In Tribute of Al Davis

Oakland Raiders owner and managing general partner Al Davis died today, at age 82. Davis was an NFL legend, whose career in the game began 60 years ago, when he became an assistant with the Baltimore Colts. Davis then became an assistant at the Citadel, then moved on to Southern California. He joined the Los Angeles Chargers in 1960, before being hired as the youngest general manager/head coach in NFL history by the Raiders in 1963. He would later purchase the team after leading them to a 23-16-1 record as coach.

Davis was also the final commissioner of the AFL, and spearheaded a movement that eventually caused the NFL-AFL merger in 1970. A truce had been established where NFL and AFL teams would not sign each others players, but that truce was broken by the New York Giants, when they signed Buffalo kicker Pete Gogolak. To Davis, that meant that he could go after anyone he wanted, so he pursued multiple NFL players, including John Brodie and Roman Gabriel.

Davis went back to the Raiders after the merger, overseeing a franchise that would win Super Bowls in 1976, 1980, and 1983. He gave a number of young coaches their first chance, including John Madden and Mike Shanahan. He hired not only the first black head coach of the modern era in Art Shell, but also the first Latino head coach in NFL history in Tom Flores. He was a true visionary for the league, and for as much attention as the Rooney Rule gets, Davis never cared about race. He only cared about a person’s football acumen.

Up until the end, the lived by his own beliefs, content to be the rebel. He was the only owner not to vote in favor of the new CBA, stating that he felt that the decrease in practice time that was included in the CBA would hurt coaching. He was also incredably loyal to his players and the Raiders. To be a Raider was to be a Raider for life. He would help former players, old friends, and distant relatives if he heard they were having problems, never caring for any publicity for it. Davis knew his reputation, and did everything he could to maintain it publicly.

While he may have been ridiculed recently for some of his personnel decisions, he appeared to have regained his ability to scout players over the last two drafts. He took on players that other teams were trying to dump in Jason Campbell and Richard Seymour, providing veteran presence to his young team. He found steals in Denarius Moore and Lamarr Houston. He plucked Kevin Boss from free agency, who fits the Raiders tight end mold perfectly. The Raiders appeared to be poised to return to the forefront.

Unfortunately, Davis will not be around to see the Raiders return to the playoffs. Yet Davis, more than the pirate logo or the silver and black uniforms, was the identity of the Raiders organization. He was, and always will be, what the Raiders are. He will be missed, but for as long as the Raiders and the NFL exist, he will never be forgotten.