Tag: jim otto

Raiders legendary center and Pro Football Hall of Famer Jim Otto dies at 86

Legendary Raiders center Jim Otto dies at 86

Jim Otto, who played center for the Oakland Raiders from 1960-74, died at 86.

Per the team’s website:

“00” was the foundational piece of a transcendent offensive line that not only propelled the Raiders to success on the field but resonated with fans and helped build the Raiders persona and mystique.

“The Raiders Family is in deep mourning following the passing of Jim Otto…The Original Raider,” the club said in a statement. “The personification of consistency, Jim’s influence on the American Football League and professional football as a whole cannot be overstated. His leadership and tenacity were a hallmark of the dominant Raider teams of the 1960s and 70s.”

Otto wore No. 50 as a rookie before switching to what became his trademark “00.”

He was known to many as “Mr. Raider,” and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1980, his first year of eligibility.

He played college ball at Miami (FL) as a center and linebacker. Otto was not drafted and his original rights belonged to what was going to be the Minnesota franchise in the AFL.

When that franchise failed to come to fruition, Otto’s rights went to the Oakland Raiders. He made the first snap for the Raiders and started every game from 1960-74 as their center.

Team owner Mark Davis lit the Al Davis Memorial Torch at Allegiant Stadium.

Raiders Hall of Fame center Jim Otto dies at 86

Raiders mourn the loss of legendary Hall of Fame center Jim Otto

The most legendary player to ever don a Raiders uniform passed away on Sunday. Jim Otto, who is often referred to as “the original Raider” because he joined was the centerpiece of their inaugural 1960 season and the team’s first Hall of Famer is gone.

The Raiders put out a statement Sunday night mourning the loss of Otto.

Called “The Original Raider” Otto was a true legend and ironman of the game, never missing a game in 15 full seasons, all in Silver & Black.

Along the way, he made 12 Pro Bowls, was named All Pro ten times and started in the Raiders first Super Bowl appearance.

After his retirement, Otto was a mainstay around the team. He could be seen regularly around the facility and at games and special events.

Otto gave everything he had to the game. He was a true great both on and off the field. His presence will be sorely missed, both within the organization and by the fans who appreciated his contributions to the game and his fan outreach.

Rest easy, 00.

Raiders well represented in Touchdown Wire’s list of best players by jersey number

Several Raiders greats made Touchdown Wire’s list of the NFL’s best ever by jersey number, but a staggering number did not.

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In the past, I have put together a list of the best Raiders ever to wear each jersey number. But that’s just comparing Raiders players. Would those players be the greatest to wear the number if compared to every other player in NFL history to wear that number?

Touchdown Wire’s Doug Farrar went about finding that out.

His list includes a good number of Raiders players. Starting, of course, with No. 00 himself and working from there. Here are all the former Raiders who made the list:

00 — Jim Otto
26 — Rod Woodson
29 — Eric Dickerson
37 — Lester Hayes
42 — Ronnie Lott
46 — Todd Christensen
80 — Jerry Rice
83 — Ted Hendricks

Raiders greats who didn’t make the list (and who made it instead):

3 — Daryle Lamonica (Jim Thorpe)
8 — Ray Guy (Steve Young)
12 — Ken Stabler (Tom Brady)
16 — George Blanda, Jim Plunkett (Joe Montana)
17 — Davante Adams (Philip Rivers)
21 — Cliff Branch (LaDainian Tomlinson)
22 — Mike Haynes (Emmitt Smith)
24 — Willie Brown, Charles Woodson (Darrelle Revis)
25 — Fred Biletnikoff (Richard Sherman)
32 — Marcus Allen (Jim Brown)
41 — Phil Villapiano (Eugene Robinson)
48 — Lionel Washington (Stephen Davis)
50 — Dave Dalby (Mike Singletary)
52 — Khalil Mack (Ray Lewis)
63 — Gene Upshaw (Willie Lanier)
75 — Howie Long (Joe Greene)
76 — Steve Wisniewski (Orlando Pace)
78 — Art Shell (Bruce Smith)
81 — Tim Brown (Calvin Johnson)
87 — Dave Casper (Willie Davis)

As you can see, while eight Raiders greats is a decent number to make the list, there’s a staggering number of Raiders greats who did not.

I’m sure many you probably disagree with a few of the snubs here, and I do as well. The one that stands out to me is Darrelle Revis being named the best No. 24. I like Revis a lot, but no way would I have placed him above either Old Man Willie or CWood. As I see it, the title for best No. 24 should go through them.

The best pro football player to wear every jersey number

Touchdown Wire’s Doug Farrar picks the best pro football player to wear every jersey number — from Jim Otto (00) to Aaron Donald (99).

Football is a game of numbers, and that includes jersey numbers — which define players in our minds to a certain degree. Who can think of Hall of Fame center Jim Otto without thinking of his 00 jersey, or Warren Moon’s No. 1, or a host of legendary quarterbacks rocking the No. 12, and on and on.

In this specific exercise, we are determining the greatest player in pro football history to wear each jersey number from 00 to 99. Sometimes, the choices are eminently obvious, and other times… not so much. No. 8 had the duel between Steve Young and Troy Aikman, just as we saw in multiple NFC Championship games in the early 1990s. No. 21 had us deciding between LaDainian Tomlinson, Deion Sanders, Frank Gore, Charles Woodson, and Patrick Peterson. Yikes!

On and on it went, but we finally worked through each jersey number and each correspondingly greatest player, and here is that list for your perusal — with the honorable mentions that made this process quite tricky at times.