Oakland Raiders Owner Al Davis Dead at 82

Oakland Raiders owner Al Davis is dead.

The Raiders Web site confirmed Davis died Saturday morning. He was 82. Al Davis, the Web site read in the Raiders' black and silver colors, July 4, 1929 - October 8, 2011. The Raider family will issue a statement later today.

It was not immediately clear when and where Davis died.

One of the best-known owners in the National Football League, Davis was considered a renegade, running his team with silver-and-black colors and a pirate logo that mirrored his attitude toward authority on and off the field. Davis was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1992.

[I]t was his rebellious spirit, that willingness to buck the establishment, that helped turn the NFL into THE establishment in sports -- the most successful sports league in American history, The Associated Press wrote.

The Raiders hired Davis in 1963 as a coach when the franchise was a struggling member of the American Football League. Davis was 33 years old at the time.

Davis helped turn the team around, and he was named AFL Coach of the Year that first season. He left after three seasons to become commissioner of the AFL, and his aggressive battle in that role against the more established and successful NFL contributed to the eventual merger of the rival leagues.