Scout, assistant coach, head coach, league commissioner, owner
Joined Raiders: 1963
Inducted into Pro Football Hall of Fame on Aug. 1, 1992... Went from assistant coach of the Los Angeles, now San Diego Chargers, to head coach and general manager of the Raiders, to commissioner of the American Football League and to principal owner and chief executive officer of the Raiders, transforming the failing franchise into pro football's winningest team... In first season in Oakland, team went 10-4 in 1963 with Davis being named Coach of the Year by AP, UPI, Sports Illustrated, The Sporting News and his fellow coaches... Became the first sports figure ever honored by the Chamber of Commerce as Oakland's Young Man of the Year... In 1966, became commissioner of the AFL at 36 and was acclaimed nationally as the driving force who brought on the historic merger between the NFL and AFL... He played a vital role in the development of the game as a participant in the prestigious NFL Competition Committee and the NFL Owners Executive Committee... Has been chosen by a record nine Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees to present them at the Canton, Ohio ceremony — Lance Alworth, Jim Otto, George Blanda, Willie Brown, Gene Upshaw, Fred Biletnikoff, Art Shell, Ted Hendricks and John Madden... Became the first recipient of the NFL Players Association's Retired Players Award of Excellence "for his contributions to the men who played the game" in 1991... As a member of the Executive Committee of the NFL Management Council, Davis was a major factor in achieving a collective bargaining agreement with the players... Was offensive end coach of the Los Angeles Chargers from 1960-62, before being named Raiders head coach/general manager at age 33... He attended Wittenberg College and Syracuse, earning a degree in English while playing football, basketball and baseball in 1950... Named line coach at Adelphi College in New York... His innovative technical football articles, published in the leading coaching magazines, gained him wide acclaim... Went into the U.S. Army, being assigned as head football coach at Ft. Belvoir, Va.... There he molded a national power service team and capped one season by defeating Maryland, national collegiate football champions, in a squad game... On the staff of the Baltimore Colts in 1954, at age 24, concentrating on player personnel... During 1955-56, served as line coach and chief recruiter at The Citadel... Then spent three years at USC as line coach and in 1959, was also defensive coordinator.