The Greatest NFL Starting Job Thefts of All Time
By Erik Lambert
Oakland Raiders: Ken Stabler takes over for Daryle Lamonica
Daryle Lamonica was the first truly great vertical strike quarterback in history. Dubbed “the Mad Bomber,” he made the long ball cool in professional football. Not only that, but he made the Oakland Raiders tremendously successful in the late 1960s and early ’70s, taking them to a Super Bowl and three conference title games. Unfortunately, the championship trophy eluded him.
Defenses began to evolve by 1972. Zone coverages flustered him and he never could adapt to reading them, leading to interception problems. Things finally came to a head in the 1972 AFC championship game. The Pittsburgh Steelers had smothered him to just 45 passing yards and two interceptions going into the 4th quarter. Head coach John Madden made the call to put in former 1st round pick Ken Stabler.
Having waited years for an opportunity, “the Snake” didn’t waste much time. An epic scramble late in the game resulted in a touchdown to take a 7-6 lead. Though the Raiders lost moments later due to the iconic “Immaculate Reception” that play was enough to cement Stabler as the starter moving forward. He went on to a Hall of Fame career and won the Super Bowl in 1976.
Lamonica started just three more games.