Former Raiders running back Marcus Allen paid tribute to the franchise’s last Super Bowl win while in Atlanta for this year’s big game. Here is Allen and one of his foes from Super Bowl XVIII, former Redskins quarterback Joe Theismann.
The Raiders dominated Washington 38-9 in January 1984 in Tampa, Fla. The defending champions Redskins entered the game with the NFL’s top-ranked offense, per Pro Football Reference.
But the Raiders scored the game’s first touchdown via a blocked punt and closed the first half with linebacker Jack Squirek’s iconic pick-six.
Allen scored two touchdowns in the second half to complete the blowout, including his incredible 74-yard run for the ages. The score was the final nail in the coffin for Theismann’s Redskins.
Super Bowl XVIII was expected to be a close affair. The blowout placed the 1983 Raiders among the best teams to ever play in the NFL. The Raiders wouldn’t appear in the big game again for another 19 years, and they got blown out by coach Jon Gruden’s Buccaneers. Now, it’s Gruden’s task to take the Raiders to the NFL’s grandest stage and win the Lombardi Trophy yet again. That way, Allen and the rest of the club’s alumni can have something new to celebrate.
