The Oakland Raiders Depth at Tight End During the 1970s

0:00And that's the end of the first half, as the team said to the locker room, the Spartans lead the Bulldogs by a score. You guys stink. Jeez, Coach, we're only down a couple of points. No, I mean, you guys really smell. You need to hit the showers. And here, I got every one of you new bars of soap from the Sterling soap company. Each bar is artisan crafted using natural ingredients and essential oils. They also have shaved soap's cologne's beard balm and a whole lot more. Now get in there. But Coach, we have another half to play. I don't care. I can't stand to be around you a few minutes later. All right, bring it in tight. You guys are still playing terrible, but you're smelling great out there. Now listen, you're going to need to stock up for the rest of the season. We got a lot of tough games left. So go to sterlingsoap.com after the game. That's STIRL-I-N-G-Sope.com. You got that? Yes, Coach? Great. SterlingSope.com on three. One, two, three. SterlingSope.com. This podcast is part of the sports history network.

1:02Your headquarters for the yesterday year of your favorite sport. You can learn more at sportshistorynetwork.com. Hi folks. Welcome again to another episode of Pro Football in the 1970s on your host Joe Zuborski. And in this episode, we'll be talking about the Oakland Raiders depth at the tight end position during the 1970s. Now, the Oakland Raiders experience a good degree of glory during the 1970s as they participated in the NFL playoffs in seven of their first eight seasons in that decade. Their offense have a lot of quality depth at several positions, most notably at the tight end position. By the end of the 1977 season, the Raiders roster had tight ends such as Dave Kasper, Raymond Chester, Penn Qualic, Bob Moore, and Warren Bankston in their lineup at one time or another. Each of them enjoyed a good amount of pro success in Oakland.

2:03Let's start with the Hall of Famer of this bunch, the great game Kasper. This Notre Dame graduate played eleven seasons in the NFL for three different teams. It was in Oakland from 1974 to 1980 where he experienced his best amount of fanfare and success, however. Kasper helped to lead the Raiders to four straight AFC championship games and to a Super Bowl championship in 1976. Now, we can never forget Kasper's role in a pair of famous moments in the Raiders' history. The Joes to the Post Play in the 1977 AFC Divisional Playhouse at Baltimore and the Holy Roller Play at San Diego in 1978. Kasper also played for the Houston Oilers and the Minnesota Vikings. He finished his NFL career with 378 receptions for 5,216 yards at 52 touchdowns.

3:03He was enthrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2002. Another Oakland tight end from the 1970s who probably should be in the Pro Football Hall of Fame was Raymond Chester, who liked Kasper, also played for another team besides the Raiders. But it was in Oakland where he began his 12-year pro career back in 1970. Chester played most of his years in the era where teams did not throw the ball as much as they ran the ball. Oakland, however, had weapons who used who were outstanding passing game personnel and Chester was only one of them. He managed to catch 42 passes in his rookie year. Then when the Raiders kept adding to their overall offensive depth, Chester's receptions numbers dropped. The Raiders had to spread the ball around, you know. Chester was traded to Baltimore 1975 where he helped to lead the Colts to three straight

4:04AFC Eastern Division Championships. His talents were a vital cog in the Colts' offensive machine. What set him apart from many tight ends of his era were his hands. He had a pair of the best past matching hands in the league. He also had the speed and the moves to get open deep. When I interviewed him for my book on his college teammate, Willie Leneer, I remarked to him that he was Kevin Winslow before there was a Kevin Winslow. Chester finished his NFL career by catching 364 passes worth 5,013 yards and 48 touchdowns. He also returned to Oakland in 1978 and helped to lead the Raiders to a Super Bowl championship in 1980. A tag-quallic was a Penn State graduate who achieved the vast majority of his NFL fame as a tight end for the San Francisco 49ers.

5:07He played for the 49ers for the first six years of his pro career from 1969 to 1974. He was an all pro in 1972 and he played in three pro-ball games from 1971 to 1973. He also played for the Philadelphia Bell of the World Football League in 1975. Later that season, Quallic flipped the WFL and returned to Oakland where he helped to lead the Raiders to three straight ASC championship games from 1975 to 1977 and to a world championship in Super Bowl 11 in 1976. Both Bob Moore and Warren Bankston were serviceable tight ends who also played well on special teams for the Raiders. They were the type of player that every team needs if they are to succeed. Moore played for the Raiders from 1971 to 1975 and then he played for Tampa Bay in 1976

6:11and 1977 and he finished up his pro career in Denver in 1978. Warren Bankston came to the Raiders in 1973 after serving as a utility running back for four years in Pittsburgh. He switched over to tight end as soon as he got to Oakland however and he continued to play on special teams for the Raiders. Me too was a member of the Super Bowl 11 championship Oakland team in 1976. Although Casper, Chester, Pollock, Moore and Bankston represent the type of overall depth of one position that few NFL teams have today with their large roster numbers led alone in the 1970s with their fewer roster numbers. So that's pretty good. Now today's trivia question for this episode is a true or false question, though you got a 50-50 chance. True or false? Dave Casper, Raymond Chester, Ted Kualaich, Bob Moore and Warren Bankston each caught at

7:16least one touchdown pass in at least one playoff game during the 1970s. Is that statement true or false? Again, I'm your host, Joseph Worsky and I want to thank you for listening into this episode of Pro Football in the 1970s. Please check out all the different podcasts on the Sports History Network. You'll be glad that you did. Thanks again and we'll see you on the next episode. This podcast is part of the Sports History Network. Your headquarters for the yesterday year of your favorite sport. You can learn more at sportshistorynetwork.com. Welcome to the place where history's proud from great iron glory to the hardwood stars.

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