Upon learning of John Madden's death earlier this evening, I knew for most people he was synonymous with broadcasting football games myself included. After all, Madden covered the NFL for all four networks over a span of nearly 30 years. And if you didn't seem broadcast an NFL game then you probably caught one of his Ace Hardware commercials.
Yet there is a very good case to be made that Madden is one of the greatest coaches in NFL history and had he chose to remain on the sidelines he might have been considered the best ever. When Madden stopped coaching the Oakland Raiders in 1979, his .738 winning percentage was (and remains) the second greatest winning percentage of any NFL coach behind Guy Chamberlain who coached nearly a century ago. In his decade as a coach, Madden was 103-32-7. During that period, the Raiders were perennial bridesmaids in the AFC Conference Final though the Raiders would best the Minnesota Vikings in Super Bowl XI. Still, the Pro Football Hall of Fame would not acknowledge Madden's status as a coach until 2006.
Still, in the grand scheme of things, Madden made a fantastic career move and remains a household name despite having retired more than a decade ago and will remain so for many decades to come. R.I.P.
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