Raider, 'Renaissance Man' Todd Christensen dead at 57 Gary Mihoces, USA TODAY Sports
Jim Plunkett knew Todd Christensen as a fun guy who loved catching passes, especially in the end zone and sometimes on plays in which he was supposed to be blocking.
Christensen's former broadcast partners fondly recall his big personality, too, and the fancy words he used with ease.
Christensen, 57, a five-time Pro Bowl tight end with the Oakland/Los Angeles/during his NFL career (1978-1988), died Wednesday at a hospital near his home in Alpine, Utah, from complications during liver transplant surgery.
Plunkett, the former Raiders quarterback who teamed with Christensen on two Super Bowl championship teams, learned Christensen was ill after seeing him at a Raider reunion in July 2012.
"He had lost of lot of weight. And I didn't find out until afterwards that he was ill and looking for a transplant" for 10 months, says Plunkett.
Christensen, a devout Mormon, did not drink. Toby, one of his four sons, told the Associated Press the family believed the liver problems began 25 years ago after a "botched" gall bladder operation.
Playing at 6-3, 230 in the NFL, Christensen finished with 461 receptions for 5,872 yards and 41 touchdowns in the regular season, including 92 catches for 1,247 yards and 12 touchdowns in 1983.
"He brought a lot to table as a person and a personality, and also on the football field he could catch everything thrown his way basically," says Plunkett. "He was a big, barrel-chested guy at one time, and he had knack for getting between the ball and the defender."
Christensen came out of BYU as a running back, but late Raiders owner Al Davis saw something else. "He was a hybrid tight end, an H-back before it came a football term," says former Raiders coach Tom Flores.
Nicknamed The Renaissance Man for his varied interests, Christensen left football for broadcasting, including at NBC Sports, ESPN and the CBS Sports Network.
"I remember Todd always using big words and quotes from famous authors and poets," Flores says. "He was comical at times because no one knew what he was talking about."
Plunkett also recalled Christensen's fancy vocabulary: "Oh yeah, but you know I went to Stanford. I put him in his place a few times."
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Raider, 'Renaissance Man' Todd Christensen dead at 57 Gary Mihoces, USA TODAY Sports Updated at :
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Saturday, November 16, 2013
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