While working toward his master’s degree at Cal Poly, John began his career in coaching. In 1963, he was hired as a defensive assistant at San Diego State University. In 1967, he was hired as linebackers coach for the Oakland Raiders, assisting the team in reaching Super Bowl II that same year. In 1969, Madden took over as head coach, making him the youngest head coach in the NFL. John would coach the Raiders to victories over the next ten seasons, raising the Raiders’ profile in the NFL as a major contender and making Madden the coach with the highest regular season winning percentage in NFL history.
In 1978, after the Raiders failed to make the playoffs for the first time in seven years, John resigned as head coach. At the press conference announcing his resignation, John, who had been suffering ulcers, cited health-related stress as his reason for leaving.
In 1979, Madden began his career as a color commentator and analyst for NFL broadcasts on network television. He started out with CBS, but was eventually switched to Fox along with his broadcasting partner, Pat Summerall. In 2002, he took a pay cut to join ABC's Monday Night Football, appearing with play-by-play announcer Al Michaels. In 2005, NBC Sports announced that Madden would do color commentary for NBC's Sunday night NFL games beginning in 2006. This made him the first sportscaster to have all of four major U.S. broadcast television networks on his resume.
Madden has been parodied for having an "eye for the obvious" in his reporting style; enthusiastically pointing out plainly-visible facts in a game that don’t necessarily require explanation. He is also credited with popularizing telestrator technology, which allows sportscasters to superimpose their sketched diagrams over televised footage.
John’s other sports-related endeavors include on-air appearances on weekday mornings with KCBS-AM radio in San Francisco, as well as several books: One Knee Equals Two Feet and Everything Else You Need to Know About Football (1987), The First Book of Football (1993), All Madden: Hey, I'm Talking Pro Football! (with Dave Anderson, 1996), John Madden's Ultimate Tailgating (with Peter Kaminsky, 1998), and Hey, Wait a Minute! I Wrote a Book! (1985).
He had many stories that he shared with his audience on the radio, including one run-in with Brooke Shields. In a co-ed bathroom at an awards ceremony, he left the toilet seat up. He then realized as he was coming out of the bathroom, actress Brooke Shields was next to use it. He said "hi" and exchanged pleasantries, and realized as she was walking she would forever remember him as the guy who couldn't put the toilet seat back down.
John has lent his personality to a number of endorsement deals, including the Madden NFL series of football video games, a consistent top-seller in North America. He has also appeared in radio and television commercials for Ace Hardware, Outback Steakhouse, Verizon Wireless, Rent-a-Center, Miller Lite, Sirius Satellite Radio, and Tinactin. Madden has also appeared in public service announcements for the Pacific Vascular Research Foundation of San Francisco.
Over the course of his career, Madden has been recognized with fourteen Sports Emmy Awards for Outstanding Sports Event Analyst, and on August 5, 2006, he was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He currently lives with his wife, Virginia, in Pleasanton, California.
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