John Vella, Raiders Super Bowl champion, dead at 74

John Vella, who spent eight seasons in the NFL and won a Super Bowl with the Raiders, died on Wednesday, the team announced. He was 74.“The Raiders Family mourns the passing of John Vella, a standout on the dominant Raider offensive lines of the 1970s and a starter on Oakland’s Super Bowl XI Championship team,” the team said in a statement.“Vella originally joined the Raiders as a second-round draft selection in 1972 out of USC, where he earned consensus All-American honors as a tackle in 1971.

A versatile performer and a ferocious competitor, Vella played both guard and tackle, seeing action in 84 games with 48 starts in eight seasons with the Silver and Black.He finished his career with Minnesota in 1980.

“The prayers of the entire Raider Nation are with the Vella family at this time.”Vella was selected by the Raiders in the second round of the draft in 1972 after playing college ball at USC. He went on to play in 92 games over the course of his NFL career, recording 48 starts. During the 1976 season, Vella started in 14 games for the then-Oakland Raiders and made three playoff starts as the team went on to beat the Vikings, 32-14, in Super Bowl XI. Vella played his final season in 1980, which was with the Vikings, where he made eight appearances.Following his retirement, Vella got into the sports memorabilia industry, opening The Raiders Locker Room store in the Bay Area, which he later renamed Vella’s Locker Room to help settle a lawsuit with the NFL and team, which accused him of trademark violation.   ...