Classic Photos of John Madden

It has been 40 years since John Madden coached the Oakland Raiders to their first Super Bowl title and six years since he was in the booth for his final Super Bowl broadcast. Meanwhile, the video game that bears his name just keeps on growing in popularity. In fact, a younger generation may know Madden more for that endeavor than for his excellent NFL coaching and broadcasting careers. As Super Bowl 51 draws nearer, here's a look at one of the most iconic figures in professional football.

SI Staff | Jan 12, 2017

Classic Photos of John Madden /

Classic Photos of John Madden

1959

Selected with the 244th pick in the 1958 draft, John Madden was a tackle for the Philadelphia Eagles, but knee injuries—including one during 1959 training camp—ended his career before he ever played in a game.

1969

Before becoming head coach of the Oakland Raiders in 1969, at the age of 32, Madden spent 1967 as the team's linebackers coach. He was a defensive coordinator at San Diego State from 1964 to '66 and started his head coaching career at Allan Hancock Junior College in California in 1962.

1972

Madden, pictured here with quarterback Daryle Lamonica, compiled a 103-32-7 record in 10 seasons as the Raiders coach. He was the losing coach in the 1972 Immaculate Reception game.

1973

John Madden puts his arm around coach Don Shula of the Miami Dolphins just after Miami won the 1973 AFC Championship game 27-10 in the Orange Bowl. Madden led the Raiders to four AFC title games in a five-year span, beginning with that 1973 matchup.

Circa 1970s

John Madden smiles while sitting on a bus circa the 1970s. By the 1980s he would become renowned for traveling by buses because of his claustrophobia.

1974

John Madden is congratulated by Dallas coach Tom Landry after the AFC edged the NFC 15-13 on Garo Yepremian's field goal with 21 seconds left in the Pro Bowl game held Jan. 20, 1974, in Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas.

1974

Madden argues with a referee during a 1974 divisional round playoff game against the two-time defending Super Bowl champion Miami Dolphins.

1974

John Madden celebrates after winning an AFC divisional round game against the two-time defending Super Bowl champion Dolphins.

1974

Madden shows his emotion during the 1974 AFC Championship game against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Despite having gone 12-2 in the regular season, the Raiders were upset 24-13 by the eventual Super Bowl champions.

1974

Madden paces the sideline during the 1974 AFC Championship game against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

1970s

Known as a players' coach, Madden shows his concern here for quarterback/kicker George Blanda. With Madden's backing, Blanda played until he was 48, kicking a 41-yard-field goal and an extra point in his final game, Oakland's 16-10 loss to Pittsburgh in the 1975 AFC Championship.

1975

Future Hall of Famers, Madden and quarterback Ken Stabler on the sideline during a game against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Oakland.

1976

Madden and running back Pete Banaszek after the Raiders pulled out a come-from-behind victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers, 31-28, in the final 18 seconds of a Sept. 13, 1976 game in Oakland.

1976

John Madden gets a fully-clothed shower as he and his Raiders celebrate in the dressing room after beating Pittsburgh 24-7 in the AFC Championship game on Dec. 26, 1976. Left to right: Gene Upshaw, Madden; Willie Brown and Mark van Eeghen.

1977

John Madden can't contain himself on the sideline as his star running back, Clarence Davis, races down the field against Minnesota in Super Bowl XI in Pasadena, Calif., on Jan. 9, 1977. Oakland won 32-14.

1977

John Madden implores his players during their Super Bowl win over Minnesota at the Rose Bowl. Madden never had a losing record in any season as an NFL head coach.

1977

John Madden alongside Ted Hendricks during Super Bowl XI. Madden was the first Raiders coach to win a Super Bowl.

1977

Madden and Ken Stabler minutes after defeating the Minnesota Vikings and winning Super Bowl XI. Stabler was the first left-handed QB to win the big game.

1977

John Madden after the Raiders won the first Super Bowl in franchise history.

1977

Unlike the me, me, me generation, Oakland's players carried Madden off the field as if he were king after the Super Bowl victory over the Vikings at the Rose Bowl.

1977

Madden gets lifted in the air after defeating the Minnesota Vikings in Super Bowl XI.

1977

Gene Upshaw holds a We're No. 1 sign behind Madden after the Super Bowl victory over Minnesota.

1977

Madden talks as team owner Al Davis holds the Vince Lombardi Trophy following their 32-14 victory over the Minnesota Vikings in Super Bowl XI.

1977

Madden walks with his wife, Virginia, and their two sons, Mike (left) and Joe, during a rally for the Super Bowl-winning Raiders in Oakland.

