Daryle Lamonica, the deep-throwing quarterback who won AFL Player of the Year and led the Raiders to their first Super Bowl appearance, has died. He was 80.
The Fresno County Sheriff said Lamonica died Thursday morning at his home in Fresno, California. Death is considered natural.
The Raiders acquired Lamonica in a 1967 trade from Buffalo, and he was an instant perfect match for vertical offense owner Al Davis, who coveted his franchise.
Nicknamed “Mad Bomber,” Lamonica made an instant impression in Oakland after starting just four games with the Bills in four seasons.
Lamonica’s deep arm teamed with receivers like Warren Wells and Fred Biletnikoff to make the Raiders a powerhouse. They went 13-1 in his freshman season when Lamonica was a first-team All-Pro and the AP AFL Player of the Year, leading the league in 30 touchdown passes.
Lamonica then threw two TD passes in a win over Houston in the AFL title game to send the Raiders to their first Super Bowl where they lost 33-14 to Green Bay.
In his six seasons as a starter for the Raiders, Lamonica was one of the most prolific passes in the game, leading pro football with 145 touchdown passes — 24 more than runner-up Fran Tarkenton. From 1967 to 1972 he ranked third with 16,006 yards.
In 1969, Lamonica was an All-Pro again when he led the AFL in 3,302 passing yards and 34 touchdowns. The 34 TDs still stands as the franchise’s season record more than half a century later.
He was at his best in 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 equalized Lamonica’s six TD passes in a playoff game, and only Patrick Mahomes and Kurt Warner have multiple games with at least five.
Lamonica also had a starring role in one of the most memorable games of all time, throwing four TD passes, including the go-ahead for Charlie Smith, in a 43-32 win over the Jets in tonight’s “Heidi Game.” because NBC cut off the East Coast target ahead of the Raiders’ comeback to show the children’s film.
Lamonica was replaced by Ken Stabler as a regular in 1973 and went to the World Football League the following season, where he ended his career.
Lamonica accumulated 19,154 passing yards and 164 TDs. The Raiders went 62-16-6 in his starts and had the best winning percentage of any starting QB in the Super Bowl era with at least 75 starts.
Lamonica was born and raised in Fresno before attending college at Notre Dame. Drafted in the 12th round by Green Bay and in the 23rd round by the Bills in 1963, he chose the AFL. He was a backup to Jack Kemp in Buffalo before becoming a star in Oakland.