George Atkinson, the formidable former Raiders safety known for his hard-hitting play, has passed away at 78.
His death was announced by the Raiders on Monday, though the club did not reveal a cause. Atkinson had disclosed symptoms consistent with chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) in a 2016 interview with the San Jose Mercury News.
The Raiders hailed him as the anchor of their 1970s 'Soul Patrol' secondary, pivotal in securing their first Super Bowl title, and he remained connected to the organisation.
“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,” the team said in a statement.
Atkinson played 144 games in his career, spending 10 seasons with the Oakland Raiders and a final season with the Denver Broncos. He played in seven AFL or AFC championship games and helped the Raiders win the Super Bowl following the 1976 season.
His 33 career interceptions in the regular season and playoffs rank fourth all-time for the Raiders but he was most known for his physical play.
“Football is a collision sport,” Atkinson told the San Jose Mercury News in 2016. “If you don’t have a certain mentality you will get run out of the game.”
Atkinson joined the Raiders after being drafted in the seventh round in 1968. He was part of a stellar draft class that included Hall of Famers Ken Stabler and Art Shell, as well as running backs Marv Hubbard and Charlie Smith, who all helped build the team into one of the top in the league in the 1970s.
“We became part of the nucleus for the Raiders from that draft,” Atkinson once told the team website. “We wore the Silver and Black with pride. We understood what the tradition was and what we had to live up to.”
Atkinson was a major part of that, almost from the start, scoring on an 86-yard punt return in his professional debut. He made the AFL Pro Bowl in his first two seasons for his play as a returner and defensive back and later became part of the most feared safety duo in the NFL after Jack Tatum was drafted in the first round in 1971.
In an era when receivers had little or no protection when going over the middle, Atkinson and Tatum doled out harsh punishment to anyone who tried.
“We never go out on the field with the intention of trying to hurt anyone but we go out with intentions of getting our jobs done,” Atkinson said at the time. “If you don’t want to get hit, it's best not to show up when we play Sunday. I guarantee you will get hit.”
Atkinson's most famous hits came against Pittsburgh and Hall of Fame receiver Lynn Swann. He knocked him out in the 1975 AFC championship game and then again in the 1976 season opener with a forearm to the back of the head on a play when Swann didn't even get the ball.
“Maybe a little outside of the rules but that was George's way of setting the tone for the game,” Stabler later said in an interview with NFL Films.
The second hit on Swann led Pittsburgh coach Chuck Noll to refer to Atkinson as part of the “criminal element” in the NFL. Atkinson sued Noll for defamation but lost the suit.
Atkinson's twin sons George III and Josh both played football at Notre Dame with George Atkinson III having a brief NFL career that included a stint with the Raiders. Josh died by suicide in 2018 and George III died by suicide in 2019.
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