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1965 Oakland Raiders season
Reference material by Wikipedia contributors. This retains its source identity and is not 411 news reporting.
AFL team season
December 2013
March 2026
Oakland Raiders 1965 8–5–1 2nd AFL Western F. Wayne Valley Al Davis Al Davis Frank Youell Field Did not qualify Raiders seasons
The 1965 Oakland Raiders season was the team's sixth in both Oakland and the American Football League. The campaign saw the team attempt to improve upon the prior year's disappointing 5–7–2 record, and finished at 8–5–1.https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=cPxVAAAAIBAJ&pg=5443%2C4682145 Eugene Register-Guard Oregon Football standings December 20, 1965 3C While the effort was a definite improvement, it was not enough to win the division and secure a postseason berth. This was the third and last season for Al Davis as head coach, as he became the AFL commissioner in April 1966, and offensive backs coach John Rauch was promoted.https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=0ItRAAAAIBAJ&pg=5166%2C1877683 Milwaukee Sentinel Associated Press Appoint Davis as AFL czar 1, part 2 June 2023 InternetArchiveBot yes
This was the first of sixteen consecutive winning seasons for the Raiders. It is also notable for the debut of Hall of Fame wide receiver Fred Biletnikoff, the first of several legendary Raiders drafted in the mid-1960s to early 1970s. The eleventh overall selection of the AFL draft out of Florida State, he was an integral part of the team's 1967 and 1976 Super Bowl runs.
It was also the Raiders' last year at Frank Youell Field;https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=afxVAAAAIBAJ&pg=4583%2C2968114 Eugene Register-Guard Oregon Associated Press Clinch second December 13, 1965 3B they moved to the new Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum in 1966.
Roster
1965 Oakland Raiders 15 Tom Flores
18 Dick Wood 33 Clem Daniels
30 Roger Hagberg
37 Alan Miller American football
22 Larry Todd American football y 14 Fred Biletnikoff y
21 Gene Mingo K
84 Art Powell wide receiver 33 Billy Cannon
86 Ken Herock 65 Wayne Hawkins G
67 Bob Mischak G
00 Jim Otto C
75 Ken Rice American football G
79 Harry Schuh y T
76 Bob Svihus y T
74 Rich Zecher y G/T 53 Dan Birdwell DT
46 Dave Costa DT
83 Ben Davidson DE
73 John Diehl American football DT
77 Ike Lassiter DE
87 Rex Mirich DT/DE
85 Carleton Oats y DT/DE 48 Bill Budness MLB
60 Dan Conners OLB
49 Dick Hermann y OLB
34 Gus Otto y OLB
56 Archie Matsos MLB
52 J. R. Williamson OLB 25 Claude Gibson CB/S
45 Dave Grayson CB
27 Joe Krakoski defensive back SS
47 Kent McCloughan y CB
20 Warren Powers SS
29 Howie Williams FS 10 Mike Mercer American football K/P 39 Pervis Atkins TE IR
19 Cotton Davidson QB IR
78 Frank Youso T IR 32 Rich Jackson y DE
68 Marv Marinovich G
1965 Oakland Raiders Draft Round Selection Player Position College 1 3 Harry Schuh T 2 11 Fred BiletnikoffWRFlorida State 3 19 Bob Svihus T 4 27 Gus Otto LB 9 67 Rich Zecher DT
Source:1965 AFL Draft Listing https://www.pro-football-reference.com/years/1965_AFL/draft.htm 2026-07-15 Pro-Football-Reference.com en
Season
1965 American Football League season
Regular season
Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance Recap 1 September 12 Kansas City Chiefs W 37–10 1–0 Frank Youell Field 18,569 Recap 2 September 19 San Diego Chargers L 6–17 1–1 Frank Youell Field 21,406 Recap 3 September 26 Houston Oilers W 21–17 2–1 Frank Youell Field 18,116 Recap 4 October 3 at Buffalo Bills L 12–17 2–2 War Memorial Stadium 41,246 Recap 5 October 8, 1965 at Boston Patriots W 24–10 3–2 Fenway Park 24,824 Recap 6 October 16, 1965 at New York Jets T 24–24 3–2–1 Shea Stadium 54,890 Recap 7 October 24 Boston Patriots W 30–21 4–2–1 Frank Youell Field 20,585 Recap 8 October 31 at Kansas City Chiefs L 7–14 4–3–1 Municipal Stadium 18,354 Recap 9 November 7 at Houston Oilers W 33–21 5–3–1 Rice Stadium 35,729 Recap 10 November 14 Buffalo Bills L 14–17 5–4–1 Frank Youell Field 19,352 Recap 11 November 21 at Denver Broncos W 28–20 6–4–1 Bears Stadium 30,369 Recap 12 Bye 13 December 5 Denver Broncos W 24–13 7–4–1 Frank Youell Field 19,023 Recap 14 December 12 New York Jets W 24–14 8–4–1 Frank Youell Field 19,013 Recap 15 December 19 at San Diego Chargers L 14–24 8–5–1 Balboa Stadium 26,056 Recap Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.
Game summaries
Week 1
Chiefs 7 0 3 0 Raiders 0 10 10 17 September 12 Frank Youell Field, Oakland, California 61 F, wind 8 mph on
yes 1 KC Curtis McClinton 20 yard pass from Len Dawson (Tommy Brooker kick) Chiefs 7–0
2 OAK Art Powell 14 yard pass from Dick Wood (Mike Mercer kick) Tie 7–7
2 OAK Gene Mingo 40 yard field goal Raiders 10–7
3 OAK Gene Mingo 28 yard field goal Raiders 13–7
3 KC Tommy Brooker 34 yard field goal Raiders 13–10
3 OAK Art Powell 5 yard pass from Dick Wood (Mike Mercer kick) Raiders 20–10
4 OAK Gene Mingo 28 yard field goal Raiders 23–10
4 OAK Dick Wood 3 yard run (Mike Mercer kick) Raiders 30–10
4 OAK Claude Gibson 58 yard punt return (Mike Mercer kick) Raiders 37–10 yes
Pro-Football-Reference.com
Standings
References
Oakland
Category:Oakland Raiders seasons
Oakland
Category:1960s in Oakland, California