Super Bowl XVIII

The Los Angeles Raiders defeated the Washington Redskins 38-9 in Super Bowl XVIII. The game was played at Tampa Stadium in Florida on January 22, 1984. The Redskins were heavily favored going into the game, but were dominated by the Raiders, earning the game the nickname "Black Sunday." Marcus Allen was selected as the Super Bowl MVP after the running back scored two touchdowns for the Raiders.

The Raiders were completing their second full season in Los Angeles after moving from Oakland following the 1981 season. They finished the regular season with a 12-4 record, with help from Head Coach Tom Flores. They defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers and Seattle Seahawks to clinch the AFC Championship.

The Redskins established a NFL regular season record of 541 points during the 1983 season. Under Coach of the Year Joe Gibbs, they finished the regular season with a 14-2 record. In they post season they defeated the Los Angeles Rams and San Francisco 49ers to take the NFC title.

Before the season began, the league took part in their annual draft of young players. The result was considered years later to be the deepest and most fruitful draft league-wide in NFL history.

Of the 28 players selected in the first round, 15 of them would eventually be selected to play in at least one Pro Bowl game in their careers, combined to win 11 Super Bowls and appear in 25, and six wound up being selected into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. 25 additional players selected after the first round would eventually play in at least one Pro Bowl.

The six hall of famers were: John Elway, Eric Dickerson, Bruce Matthews, Jim Kelly, Darrell Green, and Dan Marino.

In the midst of the spring when the NFL was drafting all of these players, they league was also keeping an eye on another entity.

The United States Football League played their inaugural season in 1983. Twelve teams played that first season, featuring several former NFL players such as Brian Sipe and Chuck Fusina. Yet the biggest name in the upstart league that first season was that of Herschel Walker. The New Jersey Generals signed Walker after he had won the Heisman Trophy the previous college season at the University of Georgia.

• FIRST QUARTER

• LA - Derrick Jensen recovered BLOCKED PUNT in End Zone (Chris Bahr kick)

• SECOND QUARTER

• LA - Cliff Branch 12-yard PASS from Jim Plunkett (Chris Bahr kick)

• WAS - Mark Moseley 24-yard FG

• LA - Jack Squirek 5-yard INTERCEPTION RETURN (Chris Bahr kick)

• THIRD QUARTER

• WAS - John Riggins 1-yard RUN (kick blocked)

• LA - Marcus Allen 5-yard RUN (Chris Bahr kick)

• LA - Marcus Allen 74-yard RUN (Chris Bahr kick)

• FOURTH QUARTER

• LA - Chris Bahr 21-yard FG

• NFL.com: Super Bowl XVIII Box Score & Statistics