R.I.P. Ken Stabler
Ken Stabler, the quarterback who led the Oakland Raiders to a 34-14 victory over the Minnesota Vikings in Super Bowl XI, died of colon cancer in Gulfport, Mississippi on July 8th, 2015. He was 69.
Stabler played for the Raiders from 1970-79, taking over as the starter during the 1973 season. He won the NFL’s Most Valuable Player award in 1974, when he passed for 2469 yards and a league leading 26 touchdowns in a 14 game season. Stabler also played for the Houston Oilers from 1980-81, and the New Orleans Saints from 1982-84. He retired in the middle of the 1984 season. In 184 regular season games, Stabler passed for 27,938 yards and 194 touchdowns.
Stabler, who played college football at Alabama, will be remembered as one of the iconic figures in the John Madden era of the Raiders. After his playing career ended, he worked as a broadcaster for NFL and Alabama football games.
We may earn a small commission from qualifying purchases made from Amazon.com links at no cost to our visitors. Learn more: Affiliate Disclosure.
Bear Bryant, who had coached Joe Namath, said Stabler was the best Quarterback he ever coached. The Snake would disappear into the backwoods during the off-season. The Raiders would not know where he was or if he knew when to report, but he made it back on time every year. The man was just fun.
I saw this reported last night. Thank you Mark for getting this out so quickly.