Super Bowl champion and Oakland Raiders icon George Atkinson has died at the age of 78, the team has announced.
Atkinson played for the team from 1968 to 1977, twice being voted an All-Star and winning the Super Bowl in his final season in 1977.
In a statement on X, a team spokesperson wrote: ‘The Raiders family is deeply saddened by the passing of George Atkinson, a life-long Raider whose physical style of play helped define an era of football.’
Away from the field, Atkinson’s later years were dominated by a series of family tragedies, with both of his sons committing suicide within a year of each other.
Both Notre Dame alumni, Josh and George III were both diagnosed with Stage 1 CTE after their deaths in 2018 and 2019 respectively.
Josh died by suicide on Christmas Day 2018 at the age of 26, just two months after the death of his mother, who died from complications of Crohn’s disease.
During their childhood, she had suffered from severe mental illness and had spent time in a mental institution.
George III meanwhile, survived a suicide attempt in the weeks after his brother Josh’s death, but died less than a year later on December 2, 2019.
Their dad, George Atkinson II, began his NFL career with the Raiders, after being drafted in the seventh round in 1968 our of Morris Brown.
As explained by the team in their statement, he ‘burst onto the pro football scene as an exciting defensive back and explosive returner, earning back-to-back AFL All-Star selections in his first two seasons.’
It continues: ‘He later anchored the defense as part of the famed “Soul Patrol” secondary of the 1970s, helping lead the Raiders to unprecedented success as the Silver and Black advanced to five consecutive AFC Championship Games and won Super Bowl XI following the 1976 season.
‘George’s contributions as a friend and mentor to everyone in the Raiders organization continued long after his playing career, and his genuine personality and wonderful sense of humor will be dearly missed by everyone who knew him.’
No cause of death has yet been announced by the team, or his family.
