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{{Short description|American football player (1938–2024)}}
{{Use American English|date=August 2019}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2023}}
{{Infobox NFL biography
| name          = Jim Otto
| image         = Jim Otto 60-74.JPG
| alt           =
| caption       = Otto with the [[Oakland Raiders]]
| number        = 50, 00
| position      = [[Center (gridiron football)|Center]]
| birth_date    = {{birth date|1938|01|05}}
| birth_place   = [[Wausau, Wisconsin]], U.S.
| death_date    = {{death date and age|2024|05|19|1938|01|05}}
| death_place   = [[Auburn, California]], U.S.
| height_ft     = 6
| height_in     = 2
| weight_lb     = 255
| high_school   = [[Wausau East High School|Wausau]]
| college       = [[Miami Hurricanes football|Miami (FL)]] (1957–1959)
| aflundraftedyear = 1960
| pastteams     = * [[Oakland Raiders]] ([[1960 American Football League season|1960]]–{{NFL Year|1974}})
| highlights    = * [[American Football League playoffs|AFL champion]] ([[1967 American Football League Championship Game|1967]])
* 9× First-team [[American Football League All-League Team|All-AFL]] ([[1960 All-AFL Team|1960]]–[[1965 All-AFL Team|1965]], [[1967 All-AFL Team|1967]]–[[1969 All-AFL Team|1969]])
* First-team [[All-Pro]] ([[1970 All-Pro Team|1970]])
* Second-team All-Pro ([[1972 All-Pro Team|1972]])
* Second-team All-AFL ([[1966 All-AFL Team|1966]])
* 9× [[AFL All-Star games|AFL All-Star]] (1961–1969)
* 3× [[Pro Bowl]] ([[1971 Pro Bowl|1970]]–[[1973 Pro Bowl|1972]])
* [[NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team]]
* [[American Football League All-Time Team|AFL All-Time Team]]
| statlabel1    = Games played
| statvalue1    = 210
| statlabel2    = Games started
| statvalue2    = 210
| statlabel3    = [[Fumble]] recoveries
| statvalue3    = 3
| pfr           = OttoJi00
| HOF           = jim-otto 
}}

'''James Edwin Otto''' (January 5, 1938 – May 19, 2024) was an American professional [[American football|football]] player who was a [[Center (gridiron football)|center]] for 15 seasons with the [[Oakland Raiders]] of the [[American Football League]] (AFL) and [[National Football League]] (NFL). He played [[college football]] for the [[Miami Hurricanes football|Miami Hurricanes]].

One of the most durable centers in football history, Otto was named a First-team All-Pro in ten seasons, nine in the AFL and once in the NFL. He was the first player in pro football history to have ten First-team All-Pro selections, a mark achieved only once ([[Jerry Rice]]) since. Otto was [[List of Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees|inducted]] into the [[Pro Football Hall of Fame]] in 1980, his first year of eligibility. He was also named to the [[AFL All-Time Team]] and [[NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team]].

==Early life and college==
Otto was born on January 5, 1938, in [[Wausau, Wisconsin]]. His parents Lorenz and Loretta (Totsch) Otto worked a variety of jobs to help the family get by, and they had so little when Otto was a boy they could not afford new shoes to keep his feet warm and dry in Wisconsin's winters.<ref name=":0">{{Cite news |last=Tafur |first=Vic |date=May 19, 2024 |title=Raiders Hall of Famer Jim Otto Dies at 86 |url=https://www.bing.com/search?pglt=161&q=jim+otto+obtiuary+ny+times&cvid=bb5dadc9d57b4b7bab6a5866d48c285a&gs_lcrp=EgRlZGdlKgYIABBFGDkyBggAEEUYOTIGCAEQABhAMgYIAhAAGEAyBggDEAAYQDIGCAQQABhAMgYIBRAAGEAyBggGEAAYQDIGCAcQABhAMgYICBAAGEDSAQg1Mzk5ajBqMagCALACAA&FORM=ANNTA1&PC=U531 |work=New York Times}}</ref> Growing up as a child, he wanted to be a football player like [[Elroy Hirsch|Elroy "Crazylegs" Hirsch]].<ref name=":6">{{Cite news |last=Tafur |first=Vic |title=Raiders Hall of Famer Jim Otto dies at 86 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/5505810/2024/05/19/jim-otto-raiders-obituary/ |access-date=2024-11-03 |work=The New York Times |date=May 20, 2024 |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> He recalled Hirsch once saying, "‘if you put your heart into it, you can do it.’”<ref name=":5">{{Cite web |last=Force |first=Jim |date=July 7, 2024 |title=Wausau's Jim Otto: A football story |url=https://wausaupilotandreview.com/2024/07/07/wausaus-jim-otto-a-football-story/ |website=Wausau Pilot & Review}}</ref>

