Oakland Raiders: 15 best free agent acquisitions of all-time

Rich Gannon, Oakland Raiders. (Photo By Eliot J. Schechter/Getty Images)
Rich Gannon, Oakland Raiders. (Photo By Eliot J. Schechter/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
9 of 16
Next
Todd Christensen, Los Angeles Raiders
Todd Christensen, Los Angeles Raiders. (Photo by George Rose/Getty Images) /

28. . TE. (1979-88). Todd Christensen. 8. player

Earlier I mentioned the Raiders have had some pretty stellar tight ends in their time, but few were better than Todd Christensen. On second thought, no other tight end in Raiders history eclipsed what Christensen was able to do. Dave Casper is a close second, but he doesn’t quite match Christensen.

Signed in 1979, Christensen was primarily used as a special teamer early in his stay with the Raiders. Eventually, he moved to tight end and well, the rest is in the history books.

His following nine seasons would be spent with the Raiders, both in Oakland and Los Angeles. In 1983, Christensen led the league in receptions with 92 and tallied 1,247 yards. That same season the Raiders won the Super Bowl, due in a large part to how well Christensen played that year.

Over the years he spent with the Silver and Black, Christensen totaled 5,872 yards, enough for fourth all-time in the Raiders’ record books. He also hauled in 41 touchdowns as a Raider. nNot too bad huh for a fullback, turned tight end.

A two-time Super Bowl champion and a four-time All-Pro, Christensen is without a doubt one of the best signings in Raiders history. His transition to tight end was flawless and he helped lead the Raiders to a lot of success in the 1980s. One team’s roster cut turned into legend for another. That’s what they call good business.