Las Vegas Raiders Legend & Pro Football Hall Of Famer Has Tragically Passed Away

Las Vegas Raiders helmet (Photo by Cooper Neill/Getty Images)
Las Vegas Raiders legend and Pro Football Hall of Fame center Jim Otto has passed away at the age of 86, the team announced on Sunday night.

Late in the evening, the Las Vegas Raiders announced on X/Twitter that Otto, known as “Mr. Raider” passed away Sunday at the age of 86. He is survived by his wife Sally, son Jim Jr. and 14 grandchildren. No cause of death was given.

A star out of Miami, Otto spent his entire 15-year career with the Oakland Raiders which spanned from 1960 to 1974. He led the Raiders to an AFL Championship in the 1967 season, setting up a showdown with the Green Bay Packers in Super Bowl II, the organization’s first showdown in the big game.

Arguably the greatest center of ever, Otto was a nine-time First-team All-AFL selection, a nine-time AFL All-Star and a three-time Pro Bowler. He was named to the NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team in 2019, one of four centers to make the team alongside Dwight Stephenson, Mike Webster and Mel Hein.

Our thoughts and prayers are with Otto’s family and friends during this difficult time.

Jim Otto Is On The Mount Rushmore Of Las Vegas Raiders Players

The Las Vegas Raiders have had many all-time great players throughout their 64-year history, but you cannot discuss the best of the very best without mentioning Jim Otto.

The Raiders emerged as a juggernaut in the Super Bowl era, well before the AFL-NFL merger in 1970. Though Otto retired after the 1974 season, it was his toughness, leadership and work ethic that set the golden standard in Raiders land.

Oakland became one of the NFL’s top teams in the 1970s, winning it all for the first time in the 1976 season under legendary head coach John Madden. They would achieve dynasty status by winning it all again in the 1980 and ’83 seasons.

If it weren’t for Otto’s 15 years of greatness, the Raiders would not have built the championship foundation that carried over into the ’70s and ’80s decade. Otto was a model person on and off the field, and there was nobody more deserving of the “Mr. Raider” nickname.