Gold Jacket Spotlight: Tom Flores, Proud Member of 'Raider Nation'

When the newly elected Class of 2021 traveled to Tampa for Super Bowl LV for their first public introduction as a group last February, two members were missing.

Contributor Bill Nunn had passed away in 2014 at age 89. For health considerations, Coach Tom Flores, who this week steps into the Gold Jacket Spotlight, did not make the trip.

But his classmates, a group that established a tight bond quickly, made sure to include Tom in their revelry. In a FaceTime call from a suite at Raymond James Stadium, each of the other six Class of 2021 members took a few moments to crack jokes – mostly about wanting Coors Light beer, which he pitches – and to congratulate him on the honor many felt was long overdue.

In the longest exchange, former Raiders defensive back Charles Woodson told Tom: “I need you down here with me. There are too many Chiefs around me. I need some help. We’ve got to fight these Chiefs off.”

Tom replied, “Well, you’ve got to remember, Charles, that I played with the Chiefs for two years.”

Indeed, Tom won a Super Bowl with the 1969 Chiefs, a backup quarterback on the Super Bowl IV champions in the last game before the American Football League merged with the National Football League. He and Mike Ditka would go on to become the only men to win a Super Bowl ring as a player, assistant coach and head coach.

Never one to back down, Woodson countered: “Well, you played with the Raiders more, so I’m not worried about the Chiefs,” to which Tom said, “Absolutely. I’m right with you on that.”

Tom not only played with the Raiders for six seasons, he also was there from the beginning – an original member of the team in its debut 1960 season. He started 13 games, completing a league-best 54% of his passes for 1,738 with 12 touchdowns, for a Raiders team that finished with a respectable 6-8 record.

His playing career and later his coaching career also included brief stints in Buffalo and Seattle, but by far the majority of his 60 years in professional football was spent wearing Silver and Black.

“Raider Nation has been behind you from the start,” Woodson said in the call. “Everybody has been pulling for you … Even more so than me, Raider Nation wanted you in the Hall of Fame. They finally got you in there.”

Many felt it took far too long.

Tom succeeded Hall of Fame coach John Madden in Oakland in 1979 and continued the “Commitment to Excellence” the Raiders demonstrated season after season.

After a 2-3 start, his 1980 team posted an 11-5 regular-season record and earned a Wild Card playoff slot. In succession, the Raiders beat the Houston Oilers (27-7), Cleveland Browns (14-12) and San Diego Chargers (34-27) to reach Super Bowl XV. In the title game, Oakland forced four turnovers in a 27-10 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles.

In 1983, the then-Los Angeles Raiders posted a 12-4 record and avenged three of those losses with victories in the playoffs, including a 38-9 conquest of Washington in Super Bowl XVIII.

Tom coached the Raiders for four more seasons, reaching the playoffs twice. He later was president and general manager of the Seattle Seahawks and returned to the sidelines for three seasons in Seattle.

His overall coaching record was 105-90-3, including 8-3 in the playoffs.

When Tom got his knock on the door that signified his election to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, he said he would enter the Hall as a member of “the Raider Nation family.”

“The Raider Nation has been marvelous. The Raider Family equally marvelous,” he said in a subsequent interview. “If it wasn’t for them, I wouldn’t have gotten this far.

“Raider Nation: Just be proud that we’ve made it. And I emphasize ‘we’ve’ made it. Just be proud. And I’m proud to be your representative.”

This week, Tom represents all Hall of Famers with his turn in the Gold Jacket Spotlight.