Otto played [[High school football|football]] at [[Wausau East High School|Wausau High School]] from 1953-55. He was a linebacker and center for the Lumberjacks,<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":5" /><ref name=":10" /> under coach [[Win Brockmeyer]]; who also coached Otto's hero Crazylegs Hirsch at Wausau. Brockmeyer considered Otto a "terrific competitor" with his most important contribution to Wausau's team coming on defense.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Network |first=Wisconsin Sports |date=1980-03-01 |title=Win Brockmeyer - Wausau |url=https://www.wifca.org/news_article/show/141392-win-brockmeyer-wausau |access-date=2024-11-03 |website=Wisconsin Football Coaches Association |language=en-us}}</ref><ref name=":10" /> 

Otto, the team co-captain, and the Lumberjacks were 18–5–2 during his high school football career. It has also been reported the team was 21–3–1. He was particularly inspired by his offensive line coach, Tom Yelich. At a 1980 banquet honoring Otto in Wausau, Otto credited Yelich with teaching the technique Otto then used throughout college and professional football. “'Yelich was the first coach I ever had, and he helped me more than any coach since.'”<ref name=":5" /><ref name=":10">{{Cite news |date=December 29, 1960 |title=Wausau's Jim Otto All-AFL Center |work=Wausau Daily Herald |pages=14}}</ref>

Otto broke his ankle in high school one season. Instead of sitting out, he taped it up before each game and played on it throughout the season.<ref name=":12" />

Otto had offers from 48 colleges to play [[college football]], and with the help of Brockmeyer chose the [[Miami Hurricanes football|University of Miami]] in [[South Florida]], where he played varsity football from 1957 to 1959 under coach [[Andy Gustafson]].<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":5" /><ref name=":10" /> In addition to playing offensive center at the University of Miami, he also played [[linebacker]] on defense.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |title=Pro Football Hall of Famer Jim Otto, 'Mr. Raider,' dead at 86 {{!}} Pro Football Hall of Fame |url=https://www.profootballhof.com/news/2024/05/pro-football-hall-of-famer-jim-otto,-mr-raider,-dies/ |access-date=2024-11-03 |website=pfhof |language=en}}</ref> He became the team's starting center as a junior in 1958, weighing only 193 pounds (87.5 kg).<ref>{{Cite news |last=Evans |first=Luther |date=September 7, 1958 |title='Have Muscles, Will Flex' – That's Miami |work=The Miami Herald |pages=150}}</ref> As a senior, he played in the [[North–South Shrine Game|North-South Shrine game]] for the South college all star team at center.<ref>{{Cite news |date=December 20, 1959 |title=Three Navy Backs Join South Stars |work=The Miami News |pages=20}}</ref> 

While at Miami, he joined the [[Phi Delta Theta]] fraternity.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Jim Otto (1957-59) – Hurricane Warriors |url=http://hurricanewarriors.com/jim-otto-1957-59/ |access-date=2024-11-03 |language=en}}</ref>  

Otto was inducted into the University of Miami Sports Hall of Fame and Museum in 1972.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Jim Otto - University of Miami Sports Hall of Fame |url=https://www.umsportshalloffame.com/jim-otto.html |access-date=2024-11-03 |website=UM Sports Hall of Fame |language=en}}</ref>

==Professional career==
No [[National Football League]] team showed interest in the undersized center, who weighed only 205 pounds.<ref name=":0" /> Otto was signed in 1960 as an [[undrafted free agent]] by the [[Oakland Raiders]], the team that replaced a proposed Minneapolis AFL franchise that instead had withdrawn to join the NFL in 1961.<ref name=":7">{{Cite web |last=Shuck |first=Barry |date=2021-10-01 |title=Vikings leave American Football League at the altar in 1960 |url=https://www.dawgsbynature.com/2021/10/1/22693363/vikings-leave-american-football-league-at-the-alter-in-1960 |access-date=2024-11-03 |website=Dawgs By Nature |language=en}}</ref> After he signed with the Raiders, he played there for the entire 10 years of the league's existence and five years beyond that after the merger of the NFL and AFL.<ref name=":13" /> In his rookie year at training camp, he weighed 217 pounds, but was up to 240 pounds by the end of his first year.<ref name=":0" />

