Legendary NFL head coach and analyst John Madden passed away unexpectedly on Tuesday morning at the age of 75. He left a lasting impression across the NFL, from players to coaches to owners to announcers, Madden touched everyone he met in a powerful way. One of the people who admired Madden was Hall-of-Fame announcer Joe Buck, who had this to say via The Athletic:

“These days people like to throw the word “influencer” around. John Madden was THE NFL “influencer” and never really seemed to care how many “likes” he got. He did things his way, and soon his way became THE way. He is adored by 10-year-olds with a controller in their hands to 80-year-olds who can recall every detail of the “Holy Roller” play. At his core, he was always the teacher, and for decades players, other broadcasters, and viewers were his students. If you loved watching football, John Madden was your teacher. He had a booming voice and an infectious laugh. Those were the tools he used in his classroom every Sunday afternoon or Monday night.” – Joe Buck

Buck's broadcast partner, Troy Aikman had a shorter but equally powerful message via his personal Twitter account:

 

Both Aikman and Buck join a long list of people paying their respects today to the legendary Madden. Even though some of the players of today never had the chance to listen to watch Madden coach or even call a game on T.V., they all know him because he has been the name of the Madden video game franchise since its inception in 1988.

Madden has sold almost 100 million copies over the 34 years and every player who plays the game today grew up in the “Madden Era” of sports video games. That is as lasting of an impact as one can hope to have on this world, R.I.P John Madden.