Jim Otto, Raiders Legend and Pro Football HOFer, Dies at 86

Hall of Fame center and Raiders legend Jim Otto died at the age of 86, the Raiders confirmed to Vincent Bonsignore of the Las Vegas Review-Journal on Sunday.

Otto was a member of the team when it resided in Oakland and was known as The Original Raider, as he played in the inaugural AFL season in 1960. He spent his entire career with the franchise until his retirement in 1974.

The Raiders paid tribute to Otto on social media, calling him "the personification of consistency."

Team owner Mark Davis lit the Al Davis Memorial Torch at Allegiant Stadium in honor of Otto:

Star defensive end Maxx Crosby expressed his condolences on social media:

The Raiders made Otto their starting center from day one, and he went on to play 308 career games and set a team record with 210 consecutive starts. He helped lead the team to seven division titles and an AFL championship in 1967. He earned nine first-team All-AFL selections over a 10-year span from 1960-69, with the lone outlier being a second-team selection in 1966.

When the AFL and NFL merged in 1970, Otto didn't skip a beat. He earned three consecutive Pro Bowl berths from 1970-72 as well as a first-team All-Pro selection in 1970 and a second-team selection in 1972.

Otto received an induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility in 1980. He was named to the AFL's All-Time team in 1970 and to the NFL's 100th anniversary All-Time team in 2019.

Otto explained the incredible toll his playing career took on him in his autobiography The Pain of Glory, which was released in 2000. At that point, he revealed that he had undergone 38 surgeries and both his knees and shoulders were artificial. He also played through broken fingers and ribs plus a broken nose.

"Minor injuries, therefore minor distractions," Otto wrote. "I was paid to play football, not hang out in the training room."

Bonsignore noted that Otto was a consistent presence at Allegiant Stadium after the Raiders moved to Las Vegas in 2019.