http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/obi ... story.html
Just win, Baby.
The Pride and Poise Boys.
Until the last few years, when he seemed to lose his hold on the sport he loved, Al Davis was as successful as anyone has been as a Coach, Manager and Owner in the NFL.
I used to love his Raiders teams back in the day.
He liked the "vertical" game, going deep.
He took misfits like John Matuszak and Lyle Alzado and got great mileage out of them.
A very interesting character. I got to see one Raiders game at the Oakland Alameda Coliseum and there he was, on the sideline, in his Raider colors.
One of the legends of the game. RIP ...
Al Davis, NFL legendary owner of the Oakland Raiders Dies
Moderator: Team Captains
I was not really a big fan of Al Davis. He had most of his success a quarter century or so ago but other than when Marc Trestman was their offensive coordinator a few years ago, he has mostly run the Raiders into the ground since the mid 1980s. He was certainly good at "branding" his team though, well before that became such a big buzzword in pro sports.
Unlike Jerry Jones this guy could actually coach a football team. Head Coach of the Raiders, Commissioner of the AFL and then Owner. Wonder how/if the power structure shifts now in the NFL. IIRC, Davis was a bit of a contranarian (sp?), not going with the crowd type.... Noticed the Raiders already have an 'AL' decal on their helmets......