Otto worked diligently to build his body up to his playing weight of {{convert|255|lb}}.<ref name=":12">{{Cite news |last=Olderman |first=Murray |date=February 11, 1981 |title=Why Jim Otto faces a life of pain |work=The Niles Daily Star (Niles, Michigan) |pages=9}}</ref> Otto wore the jersey number 50 in his rookie season, but the suggestion of equipment manager Frank Hinek led to the idea of Otto wearing 00 (0 was being worn in the NFL by [[Johnny Olszewski (American football)|Johnny Olszewski]]) "for recognition", which Otto eventually went with, as did AFL Commissioner [[Joe Foss]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Miller |first=Jeff |author-link= |date= April 21, 2024|title= Going Long: The Wild Ten-Year Saga of the Renegade American Football League in the words of those who lived it|url= |location= |publisher=McGraw Hill |page=197|isbn=978-0-07-141849-2}}</ref>

For the next 15 years, Otto was a fixture at center for the Raiders, never missing a single game due to injury, and played in 210 consecutive games.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |title=Jim Otto {{!}} Pro Football Hall of Fame |url=https://www.profootballhof.com/players/jim-otto/ |access-date=2024-11-03 |website=pfhof |language=en}}</ref> He won one AFL/AFC championship in [[1967 American Football League Championship Game|1967]] against the [[1967 Houston Oilers season|Houston Oilers]] with the Raiders,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Championship - Houston Oilers at Oakland Raiders - December 31st, 1967 |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/196712310rai.htm |access-date=2024-12-13 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref> but lost five: in [[1968 American Football League Championship Game|1968]],<ref>{{Cite web |title=Championship - Oakland Raiders at New York Jets - December 29th, 1968 |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/196812290nyj.htm |access-date=2024-12-13 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref> [[1969 American Football League Championship Game|1969]],<ref>{{Cite web |title=Championship - Kansas City Chiefs at Oakland Raiders - January 4th, 1970 |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/197001040rai.htm |access-date=2024-12-13 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref> [[1970–71 NFL playoffs|1970]],<ref>{{Cite web |title=Championship - Oakland Raiders at Baltimore Colts - January 3rd, 1971 |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/197101030clt.htm |access-date=2024-12-13 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref> [[1973–74 NFL playoffs|1973]],<ref>{{Cite web |title=AFC Championship - Oakland Raiders at Miami Dolphins - December 30th, 1973 |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/197312300mia.htm |access-date=2024-12-13 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref> and [[1974–75 NFL playoffs|1974]]<ref>{{Cite web |title=AFC Championship - Pittsburgh Steelers at Oakland Raiders - December 29th, 1974 |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/197412290rai.htm |access-date=2024-12-13 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref> to the [[1968 New York Jets season|New York Jets]], [[1969 Kansas City Chiefs season|Kansas City Chiefs]], [[1970 Baltimore Colts season|Baltimore Colts]], [[1973 Miami Dolphins season|Miami Dolphins]], and [[1974 Pittsburgh Steelers season|Pittsburgh Steelers]], respectively, with all five teams winning the [[Super Bowl]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Super Bowl III - New York Jets vs. Baltimore Colts - January 12th, 1969 |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/196901120clt.htm |access-date=2025-09-14 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Super Bowl IV - Minnesota Vikings vs. Kansas City Chiefs - January 11th, 1970 |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/197001110kan.htm |access-date=2025-09-14 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Super Bowl V - Dallas Cowboys vs. Baltimore Colts - January 17th, 1971 |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/197101170clt.htm |access-date=2025-09-14 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Super Bowl VIII - Minnesota Vikings vs. Miami Dolphins - January 13th, 1974 |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/197401130mia.htm |access-date=2025-09-14 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Super Bowl IX - Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Minnesota Vikings - January 12th, 1975 |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/197501120min.htm |access-date=2025-09-14 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref>

