Raiders Super Bowl hero Rod Martin, major contributor to two titles, dead at 72

Rod Martin, a key contributor to Super Bowl-winning teams, died at 72, the Las Vegas Raiders announced.

Martin is perhaps best known for his record-setting performance in Super Bowl XV, when he picked off three passes from Ron Jaworski en route to a 27-10 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles.

Martin set the tone by picking off the Eagles quarterback on his first pass of the game, and Jim Plunkett turned it into six points just a few plays later on the ensuing drive.

As the Eagles trailed 21-3, they attempted to mount a comeback and were marching, but Martin picked off Jaworski again. Martin’s third pick all but sealed the victory late in the fourth quarter for the Raiders during their first stint in Oakland.

Three years later, when the then-Los Angeles Raiders won Super Bowl XVIII over the Washington Redskins, he had a sack and a fumble recovery.

“The Raiders Family is deeply saddened by the passing of Rod Martin, a standout linebacker and key player on two Super Bowl championship teams…” the team said in a release.

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“A beloved member of the Raiders Family and a favorite of Raiders fans everywhere, the deepest condolences of the entire Raider Nation are with Rod’s family at this time.”

Amazingly enough, Martin’s career-high in interceptions in a regular season is four from his 1983 campaign, the same year as his second Super Bowl victory. Two of those went for pick-sixes, which led the league.

The following season, he was named a first-team All-Pro for the only time in his career.

Super Bowl XV was the only time he recorded at least one interception in a playoff game, and it was the only time in his career he had more than one in any game, regular season or postseason.

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Martin was a 12th-round pick out of USC but became a mainstay on the Raiders’ defense, starting 147 of his 165 career games across his 12-year career, all of which were with the Raiders.

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