http://content.usatoday.com/communities/thehuddle/post/2010/09/hall-of-fame-raiders-legend-george-blanda-dies-at-83/1George Blanda, whose 26-year career set the standard for longevity in the NFL, dies on Monday at age 83.
George Blanda was a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
CAPTIONAP photoA member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, Blanda played 26 seasons and an NFL record 340 games as a quarterback and kicker for the Chicago Bears, Houston Oilers and Oakland Raiders.
Blanda held at least 18 NFL records when he retired before the 1976 season at age 48. Included in those marks are most TD passes in one game (seven) and most career points (2,002).
The Raiders released this statement mourning Blanda's passing: "We are deeply saddened by the passing of the great George Blanda. George was a brave Raider and a close personal friend of Raiders owner Al Davis."
Blanda was the AFL Player of the Year in 1961 and a four-time Pro Bowler.
Blanda sat out the 1959 season after ending his tenure with the Chicago Bears. He joined the AFL's Oilers for their inaugural season in 1960.
Why?
"I signed with Houston because I knew (team owner) Bud Adams had a lot of money," Blanda later said, via the San Francisco Chronicle.
Blanda helped the Oilers win AFL titles in 1960 and 1961 and said he would always think of himself as an AFL player.
His career may have hit a high mark in 1970 when, in a five-game stretch, Blanda engineered touchdown drives or field goals in consecutive games that brought the Raiders back from behind. He helped the Raiders rally for a 4-0-1 mark in those five weeks at the age of 43.
Blanda was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1981.
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