He&nbsp;played alongside [[Gene Upshaw]], another Hall of Famer, at left guard from 1967 to 1974.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/U/UpshGe00.htm|title = Gene Upshaw Stats| website=[[Pro-Football-Reference.com]] }}</ref> In the 1967 regular season, Oakland scored 468 points (33.4 points/game), leading the AFL, but lost [[Super Bowl II]] to the [[1967 Green Bay Packers season|Green Bay Packers]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=1967 AFL Standings & Team Stats |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/years/1967_AFL/index.htm |access-date=2025-09-14 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Super Bowl II - Green Bay Packers vs. Oakland Raiders - January 14th, 1968 |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/196801140gnb.htm |access-date=2025-09-14 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref> In [[1968 Oakland Raiders season|1968]], Oakland scored 453 points (32.4 points/game) in the regular season, again leading the AFL, and beat the [[1968 Kansas City Chiefs season|Chiefs]] in the [[1968 American Football League playoffs|divisional round]] (unscheduled [[One-game playoff#AFL tiebreaker playoffs|tiebreaker]]), 41–6, before losing to the Jets, 27–23.<ref>{{Cite web |title=1968 AFL Standings & Team Stats |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/years/1968_AFL/index.htm |access-date=2025-09-14 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Divisional Round - Kansas City Chiefs at Oakland Raiders - December 22nd, 1968 |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/196812220rai.htm |access-date=2025-09-14 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Championship - Oakland Raiders at New York Jets - December 29th, 1968 |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/196812290nyj.htm |access-date=2025-09-14 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref> 

In the [[1969 Oakland Raiders season|1969]] regular season, Oakland scored 377 points (26.9 points/game) to lead the AFL for the third consecutive year, and beat the [[1969 Houston Oilers season|Houston Oilers]] in the new [[1969 American Football League playoffs|divisional round of the AFL playoffs]], 56–7, before losing to the Chiefs, 17–7, in the final [[1969 American Football League Championship Game|AFL Championship Game]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=1969 AFL Standings & Team Stats |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/years/1969_AFL/index.htm |access-date=2025-09-14 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Divisional Round - Houston Oilers at Oakland Raiders - December 21st, 1969 |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/196912210rai.htm |access-date=2025-09-14 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Championship - Kansas City Chiefs at Oakland Raiders - January 4th, 1970 |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/197001040rai.htm |access-date=2025-09-14 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref> In the [[1970 Oakland Raiders season|1970]] regular season, the first year of the [[NFL-AFL merger]], Oakland scored 300 points (21.4 points/game), ranking ninth in the 26-team NFL, and beat the [[1970 Miami Dolphins season|Miami Dolphins]] in the [[1970–71 NFL playoffs|AFC playoffs]], 21–14, before losing to the [[1970 Baltimore Colts season|Baltimore Colts]] in the [[1970 AFC Championship Game|AFL Championship Game]], 27–17.<ref>{{Cite web |title=1970 NFL Standings & Team Stats |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/years/1970/index.htm |access-date=2025-09-14 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Divisional Round - Miami Dolphins at Oakland Raiders - December 27th, 1970 |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/197012270rai.htm |access-date=2025-09-14 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Championship - Oakland Raiders at Baltimore Colts - January 3rd, 1971 |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/197101030clt.htm |access-date=2025-09-14 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref> The Raiders missed the playoffs for the first time in five years in [[1971 Oakland Raiders season|1971]],<ref>{{Cite web |title=Las Vegas Raiders Team Records, Leaders, and League Ranks |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/teams/rai/index.htm |access-date=2025-09-14 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref> despite scoring 344 points (24.6 points/game), second highest in the NFL.<ref>{{Cite web |title=1971 NFL Standings & Team Stats |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/years/1971/index.htm |access-date=2025-09-14 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref>

