Arian Foster and the 10 best undrafted free agents

7. Willie Brown, CB, Grambling State

A Mississippi native, Willie Brown went to college at Grambling State and bounced around the AFL before catching on with the Denver Broncos. He became a starter midway through his rookie year in Denver and became an All-AFL player during his second season. He made the AFL All-Star game for the second time in 1966 and was eventually traded to the Raiders in 1967. Brown became friends with Raiders owner Al Davis, and that friendship was fruitful for both of them.

Willie Brown earned nine All-Star/Pro Bowl recognition nods and was All-AFL/NFL seven times. He scored on a 75 yard touchdown return during the Raiders’ Super Bowl XI victory.  He made the All-70’s decade team and was a first ballot Hall of Famer in 1984. He is generally considered to be one of the better NFL cornerbacks of all time.  A Raider for 12 seasons, he was defensive captain for ten of those seasons. He is one of the first players that comes to mind when thinking of the Raiders early success, and for good reason.

The transition from player to coach after his playing days ended in 1979 seemed natural for Brown. He immediately became the defensive backs coach for the Raiders, and served in this capacity during their next two Super Bowl victories. He left the Raiders in 1989 to pursue other coaching opportunities and became the final Head Coach in Long Beach State college history, where Brown earned his Master’s degree. After one year of coaching at Jordan High School in Los Angeles, Willie Brown became the Raiders Director of Staff Development in 1995 — a post he holds to this day. Willie Brown has been a Raiders lifer to an extent really only eclipsed by Al Davis himself.