Raiders-Dolphins Series Has a Catch to It

The Las Vegas Raiders (5-5) and the Miami Dolphins (6-3) have an exciting past, and it's something worth looking at before Sunday's game.

The Las Vegas Raiders will play the Miami Dolphins for the 42nd time on Sunday at Hard Rock Stadium, formerly Joe Robbie Stadium, in Miami.

The Dolphins were an American Football League expansion team that began play in 1966 and the established Raiders won the first five games of the series and were 7-1-1, although their lead is down to 21-19-1.

The Raiders won the first game the teams played, 23-14, on Sept. 2, 1966, at the Orange Bowl in Miami after Joe Auer of the Dolphins returned the opening kickoff 95 yards for the first NFL touchdown in Dolphins history.

Quarterback Tom Flores rallied the Raiders by passing for two 16-yard touchdowns to wide receiver Art Powell and tight end Tom Mitchell in the second half for a 23-16 victory, as fullback Hewritt Dixon also ran two yards for a score.

Undoubtedly, the most memorable game in the history of the Raiders-Dolphins rivalry came in an American Football Conference divisional playoff game on Dec. 21, 1974, at the Oakland Coliseum.

The Las Vegas Raiders-Miami Dolphins series has a catch to it / © Dick Raphael | 1970 Dec 27

The two-time defending Super Bowl champion Dolphins held a 26-21 lead over the Raiders in the final minute when the Raiders reached the Miami eight-yard-line.

It appeared that Raiders future Hall of Fame quarterback Kenny “Snake” was about to be sacked by Dolphins defensive end Vern Den Herder before he threw a desperate pass toward the left corner of the end zone.

Running back Clarence Davis, known for having terrible hands, was surrounded by three Dolphin defenders, but somehow managed to fight them all off and catch the pass for a touchdown with 25 seconds remaining in the game to give the Raiders in incredible 28-26 upset victory.

“Clarence Davis couldn’t catch a cold, but he makes the big catch to win it in the last 30 seconds,” flustered defensive tackle Manny Fernandez of the Dolphins said after the game. “It was probably the only catch he ever made in his career.”

Well not exactly, but it certainly was Davis’ most famous reception.

Sportswriter Dave Newhouse of the Oakland Tribune wrote that Davis made the catch in a “sea of hands,” and the name stuck, just like the ball to Davis’ hands.

That play will forever be known as “The Sea of Hands.”

That wasn’t Davis’ only memorable game, as the Raiders switched from fullback Mark van Eeghen as their top rusher by having him lead the way for Davis to rush for 137 yards, a Super Bowl record at the time, in a 32-14 victory over the Minnesota Vikings in Super Bowl XI at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif.

Another game to remember between the Raiders and Dolphins came on Dec. 2, 1984, at the Orange Bowl, when future Hall of Fame quarterback Dan Marino passed for 434 yards and four touchdowns to lead Miami to a 27-24 lead after three quarters.

However, quarterback Mark Wilson hit wide receiver Dokie Williams with a 75-yard touchdown pass, and future Hall of Fame running back Marcus Allen, who rushed for 155 yards in the game, ran for scores of six and 52 yards in the final quarter to give the Raiders an amazing victory, 45-34.

“We like to play the Dolphins because we enjoy playing good teams,” said Coach Tom Flores, who led the Raiders to victories in Super Bowls XV and XVIII. “Good teams bring out the best in teams.”

The last time the Raiders played the Dolphins, was on Sept. 26, 2021, when the Silver and Black overcame a 14-0 deficit in the first quarter as quarterback Derek Carr passed for 386 yards and touchdown passes of one yard to fullback Alec Ingold and 12 yards to wide receiver Hunter Renfrow. Daniel Carlson kicked three field goals in a 31-28 victory at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.

The Raiders hope to make it a two-game winning streak against the Dolphins on Sunday in Miami.

The Silver and Black will head out on the road to South Beach to take on the Miami Dolphins on Sunday, Nov. 19, at 1 p.m. EST/10 a.m. PST.

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