The Raiders came back stronger in [[1972 Oakland Raiders season|1972]], scoring 365 points (26.1 points/game), ranking third in the NFL,<ref>{{Cite web |title=1972 NFL Standings & Team Stats |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/years/1972/index.htm |access-date=2025-09-15 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref> but lost 13–7 to the [[1972 Pittsburgh Steelers season|Pittsburgh Steelers]] in the divisional round of the [[1972–73 NFL playoffs|AFC playoffs]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Divisional Round - Oakland Raiders at Pittsburgh Steelers - December 23rd, 1972 |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/197212230pit.htm |access-date=2025-09-15 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref> The game became famous as the [[Immaculate Reception]] game,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Benderson |first=William |date=2007-10-30 |title=In their own words: Great NFL rivalries |url=https://www.espn.com/nfl/news/story?id=3085008 |access-date=2025-09-15 |website=ESPN.com |language=en}}</ref> in which Otto also made the only pass reception of his professional career.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Divisional Round - Oakland Raiders at Pittsburgh Steelers - December 23rd, 1972 |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/197212230pit.htm |access-date=2025-09-15 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref><ref name=":13">{{Cite web |title=Jim Otto Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Draft, College |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/O/OttoJi00.htm |access-date=2025-09-15 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref> Otto claimed he had a close and clear view of the immaculate reception play involving the Raiders' [[Jack Tatum]] hitting the Steelers' receiver [[John Fuqua|John "Frenchy" Fuqua]] with the ball floating into the hands of the Steelers' [[Franco Harris]] who scored the game-winning touchdown with less than one minute to play. Otto had no doubt that the pass should have been deemed incomplete under the then current NFL rules, and the Raiders should have won the game. During the 15-minute delay while the officials determined how they were going to call the play, Otto feared for his safety from inebriated Steeler fans if the call went against the Steelers, and plotted how he would escape the fans should they have rushed onto the field. The outcome disturbed Otto for years, though he did not bear the Steelers' players any ill-will.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Tomasson |first=Chris |date=October 7, 2012 |title=Jim Otto: For him, no doubt or catch |work=Pittsburgh Post-Gazette |pages=C-9}}</ref>

In the [[1973 Oakland Raiders season|1973]] regular season, Oakland scored 292 points (20.9 points/game), tenth in the NFL,<ref>{{Cite web |title=1973 NFL Standings & Team Stats |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/years/1973/index.htm |access-date=2025-09-15 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref> and avenged their defeat to the [[1973 Pittsburgh Steelers season|Steelers]], 33–14 in the division round of the 1973 playoffs,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Divisional Round - Pittsburgh Steelers at Oakland Raiders - December 22nd, 1973 |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/197312220rai.htm |access-date=2025-09-15 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref> but lost to the Dolphins in the [[1973 AFC Championship Game|AFC Championship Game]], 27–10.<ref>{{Cite web |title=AFC Championship - Oakland Raiders at Miami Dolphins - December 30th, 1973 |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/197312300mia.htm |access-date=2025-09-15 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref> In Otto's final year, [[1974 Oakland Raiders season|1974]], Oakland scored 355 points (25.4 points/game), leading the NFL,<ref>{{Cite web |title=1974 NFL Standings & Team Stats |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/years/1974/index.htm |access-date=2025-09-15 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref> and avenged their playoff loss to the Dolphins in the divisional round, 28–26,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Divisional Round - Miami Dolphins at Oakland Raiders - December 21st, 1974 |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/197412210rai.htm |access-date=2025-09-15 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref> but lost to the Steelers again in the [[1974 AFC Championship Game|AFC Championship Game]], 24–13.<ref>{{Cite web |title=1974 NFL Standings & Team Stats |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/years/1974/index.htm |access-date=2025-09-15 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref>

During the last three years of his career with the Raiders, he would have his knee injected with [[Lidocaine|xylocaine]] and drained three times a week with a long syringe. Before games on Sunday, he would have his knee braced and would take [[Darvon]] before playing each game. He had a bone graft before coming to training camp in 1975, but it failed after 2½ weeks.<ref name=":12" /> 

