Ken Stabler Oakland Raiders & Houston Oilers & New Orleans Saints

The Oakland Raiders, in the second round of the 1968 AFL-NFL Draft, selected quarterback Ken Stabler. A three-time All-America at Alabama, Stabler spent his first two seasons in the pros on the Raiders inactive/reserve squad, before joining the team in 1970 as a backup to Oakland’s All-Pro quarterback Daryle Lamonica.
 
Although his playing time steadily increased each of the next three seasons, it wasn’t until 1973 and after the Raiders lost two of their first three games, that Stabler became a starter. That year he went on to lead the Raiders to the AFC Championship game, a 27-10 loss to the Miami Dolphins.

It was, however, the first of a string of five consecutive years that the Stabler-led Raiders advanced to the AFC title game, and the first of seven consecutive winning seasons with the “Snake” at the helm.  

In 1976, Stabler led the league in passing, finishing the season with a remarkable 103.4 passer rating. At the same time, the Raiders earned the right to represent the AFC in Super Bowl XI. In the Super Bowl Stabler completed 12 of 19 passes for 180 yards as the Raiders easily defeated the Minnesota Vikings 32-14.  

During his 10 seasons in Oakland, Stabler was named All-Pro twice, All-AFC three times, and selected to play in the  Pro Bowl four times.  He was named the AFC’s Player of the Year in 1974 and again in 1976.  Following the 1979 season the Raiders traded Stabler to the Houston Oilers for quarterback Dan Pastorini. In his first season as the Oilers field general, Stabler passed for 3,202 yards. It was the second time in his career that he passed for more than 3,000 yards in a single season.

Stabler retired after the third game of the 1984 season after struggling through two injury-plagued seasons with the New Orleans Saints. When he retired his 59.85 career pass completion percentage was second only to Joe Montana, who at the time had played just six seasons.  

Stabler’s 10 consecutive post season games with a touchdown pass was also an NFL record.

During his 15 NFL playing seasons, Stabler completed 2,270 passes for 27,938 yards and 194 touchdowns.  

Ken Stabler's Stats

Ken Stabler's Championship Games

1970 AFC – Baltimore Colts 27, Oakland Raiders 17

Stabler did not play.

1973 AFC – Miami Dolphins 27, Oakland Raiders 10

Stabler started at quarterback.  He completed 15 of 23 passes for 129 yards, one touchdown,  one interception, and one fumble recovery.

1974 AFC – Pittsburgh Steelers 24, Oakland Raiders 13

Stabler started at quarterback.  He completed 19 of 36 passes for 271 yards, one touchdown, and three interceptions.  He also rushed one time for no yards.

1975 AFC – Pittsburgh Steelers 16, Oakland Raiders 10

Stabler started at quarterback.  He completed 18 of 42 passes for 246 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions.

1976 AFC – Oakland Raiders 24, Pittsburgh Steelers 7

Stabler started at quarterback.  He completed 10 of 16 passes for 88 yards, two touchdowns, and no interceptions.

1977 AFC – Denver Broncos 20, Oakland Raiders 17

Stabler started at quarterback.  He completed 17 of 35 passes for 215 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception.

Super Bowl XI – Oakland Raiders 32, Minnesota Vikings 14

Stabler started at quarterback.  He completed 12 of 19 passes for 180 yards, one touchdown, and no interceptions.

Ken Stabler's Career Highlights

* NFC regular season finish in strike-shortened season.
(Division Finish in Parentheses)

Ken Stabler's Career Capsule

Full Name: Kenneth Michael Stabler

Birthdate: December 25, 1945

Birthplace: Foley, Alabama

Died: July 8, 2015 at Gulfport, Mississippi

High School: Foley (AL)

Pro Career: 15 seasons, 184 games

Drafted: 2nd round (52nd overall) in 1968 by Oakland Raiders

Ken Stabler Presenter Speech

Ken Stabler Enshrinement Speech 2016

Presenter: John Madden

Voice:

Touchdown Raiders.

Narrator:

Throughout their colorful and illustrious history, the raiders have famously pursued a commitment to excellence and no player in franchise history has fulfilled that commitment quite like Ken the snake Stabler. The legendary lefty grew up in Foley, Alabama bypassing minor league baseball contract offers from the Yankees and Astros to play for Bear Bryant at the University of Alabama.

Voice:

Stabler scrambles, avoids tacklers and again throws to Perkins for another 45-yard scoring play.

Narrator:

He finished with an 18 to 1 record as a starter for the Tide providing a glimpse of what was to come.

Voice:

Kenny the snake Stabler keeps the ball sweeps left then….

Narrator:

Stabler became a Raider in 1968, Al Davis’s Raiders were a unique franchise carrying themselves with a swagger and toughness that had an intimidating effect on opponents. The snake bit right in. Stabler’s exclusive scrambling style made him a dangerous playmaker through the air and on the ground and his confident demeanor was a perfect fit for the tough take-no-prisoners mentality of the 1970s Raiders.

Voice:

And Stabler was on the money. And the Raiders have closed this one out…

Narrator:

He would be slowed by a series of knee injuries but in fitting Stabler fashion, he learned to improvise. Though the once frequent scrambler reinvented himself as a more traditional drop-back passer. The results were the same.

John Madden:

Whatever that thing was that focused that concentration, that competitiveness, he could just step it up a notch when you needed it.

Voice:

Stabler rolling to the left, he’s gonna go, touchdown Oakland.

Narrator:

Under the tutelage of head coach John Madden, Stabler’s Raiders were a postseason fixture in 1972. Oakland engaged in a memorable playoff struggle with the eventual champion Pittsburgh Steelers. It would go down as one of the most famous games in sports history.

Voice:

Stabler to pass, steps away from the rush, he’s gonna run up the left side, 30, 25, 20, 15, 10, 5 touchdown. Kenny Stabler goes all the way.

Narrator:

After leading the league in passing touchdowns, Stabler was named league MVP in 1974. He again led the league in touchdown passes in 1976 taking the Raiders to Super Bowl LIII.

Voice:

These are hungry football teams and the world awaits to find out who is going to wear that Super Bowl ring.

Narrator:

There he faced off against Minnesota famed purple people leaders defense and future Hall of Fame quarterback Fran Tarkenton. Stabler was unfazed marching his team up and down the field in a second quarter flurry that broke the game open.

Kenny Stabler:

I don’t know how to describe this feeling, it’s unbelievable, it’s more than I expected. 

Narrator:

Super Bowl LIII was part of a historic Oakland run. The Raiders won five consecutive AFC West Titles and Stabler became the first quarterback since the AFL-NFL merger to take his team to five straight conference title games. Stabler reached four Pro Bowls in his 15 NFL seasons. He remains the Raiders all-time franchise leader in wins, passing yards and passing touchdowns. But beyond the stats Stabler also exemplified the best of what the Raiders aspired to be.

Voice:

Touchdown Raiders.

John Madden:

I always said that if I had one Quarterback to make a drive the length of the field at the end of the game to win that game that guy would be Ken Stabler, number 12. We miss you, love you and will see you in the Hall of Fame.

Narrator:

He was tough, he was confident, and he was a devoted fixture in the city of Oakland. Stabler remains a symbol of that golden era and iconic representation of excellence so frequently sought and for a few rare individuals memorably found.

John Madden:

It is my pleasure to present for enshrinement into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, my friend Ken Stabler.