Badasses: The Legend of Snake, Foo, Dr. Death, and John Madden's Oakland Raiders [Paperback]

The Oakland Raiders regular season record during Hall Of Fame coach John Madden's tenure (1969-1978) was 103 wins 32 losses and 7 ties. That was a better record than even the illustrious Vince Lombardi. When Madden took over they won seven division titles in the first eight seasons. "Between 1970 and 1977 they played in six AFC Championship games and won the Super Bowl to end the 1976 season." This wonderfully idiosyncratic look at the Raiders of those years include everything from the history of Hall Of Fame owner Al Davis to John Madden to all the lovable "BLACK AND SILVER" players... including many Hall Of Famers... and some who should definitely be in the Hall Of Fame also. The author, a Raider fan at least since his east coast college days, lovingly refers to the team known worldwide as *THE-SILVER-AND-BLACK" as the "BLACK AND SILVER"... over and over... and over again. And any fan can understand the author's individual nickname for them. For any fan who loves... and I mean loves... his favorite sports team... undoubtedly has some picayunish... unique... clever... at least in their own mind... nickname for their team. Some are born from superstition... some are born by a mispronouncement... or misunderstanding... or even a bolt of lightning. But any diehard fan... always has a unique personal nickname or phrase for their beloved team. One of the highlights... in a book overflowing with highlights... is the author spewing such an unrelenting, heartfelt love and adoration for his *BLACK AND SILVER* that any true football fan regardless of their favorite team can't help but share the joy of a football love that has no boundaries.

This is a book for any football aficionado. I have read... reviewed... and loved books on the Steelers... the Packers... da Bears... the Colts... the Saints... et al. you can check my prior reviews for proof. So for me to highly recommend a sports book, it absolutely does not have to be about my favorite team or player. Now, it so happens I'm a Raider fan, and in fact I am an original and continuous PSL season ticket holder since they returned to Oakland sixteen years ago... but that's not why I strongly recommend this book. All sports including football have changed (in my opinion) for the worse in the last forty years... so this book lets you travel back in time to share beers... brawls... wins... and losses... with probably the greatest collection of whacko's... brawlers... and believe it or not... highly educated band of outsiders in a team sport in modern times. The author has meticulously combined quotes from forty years ago... and included up to the minute interviews with many of the players and Coach Madden. The love and respect they have for each other after all these years is amazing. In fact the author states that not one single player interviewed all these years later had even one single negative thing to say about Madden. And everyone including Al Davis states that there was no other coach but Madden that could have possibly lead these castoffs and free thinkers to the heights of victory they accomplished.

There are so many great stories from their yearly pre-season training camps... that players looked so forward to... that most of them showed up days earlier than required. They loved football... and they loved the Raider family, which in training camp included bar hopping... drinking beer by the *PITCHER*... bowling tournaments, air hockey tournaments (with cheating allowed)... women... women... sneaking out after bed checks... Hall Of Famers showing up on the practice field riding a horse... streakers... and players like Hall Of Famers, Fred Biletnikoff, and Willie Brown (Just some of the eventual Raider Hall Of Famers.)... and should be Hall Of Famers, Ken "Snake" Stabler... Ray Guy... Cliff Branch... Jack Tatum... stayed hours after practice... to practice more... because one thing you'll learn in this book, is that sure... the Raiders of those days liked to party... but they loved to win... and simply loved the game of football even more than partying.

The backgrounds of all the important and not so important *SILVER-AND-BLACK" / "BLACK-AND-SILVER" players are covered so the reader gets a personal insight into how players known as *THE ASSASSIN*... *THE HIT MAN*... *DOCTOR DEATH*... *FOO*... *THE STORK*... *THE ROOSTER*... *THE GOVERNOR*... *THE TOOZ*... *BOOMER*... *THE GHOST*... and sooo many more... made the Raiders one of the greatest teams in history... and you'll fully understand when a player... even after being traded... says... "ONCE YOU'RE A RAIDER... YOU'RE A RAIDER FOR LIFE!"

**NOTE** Amazon's product description on this page is wrong. Madden's Raiders won SEVEN DIVISION TITLES NOT SIX AS AMAZON STATES!

I've been a Raiders fan since 1964, the good majority of my life, and bought this book primarily because of that. I was surprised by how good a book it was in its own right. About a quarter of the way through I realized this would make an enjoyable read for any true football aficionado. I say that because whether the author intended it or not this book really explains what made John Madden's Raiders unique in football history and why there will probably never be another team like it. Here was a collection of people that really loved to play football; loved to tackle and be tackeled. Have you ever had a job that you loved to come to every day? If so, then you realize that's the most incredible experience to have. To get paid for doing something you'd enjoy doing anyway. Madden's Raiders were that. But only Madden could bring those people together without dampening their enthusiasm and this, more than anything else, explains what made that team so unusual and unique. John Rauch couldn't do it (Madden's predecessor) nor could Tom Flores (his successor). I always knew they were special but never understood exactly why until reading this book. It wasn't the winning (for that you could/should back the Steelers, Cowboys, or Dolphins). It had to be something else and it was -- these guys just loved to hit and loved to do things their way. At times I think the book goes overboard on documenting the team's partying because, I guess, that's what sells books. But I think what makes the book special is the other aspects to the team's history. The John Madden era Raiders were truly a family; even Al Davis laments the inability to ever again create that kind of atmosphere for his team (Al's own discription of the Raiders in L.A. vs. 1968-1978 Oakland is very telling in that respect). The discriptions of the selflessness of the players is really something that stands out and I can't see happening in today's me-first incentive-laden contract environment. If you love the Raiders, this one's a no-brainer but even if you only remember the team as different than the rest of the NFL and are curious as to why then I recommend this book as something you will enjoy reading.

If you are a hardcore Raiders fan, there is not much in this book that you had not already heard.

The style was dreadful. I was nauseated by the author's efforts to read some higher cultural significance into the Raiders image during the Madden years. I yield to nobody in my love of the Raiders, but even I was embarrassed by the author's gushing tone. I wish he had done more research into new areas are at least offered new insights into the team's game planning. His retelling of a visit with Al Davis sounds as if Chris Farley (in his role as the goofy fanboy interviewer) had conducted the interview. Most of all, I would have appreciated the book if he had recounted the facts with straightforward observations on the events in the book, without the author's added hype.

In all, don't waste your time.