Otto had knee surgery after the 1974 season, his fifth or sixth knee surgery, and had a swollen knee going into training camp. He retired before the [[1975 Oakland Raiders season|1975]] season started after a series of discussions with Raiders' owner [[Al Davis]]. His last game was an exhibition game against the [[San Francisco 49ers]]. An important factor in choosing to retire instead of continuing to play another year at an inferior level was reading about a player who suffered a dislocated knee that severed an artery, requiring amputation. The 37-year old Otto was replaced by 24-year old [[Dave Dalby]], in his fourth season out of [[1971 UCLA Bruins football team|UCLA]]. Otto went to great lengths to teach Dalby the nuances and techniques of how to play the position during their time together; and even helped Dalby after retiring. Otto was the last member of the Oakland Raiders inaugural team from 1960 to retire, and Otto then worked in the Raiders' front office immediately after retirement.<ref>{{Cite news |last= |date=October 8, 1975 |title=Pity Raider backup center Dave Dalby |work=The Press-Democrat (Santa Rosa, California) |pages=19 |agency=United Press International}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last= |date=August 6, 1975 |title=D-Day at Center? |work=The Sacramento Union |pages=C2 |agency=United Press International}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Richmon |first=Milton |title=Jim Otto: A Raider original |work=The Press Democrat (Santa Rosa, California) |pages=33}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last= |date=September 4, 1975 |title=Last Original Raider Jim Otto Retires: Named to Front Office |work=Oroville Mercury Register (Oroville, California) |pages=8 |agency=United Press International}}</ref><ref name=":12" /> 

== Legacy and honors ==
Otto was elected to the [[Pro Football Hall of Fame]] in 1980, his first year of eligibility.<ref name=":0" />  In 1999, he was ranked number 78 on ''[[The Sporting News]]''' list of the 100 Greatest Football Players.<ref name=":4">{{Cite web |title=The Sporting News 100 Greatest Players of All-Time (1999) |url=https://futurefootballlegends.com/Sporting_News_100/ |access-date=2024-11-03 |website=futurefootballlegends.com}}</ref> In 2019, he was revealed as being selected to the National Football League 100th Anniversary All-Time Team, being one of only four centers named.<ref name=":8">{{Cite web |title=NFL 100 |url=https://www.nfl.com/100/all-time-team/roster |access-date=2024-11-03 |website=NFL.com |language=en-US}}</ref> In 2021, he was the 97th greatest player of all time listed by ''[[The Athletic]]''.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Tafur |first=Vic |title=NFL 100: At No. 97, Jim Otto led the Raiders with his sweat, tears and a lot of blood |url=https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/2692358/2021/07/10/nfl-100-at-no-97-jim-otto-led-the-raiders-with-his-sweat-tears-and-a-lot-of-blood/ |access-date=2024-11-03 |work=The New York Times |date=July 18, 2023 |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>

Otto was one of the original Oakland Raiders, and played during the team's full tenure in the AFL, from 1960 to 1969. He continued as a Raider in the NFL from 1970 to 1974, starting 210 consecutive games, playing a total of 308 games for the Raiders.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":3" /> He was one of only 20 players to play for the entire ten-year existence of the American Football League, and one of only three players to play in all of his team's AFL games (along with teammate [[George Blanda]] and [[Gino Cappelletti]]).<ref name=":3" /><ref>{{Cite web |title=The AFL's Twenty for Ten |url=http://www.remembertheafl.com/AFL20for10.htm |access-date=2024-11-03 |website=www.remembertheafl.com}}</ref>

Otto was also selected as ''[[The Sporting News]]'' All-League center from 1960 through 1969.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Sporting News American Football League All-League Players |url=http://www.remembertheafl.com/TSNAFLAllLeaguePlayers.htm |access-date=2024-11-03 |website=remembertheafl.com}}</ref>  He was an All-Star in the first 13 of his 15 seasons – every year in the AFL from [[1960 American Football League All-League Players|1960]] through [[1969 AFL season|1969]]<ref name=":0" /> and three of his five seasons in the NFL, being All-NFL in 1970 and 1971 and second-team All-NFL in 1972.<ref name=":3" /> He played in 12 All-Star games and was All-League 12 consecutive years.<ref name=":3" /> In 1966, the [[Associated Press]] (AP) named [[Jon Morris]] first-team All-AFL at center and Otto second-team All-AFL at center; though the AFL itself, [[Newspaper Enterprise Association]] (NEA) and [[United Press International]] (UPI) named Otto first-team All-AFL in 1966 and selected Morris to the second team.<ref>{{Cite web |title=1966 AFL All-Pros |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/years/1966_AFL/allpro.htm |access-date=2025-09-15 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref> Otto was also named the starting center on the [[American Football League All-Time Team|AFL All-Time Team]].<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":9">{{Cite web |title=American Football League All-time Team |url=http://www.remembertheafl.com/AFLAllTimeTeam.htm |access-date=2025-09-14 |website=www.remembertheafl.com}}</ref> He is one of only three players (along with Hall of Famers [[Johnny Robinson (safety)|Johnny Robinson]] and [[Ron Mix]]), who were on the All-AFL first-team and the combined AFL/NFL All-Decade Team for the 1960s.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Thomas |first=Jim |title=Robinson was the best safety of both pro leagues in the '60s |url=https://www.cantonrep.com/story/news/local/canton/2019/08/01/robinson-was-best-safety-both/4559368007/ |access-date=2024-11-03 |website=Canton Repository |language=en-US}}</ref>