1977

In a 1977 playoff game that featured nine lead changes and the famed Ghost to the Post pass from Ken Stabler to Dave Casper, Madden's Raiders won in double overtime against the Baltimore Colts at Memorial Stadium.

1977

A closeup of Madden on the sidelines at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore.

1977

John Madden and Errol Mann after the double overtime playoff win over the Baltimore Colts at Memorial Stadium.

1979

Stressed out from football and dealing with health and family complications, Madden announced his retirement from coaching in January 1979. He walked away from the sport with a winning record against against some of the best coaches of his era: Bud Grant, Tom Landry, Chuck Noll and Don Shula.

1980

Madden shakes hands with veteran sportscaster Howard Cosell at a June 27, 1980 dinner honoring Cosell in New York. Also attending were hockey great Gordie Howe, left, and basketball great Nancy Lieberman.

1980

Madden's agent persuaded him to give tv commentary a try and he quickly ascended to the top. Here he interviews Pittsburgh Steelers All-Pro defenseman Mean Joe Greene for CBS.

1981

Madden, far left, along with other celebrities during the taping of a Miller Lite commercial in New York City. Seated, left to right: writer Mickey Spillane and New York Yankees manager Billy Martin. Standing: Madden, comedian Rodney Dangerfield, baseball player Boog Powell, football great and broadcaster Dick Butkus and football player and actor Bubba Smith.

1982

Madden practices the electronic charting device 'Telestrator' ahead of Super Bowl XVI at the Silverdome in Pontiac, Mich.

1982

John Madden and Eddie Murphy during Madden's hosting of Saturday Night Live in January 1982.

1982

Madden receives the Touchdown Club's Golden Mike award for Broadcaster on Sept. 24, 1982, in New York. He had won the first of his 16 Emmy Awards the previous year.

1987

Gene Kappock/NY Daily News Archive via Getty Images

Madden and New York coach Bill Parcells at Giants Stadium.

1990

Madden and Pat Summerall during their CBS days.

1990

Madden flew to NFL assignments up until he had a series of panic attacks on flights in 1979. After that he traveled by train or bus, and SI rode along in 1990 on a bus trip from Oakland to Manhattan that took 55 hours and covered 3,016 miles.

1990

John Madden watches tape as the Madden Crusier rolls across America.

1990

Madden signs a football for Lindsy and Travis Kimple of Kearney, Neb., during the road trip in which SI tagged along.

1994

Madden gestures during an NFL on Fox news conference in Los Angeles on July 15, 1994. With Madden is Matt Millen, left, who was signed as an NFL analyst for Fox Sports, and Ed Goren, who was named Executive Producer, Fox Sports. Fox wrested NFL broadcast rights away from CBS the previous year for more than $1.5 billion.

2002

John Madden on the cover of SI.

2002

In a feature story that appeared in SI, Sarah Pileggi wrote this of Madden: "Talking is what Madden does best. He is a born communicator. His talent for putting thoughts into words that engage the attention of a particular audience and his special knack for infusing these words with his own personality have been the keys to his success not only as a broadcaster but also as a coach."

2002

Pat Summerall and John Madden in the broadcast booth together for the last time, at Super Bowl XXXVI in New Orleans.

2002

John Madden, a new addition to the announcing team of ABC's Monday Night Football, speaks alongside his announcing partner Al Michaels and sideline reporter Melissa Stark during the Television Critics Association Press Tour in Pasadena, Calif. in July 2002.

2002

John Madden looks out of the booth as partner Al Michaels does a pre-game report before the 2002 Hall of Fame game in Canton, Ohio.

2002

Pro Hall of Fame enshrinee and former Raider Dave Casper knocks on the head of his bust as he poses with John Madden, his presenter and former coach.

2002

As Monday Night Football celebrated its 500th game on Nov. 11, 2002, John Madden and Al Michael (far left) welcomed former colleague Frank Gifford to the broadcast booth.

2003

John Madden arriving for ABC's 50th Anniversary Celebration at The Pantages Theater in Hollywood.

2003

John Madden talks with NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue as they inspect the newly-renovated Soldier Field on Sept. 29, 2003.

2003

John Madden during Super Bowl XXXVII in San Diego, site of the EA Sports Ninth Annual Football Video game Tournament.

2003

Al Michaels, Lisa Guerrero and John Madden present an award during the 11th annual ESPY Awards in Los Angeles.

2004

A happy John Madden talks in Detroit about being named as a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame class of 2006.

2004

Quarterback Peyton Manning of the Indianapolis Colts talks with John Madden at the 2004 ESPY Awards after party in Hollywood.

2006

Oakland Raiders new head coach Art Shell shares a moment with Madden at training camp in Napa, Calif.

