Daryle Pasquale Lamonica (July 17, 1941 – April 21, 2022) was an American professional football quarterback who played in the American Football League (AFL) and the National Football League (NFL) for 12 seasons, primarily with the Oakland Raiders. He spent his first four seasons mostly as a backup for the Buffalo Bills, who selected him in the 24th round of the 1963 AFL Draft. Lamonica played his next eight seasons as the primary starter of the Raiders, including after they joined the NFL through the AFL–NFL merger.
Nicknamed "the Mad Bomber" due to his affinity for throwing the long pass in virtually any situation, Lamonica led the Raiders to four consecutive division titles between 1967 and 1970, along with an appearance in Super Bowl II. Lamonica was twice named AFL Most Valuable Player (the only player to win multiple league MVPs in its history), in addition to receiving three AFL All-Star selections, two NFL Pro Bowl selections, and two first-team All-AFL honors. He was also the AFL leader in passing touchdowns during both MVP seasons and the passing yards leader during the second. Lamonica holds the NFL's second-highest quarterback winning percentage and the AFL's highest quarterback winning percentage.
Early life
Of Italian and Irish ancestry, Lamonica grew up on a ranch in the Central Valley of California. Lamonica played in the first Little League World Series. He lettered in four sports and was an all-state quarterback at Clovis High School in Clovis, a Fresno suburb. In 1974, the high school named its football stadium after him. After high school, he turned down a professional baseball contract with the Chicago Cubs. Lamonica played college football at the University of Notre Dame, and was the team's starting quarterback for three seasons. In 30 total games from 1960 through 1962, he had 99 completions for 211 attempts for a 46.9 completion percentage and 1,363 yards, with eight touchdowns and 16 interceptions. He rushed 144 times for 353 yards and 10 touchdowns. He participated in the 1962 East-West Shrine Game held at Kezar Stadium in San Francisco, passing 20-for-28 with 349 yards while being named Most Valuable Player.
Professional football
Buffalo Bills
Lamonica was drafted by the Buffalo Bills in the 24th round of the 1963 AFL draft. He was also selected by the two-time defending NFL champion Green Bay Packers in the 12th round of the 1963 NFL draft. He chose to go with the Bills, as he perceived his chances of playing were better there. In his rookie year, he played sparingly in games with Jack Kemp being the primary quarterback while Lamonica came into duty after injuries or ineffectiveness, which led to him being dubbed "the Fireman". However, he was tasked to start the last two games for the Bills. In each, he led them to victory, notably going 10-for-16 with 115 yards with a touchdown in a 45–14 win over the New York Jets. For the season, he had 33 completions on 71 attempts for 437 yards, with three touchdowns and four interceptions. In the tiebreaker playoff for the division title, he came on for Kemp late in the game, going 9-for-24 for 168 yards with a touchdown and three interceptions, as the Bills lost 26–8 at home to the Boston Patriots.
Lamonica had much of the same in terms of playing time in 1964, going 55 of 128 with 1,137 yards with six touchdowns and eight interceptions. On rushing, he was most efficient, having 55 carries for 289 yards (a 5.3 average per carry) for six touchdowns, which was tied for the most in the league alongside others such as Sid Blanks and his teammate Cookie Gilchrist. He started one of the last games of the season against the Denver Broncos, going 6-of-21 for 89 yards with a touchdown and interception, but Buffalo prevailed 30–19. In 1965, the same was true once again. He went 29 of 70 for 376 yards, with three touchdowns and six interceptions. For the third and final season, he started a game for the Bills, going 3-of-14 for 83 yards with a touchdown and interception in a 29–18 win over the Houston Oilers. For his fourth and final year in Buffalo in 1966, he went 33-of-84 for 549 yards, having four touchdowns and five interceptions. In the three Buffalo runs to the AFL title game from 1964 to 1966, he had minimal participation, throwing only one pass.