Oakland Raiders-San Francisco 49ers: California Dreamin' the Warmth of Victory

"Hi neighbor!" is what a Raider Nation fan might say to a 49ers fan. After all, Oakland Raiders territory and San Francisco 49ers territory are contiguous. They share a boundary.

Neighbors though they may be, they have a feud developing, so to speak.

The Oakland Raiders and the San Francisco 49ers have a few things in common. San Francisco had a 2-14 record in 2004, followed by a 4-12 record in 2005.

Although the years are different, Oakland had the same pattern of wins and losses from 2006 to 2007. The Raiders had a 2-14 record in 2006 and a 4-12 record in 2007.

These neighbors probably grimace at the facts about those years. Small gains were made by both teams in those targeted past years, but now let's look at more recent years.

In 2002 to 2009, here is what the data says:

49ers          Raiders          Year

8-8             5-11            2009

7-9             5-11            2008

5-11           4-12            2007

7-9             2-14            2006

4-12           4-12            2005

2-14           5-11            2004

7-9            4-12             2003

10-6          11-5             2002

Their records looked identical in 2005, but the meaning and context was very different. For example, look at this data:

Team          Win-Loss          Pts          PtsO        PtDiff

Oakland       4-12              290          383         -93

49ers          4-12              239          428         -189

Now, the interesting metaphor is that both teams are longing for the warmth of winning in California, just as the singers of "California Dreamin" long for the warmth of beautiful California.

Oakland allowed its opponents to outscore them by 93 points, while the 49ers lagged behind their opponents in 2005 by 189 points. Although both teams trailed their opponents, the Oakland Raiders outscored the 49ers in 2005. Do you see what I see?

While the Oakland Raiders have no change in win-loss between 2008 and 2009, the 49ers had a slight increase in wins, rising from 7-9 to 8-8. The increase is not large, but it is a slight increase.

So, as always, this gives a basis for the Oakland Raiders to work hard, play hard, and to start dreamin' of the warmth of victories. Yes, we must compete with and beat our neighbors.

Go Raiders!