimate game, whether they made it all the way or not.

Perhaps because the Raiders didn’t make it to the Super Bowl that season, one of the most overlooked incredible games in the history of the Silver and Black came when they defeated the great John Elway and Denver Broncos, 42-24, in the 1993 AFC Wild Card game at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.

The Raiders had to beat the Broncos, 33-30, at the Coliseum on Jeff Jaeger’s 47-yard field goal in overtime in the final game of the regular season simply to make the playoffs, even though Elway passed for 361 yards and three touchdowns that led Denver to leads of 13-0 and 30-13.

However, Jeff Hostetler passed for 310 yards and three touchdowns, including scores to wide receivers Tim Brown from 24 yards and four yards to Alexander Wright, and Jaeger kicked two field goals to pull out the victory as the Raiders finished 10-6 to barely make the playoffs as a Wild Card team with four victories in their last five games.

“You’re always at a disadvantage when you play the Denver Broncos because John Elway probably is the best quarterback in football,” Raiders Coach Art Shell said. “But that lifts our players to their greatest heights because you always want to play your best against the best.

“There have been a lot of great comeback victories in Raider history, and I’ve been involved in a lot of them. But this one stacks up with the best.”

The 1993 Wild Card game between the Raiders and the Broncos was a battle between Elway and Hostetler for the first half, which ended in a 21-21 tie as both quarterbacks threw three touchdown passes.

However, running back Napoleon McCallum took over the game in the second half.

McCallum, who played at the U.S. Naval Academy and missed three seasons of his NFL career on active duty from 1987-89 to serve in the Navy, rushed for 81 yards in the game and scored on touchdowns of 26, two and one yards in the second half to lead the Raiders to a surprisingly easy 42-21 victory.

The Broncos simply couldn’t stop McCallum, who tied an NFL record with three rushing touchdowns in a post-season game, but his career would last only two more years before he retired to become a full-time minister.

McCallum was selected to the College Football Hall of Fame in 2002, and he might be a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio, had he spent a full career with the Raiders.

“I said before that playoff game, ‘It will be a game of trucks vs. Ferraris,’” Denver safety Dennis Smith said. “If it’s a race, they win. They’ve got too much speed. If it’s a game of collisions, we win. Well, it wound up with trucks chasing Ferraris. There were not enough collisions and too many races.

“McCallum was simply too much for us in the second half.”

The Raiders wound up losing to the Buffalo Bills, 29-23, in an AFC Divisional Round game at Rich Stadium in Buffalo, even though McCallum ran for two more touchdowns, and the Silver and Black were through for the season.

In the two 1993 post-season games, McCallum rushed for 137 yards and five touchdowns.

The Bills went on to Super Bowl XXVII, where they were demolished by the Dallas Cowboys, 52-17.

However, the Raiders gave the fans of Raider Nation two memorable victories over Elway and the arch-rival Broncos that season, although there could have been more.

The 2023 NFL Draft will go from April 27-29 and be held at Union Station in Kansas City, Mo. The NFL Scouting Combine is Feb. 28-March 6, 2023, at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Ind. The club's deadline to designate Franchise or Transition Players is March 7, 2023, before 4 p.m. EST.

March 13-15 is the free agent negotiation period. Starting at 12 p.m. EDT on March 13 and ending at 3:59:59 p.m. EDT on March 15, clubs are permitted to contact and enter into contract negotiations with the certified agents of players who will become Unrestricted Free Agents upon the expiration of their 2022 Player Contracts at 4 p.m. EDT on March 15.

The 2023 NFL Year and Free Agency period begins at 4 p.m. EDT on March 15. The Raiders are expected to be significant players in the free-agent market this season.

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