During his career, the Raiders won seven divisional championships from 1967 through 1974, and were AFL champions in 1967, meeting the [[Green Bay Packers]] in [[Super Bowl II]].<ref name=":3" /> Otto's offensive linemates with the Raiders included Hall of Famers [[Gene Upshaw]], [[Art Shell]], and [[Bob Brown (offensive lineman)|Bob Brown]].<ref name=":11">{{Cite web |title=Behind the Bronze: Willie Lanier {{!}} Pro Football Hall of Fame |url=https://www.profootballhof.com/news/2010/10/news-behind-the-bronze-willie-lanier/ |access-date=2024-11-02 |website=pfhof |language=en}}</ref> Hall of Fame and [[NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team]] coach [[Bill Walsh (American football coach)|Bill Walsh]],<ref>{{Cite web |title=Bill Walsh {{!}} Pro Football Hall of Fame |url=https://www.profootballhof.com/players/bill-walsh |access-date=2025-09-14 |website=pfhof |language=en}}</ref><ref name=":8" /> who was an offensive assistant coach with the 1966 Raiders said of Otto, "'He had techniques others tried to emulate but couldn’t. ... I used to marvel at his skills. He played every down with intensity.'”<ref name=":2" /> Rival Kansas City Chiefs linebacker [[Bobby Bell]], a Hall of Famer, 100th Anniversary All-Time teammate, and himself a member of the AFL's All-Time Team, said Otto was the best center he ever played against.<ref name=":2" /><ref>{{Cite web |title=Bobby Bell {{!}} Pro Football Hall of Fame |url=https://www.profootballhof.com/players/bobby-bell |access-date=2025-09-14 |website=pfhof |language=en}}</ref><ref name=":8" /><ref name=":9" />

Otto was elected to the [[Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame]] in 1998.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame-Jim Otto |url=https://www.wihalloffame.com/jim-otto |access-date=2024-11-03 |website=Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame |language=en-US}}</ref>

==Injuries and operations==
Otto's body was punished greatly during his NFL career, resulting in nearly 74 operations, including 28 on his knee (nine of them during his playing career) and multiple joint replacements.  His joints became riddled with [[arthritis]] and he developed debilitating back and neck problems.<ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/sports/league-of-denial/the-frontline-interview-jim-otto/ | title = The Frontline Interview: Jim Otto \ League of Denial: The NFL's Concussion Crisis | publisher = PBS Frontline | date = 2013}}</ref> By his early 40s, he was considered permanently and totally disabled, and in 1980 he suffered deep depression for the first time due to the ongoing pain he experienced.<ref name=":12" /> In his book, ''The Pain of Glory'', Otto described near-death experiences from medical procedures, including fighting off three life-threatening infections due to complications from his artificial joints. During one six-month stretch, he was without a right knee joint because he had to wait for an infection to heal before another [[artificial knee]] could be implanted. Otto eventually had to have his right leg amputated on August 1, 2007.<ref>{{cite web | url = https://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news;_ylt=AvOl74MwNp5Hdl51qdJtv8M5nYcB?slug=ap-raiders-otto&prov=ap&type=lgns | title = Hall of Famer Jim Otto recovering after having right leg amputated | publisher = Yahoo! Sports | date = August 1, 2007 | access-date = August 6, 2014 | archive-date = December 17, 2019 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20191217165553/https://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news;_ylt=AvOl74MwNp5Hdl51qdJtv8M5nYcB?slug=ap-raiders-otto&prov=ap&type=lgns | url-status = dead }}</ref> Despite his maladies, Otto said he had no regrets and would not have changed a thing even if given the opportunity to do it over again. He discussed his [[Sports injury|sports injuries]] as well as the [[Concussions in American football|concussions]] issue in a 2013 ''[[Frontline (U.S. TV series)|Frontline]]'' interview for "League of Denial: The NFL's Concussion Crisis" and the 1985 documentary "Disposable Heroes: The Other Side of Football", directed by Bill Couturié.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/sports/league-of-denial/the-frontline-interview-jim-otto/|title = The Frontline Interview: Jim Otto| website=[[PBS]] }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://mubi.com/en/us/films/disposable-heroes-the-other-side-of-football|title = Disposable Heroes: The Other Side of Football (1985)}}</ref>

