The 1997 season was the Oakland Raiders' 28th in the National Football League, their 38th overall, their 3rd since their return to Oakland, and their first under head coach Joe Bugel. They failed to improve upon their 7–9 from 1996 and finished with a 4–12 record, the worst finish for the Raiders since 1962; when they won only once in the final season before the arrival of Al Davis. The Raiders missed the playoffs for the fourth consecutive season.