2006

Dick Ebersol, chairman of NBC Universal Sports & Olympics and Executive Producer, and Madden at the 2006 Summer Television Critics Association Press Tour in Pasadena, Calif.

John Madden and Al Michaels during a Football Night in America broadcast. Madden was the first sportscaster to do NFL games for all four of the U.S. major networks and he also had the honor of calling a Super Bowl for all four.

2006

Madden poses with his bust at the Pro Football Hall of Fame Enshrinement in August 2006.

2006

Ron Jenkins/Fort Worth Star-Telegram/MCT via Getty Images

John Madden poses with fellow 2006 Hall of Fame inductees, from left, Troy Aikman, Rayfield Wright, Harry Carson, Warren Moon and Reggie White's widow, Sara.

2006

Al Davis and Madden at the Pro Football Hall of Fame Enshrinement on Aug, 5, 2006.

2006

John Madden taps his bust during his Hall of Fame ceremony in Oakland on Oct. 22, 2006.

2006

Madden gestures during a ceremony in which he was presented his Hall of Fame ring before the Oakland Raiders and Arizona Cardinals game on Oct. 22, 2006 in Oakland.

2007

John Madden with his grandson Sam, 6, who was diagnosed with juvenile diabetes. Alongside the duo on Capitol Hill are Senators Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Orrin Hatch, R-Utah.

2007

John Madden talks with then-Seattle Seahawks head coach Mike Holmgren outside a memorial service for former San Francisco 49ers coach Bill Walsh in Stanford, Calif., on Aug. 9, 2007.

2007

Madden and former NFL running back Jerome Bettis at the NBC All-Star Party on July 17, 2007, in Beverly Hills, Calif.

2008

Madden of Sunday Night Football speaks during the NBC Universal portion of the Television Critics Association Press Tour in Beverly Hills, Calif.

2008

Susan Biddle/The Washington Post/Getty Images

Madden talks with former Redskins assistant coach Terry Robiski during a memorial service for Gene Upshaw at the Kennedy Center.

2008

Madden gestures in the lobby of the Kennedy Center before a memorial service for NFL Players' Association leader Gene Upshaw, on Sept. 2, 2008, in Washington.

2009

John Madden shakes hands with California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger after Madden's induction into the state's Hall of Fame on Dec. 1, 2009.

Madden called 11 Super Bowls across his career, the last in 2009, when the Pittsburgh Steelers defeated the Arizona Cardinals in Super Bowl XLIII. He officially announced his retirement from NFL broadcasting on April 16, 2009, after 30 years in the business.

2010

Madden poses with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, Pittsburgh Steelers chairman emeritus and U.S. ambassador to Ireland Dan Rooney, Steelers coach Mike Tomlin and Steelers president Art Rooney at training camp in Latrobe, Pa.

2010

Madden talks with Baltimore Ravens general manager Ozzie Newsome at training camp on Aug. 4, 2010, in Westminster, Md.

2010

Madden and Roger Goodell with Baltimore Ravens head coach John Harbaugh, left, and general manager Ozzie Newsome, top, at training camp in Westminster, Md.

2011

John Madden with former president George W. Bush and his wife, Laura, during the national anthem before Super Bowl XLV in Arlington, Texas. It's the last Super Bowl that Madden has attended.

2011

John Madden shakes hands with actors Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher before Super Bowl XLV in Arlington, Texas. Madden was there as a guest of Cowboys owner Jerry Jones.

2011

Madden points to the sky after lighting a flame in the honor of the late Oakland Raiders owner Al Davis during halftime of an Oct., 16, 2011 game against the Cleveland Browns at O.co Coliseum in Oakland.

2012

David Dermer/Diamond Images/Getty Images

Madden waives to the crowd after being introduced before the 2012 Pro Football Hall of Fame Enshrinement ceremony on Aug. 4, 2012 in Canton, Ohio.

2012

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and Madden participate in a fan forum before a game between the Oakland Raiders and the Denver Broncos on Dec. 6, 2012.

2014

Madden was on hand when his former punter Ray Guy was enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Aug. 2, 2014.

2016

Madden unveils a Pro Football Hall of Fame bust for former quarterback Ken Stabler on Sept. 18, 2016. Madden had open heart surgery in December 2015.

2016

With Ken Stabler's family on hand, Madden unveils a Pro Football Hall of Fame bust for the former quarterback at a ceremony during halftime of a game between the Raiders and the Atlanta Falcons in Oakland.

2016

John Madden, wearing his Hall of Fame jacket and his Super Bowl ring, speaks to the fans during the unveiling of the Hall of Fame bust for former Raider Ken Stabler in Oakland.

Published Jan 12, 2017

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