==Personal life and death==
After his career, Otto worked for the Raiders during two periods, and then made a "small fortune" from Burger King franchises, liquor stores, a walnut orchard, and real estate in the Oakland area.<ref name=":6" />

Otto was also the subject of ''The Jim Otto Suite'', a series of three multimedia works by American contemporary artist [[Matthew Barney]], which served as a precursor to ''[[The Cremaster Cycle]]''.<ref name="barney">{{cite web |url=http://www.tate.org.uk/whats-on/tate-britain/exhibition/art-now-matthew-barney-ottoshaft |title=Art Now: Matthew Barney: OTTOshaft |publisher=[[Tate Britain]]}}</ref>

He was the grandfather of dog musher [[Amanda Otto]].<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |last=Boner |first=Jeannette |date=2021-06-23 |title=Local dog sledder Amanda Otto chases down Iditarod dream |url=https://www.eastidahonews.com/2021/06/local-dog-sledder-amanda-otto-chases-down-iditarod-dream/ |access-date=2023-06-29 |website=[[East Idaho News]] |language=en-US}}</ref>

Otto died on May 19, 2024, at the age of 86.<ref name=Spun>{{cite web |last1=Holleran |first1=Andrew |title=Legendary Oakland Raiders Star Died Sunday At 86 |url=https://thespun.com/nfl/jim-otto-died-sunday-reports |website=The Spun |access-date=20 May 2024 |language=en |date=19 May 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Jim Otto, legendary Raiders center and Pro Football Hall of Famer, dies at 86 |url=https://www.nfl.com/news/jim-otto-legendary-raiders-center-and-pro-football-hall-of-famer-dies-at-86 |first=Grant|last=Gordon|website=NFL.com |access-date=20 May 2024|date=19 May 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |first=Paul |last=Gutierrez |title=Hall of Fame center Jim Otto, 'Mr. Raider,' dies at 86|url=https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/40183412/hall-fame-center-jim-otto-mr-raider-dies-86 |website=[[ESPN.com]]|access-date=20 May 2024 |date=19 May 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.raiders.com/news/raiders-mourn-the-passing-of-jim-otto |title=Raiders mourn the passing of Jim Otto|website=Raiders.com|date=19 May 2024|access-date=20 May 2024}}</ref>

==See also==
*[[Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame]]
*[[List of most consecutive starts and games played by National Football League players#Consecutive games started|List of most consecutive starts by National Football League players]]
*[[List of American Football League players|Other American Football League players]]

==References==
* ''Jim Otto: The Pain of Glory'' by Jim Otto
* ''Jim Otto'' by Dave Newhouse
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{commons}}
* {{Profootballhof|169}}
* {{Footballstats |nfl=jim-otto |cfl= |afl= |espn= |cbs= |yahoo= |fox= |si= |pfr=OttoJi00 |dbf= |rotoworld=}}
* {{IMDb name|1517935}}

{{1960 Oakland Raiders}}
{{1967 Oakland Raiders}}
{{AFL1960s}}
{{NFL100}}
{{1980 Football HOF}}
{{Pro Football Hall of Fame members}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Otto, Jim}}
[[Category:1938 births]]
[[Category:2024 deaths]]
[[Category:American Football League All-League players]]
[[Category:American Football League All-Star players]]
[[Category:American Football League All-Time Team]]
[[Category:American Football League players]]
[[Category:American Conference Pro Bowl players]]
[[Category:American football centers]]
[[Category:American football linebackers]]
[[Category:American amputees]]
[[Category:Miami Hurricanes football players]]
[[Category:Oakland Raiders players]]
[[Category:Players of American football from Wisconsin]]
[[Category:Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees]]
[[Category:Sportspeople from Wausau, Wisconsin]]
[[Category:Phi Delta Theta members]]