It only took 15 quarters and 206 plays on offense.
But it happened.
The Raiders scored a touchdown – on offense.
Darren McFadden's one-yard run with 5:26 left in the third quarter ended the Raiders' drought of offensive touchdowns.
Making it all the better, the Raiders returned the favor by humiliating the Denver Broncos 31-10 in front of their fans at Invesco Field at Mile High.
The Broncos opened the season with a 41-14 beating of the Raiders in Oakland on "Monday Night Football."
The sight of the Raiders scoring touchdowns was enough to force some fans to start leaving the game early. Witnessing an effective offense might have made some fans delirious.
Three fans ran onto the field during the fourth quarter only to be tackled by security, two of them high stepping while handcuffed.
And after the way the Raiders treated the Broncos, those fans probably felt being tossed out of the stadium was a relief.
After all, this was the lowest-scoring team in the NFL having its way on offense en route to its highest point total of the season.
"I just thought you could really see our chests puff out and say, 'Here we go, we can play,' "
interim head coach Tom Cable said of McFadden's touchdown that put the Raiders ahead 17-10.
Before scoring, the Raiders had another bout with their ineffectiveness near the goal line in the first half, where their listless offense reappeared.
The Raiders had second and goal at the Denver 1 in the second quarter only to be stuffed on consecutive runs and lose a yard.
Cable was going to go for it on fourth down until a false start by fullback Luke Lawton pushed the Raiders back five yards. Sebastian Janikowski kicked a 26-yard field goal for a 3-0 lead.
Before halftime, with the score tied 3-3, Johnnie Lee Higgins gave the Raiders a rare first-half touchdown with an 89-yard punt return.
Denver tied the game 10-10 on a six-yard run by Peyton Hillis in the third quarter. But the Raiders answered with a 70-yard drive capped by McFadden's touchdown.
"That was the real drive of the game,"
Cable said. "The defense had a rough drive. There were a couple of penalties in that drive. They went down, got a touchdown, and then we answered right away. That was huge. It's the first time we have really done that all year."
It's also no coincidence the offense started looking better with Justin Fargas and McFadden healthy.
Fargas ran for 107 yards, and McFadden lined up at wide receiver and quarterback in the Raiders' "Stallion"
package. Those plays had been shelved while McFadden battled turf toe on both feet.
McFadden totaled 52 yards of offense in 12 touches to go with two touchdowns.
"With the toe injuries and me being limited (Cable) might have put a few plays to the side,"
McFadden said. "(Sunday) he was able to bring them out."
JaMarcus Russell was nearly perfect. He completed his first nine passes en route to finishing 10 of 11 for 152 yards and a touchdown to Ashley Lelie, who enjoyed beating his former team.
"The way the offensive line played today, I didn't get touched at all, no sacks,"
Russell said. "Coach really told those guys it was going to be on them. If we continue to play like that, you're going to see a lot more from our offense as far as running and passing."
The defense certainly hopes so. The unit might have been playing its best football of the season the previous two weeks, only to see losses as the offense continued to struggle.
And it stayed on a roll by constantly harassing Broncos quarterback Jay Cutler. He wasn't sacked but was forced to move around as Raider defensive linemen and blitzing linebackers came after him.
Sunday's loss marked the first time Cutler completed less than 50 percent of his passes this season. He finished 16 of 37 for 204 yards and an interception.
"They played good defensively,"
Cutler said. " … They have a good defensive line and linebackers and they come out to play. They had a good game plan they were smart about it."
