Louis Riddick Recalls His Time with the Raiders

Raider Nation, do you know who Louis Riddick is? The former defensive back had a short six-year stint in the NFL and spent the 1998 season with the Raiders.

Now an ESPN analyst, even today, Riddick he recalls the fond memories he had in his one-year tenure in Oakland.

"Being a part of the 1998 Oakland Raiders football team is one of the highlights of my career," Riddick said in an episode of SportsCenter in 2019. "Putting on the Silver and Black, it meant something."

The Raiders have something special going on if a mediocre 8-8 season meant that much for Riddick.

But for him, that's not where his authentic Raiders roots begin. No, we have to back up to his childhood.

Riddick told Kyle Martin of Raiders.com about his childhood: "The Raiders always had a mystique. They had a mystique of being the tough guys of the NFL, and the Silver and Black from an aesthetic standpoint epitomized to me what toughness looked like. I was always captured by the mystique of the Raiders as a kid."

He was a Raider from a kid, alright.

Fast forward to when he was in the NFL and spent his 1997 season with the Atlanta Falcons. From seemingly out of the blue, he received a phone call from Al Davis' secretary, who asked if Davis can talk to him for a few minutes.

"I couldn't believe it; my mouth was hanging open the whole time he was talking," Riddick said. "He was someone who every time I saw him in the locker room after games, he'd always nod at me and say, 'Good game' and acknowledge the fact that I was a Raider. I was a small part of the Raiders, but he took the time to acknowledge the fact he liked the things I did and that I embodied what a Raider should be. I always remembered that."

Riddick, a man who spent a single season with the Raiders, still connects to the franchise. Not a lot of other teams can say they do the same.

Being a Raider truly is different.

In true Raider fashion, in late June of this year, Riddick received a little surprise from the Raiders.

Once a Raider, Always a Raider. #NFL @Raiders 🙏🏾✊🏾 pic.twitter.com/qopDaiqY7p
— Louis Riddick (@LRiddickESPN) June 23, 2020

It was a certificate for the Legacy Brick Program, marking Riddick as an essential member of Raiders' history.

Riddick said on Twitter: "Once a Raider, Always a Raider."

It doesn't matter if you spent one season or 10 with the franchise, and it doesn't matter if you're the franchise tag or if you're one of the guys off the bench who will convert third downs effectively.

Ultimately, being a Raider is different. Because, as Riddick said, Once a Raider, Always a Raider.

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