Daryle Lamonica, the quarterback who won an AFL Player of the Year award and led the Raiders to their first Super Bowl appearance, has died aged 80.
They went 13-1 his first season as Lamonica was a first-team All-Pro and AP AFL Player of the Year when he led the league with 30 touchdown passes.
In his six seasons as a starter for the Raiders, Lamonica was one of the most prolific passers in the game, leading led pro football with 145 TD passes — 24 more than second-place Fran Tarkenton. His 16,006 yards passing ranked third from 1967-72. Lamonica was at his best during the playoffs, throwing five TD passes in a 41-6 win over Kansas City in 1968 and a record six the following season against Houston. Only Steve Young and Tom Brady have matched Lamonica’s six TD passes in a playoff game and only Patrick Mahomes and Kurt Warner have multiple games with at least five.
Lamonica was replaced as the starter in 1973 by Ken Stabler and went to the World Football League the following season where he finished his career.