The Las Vegas Raiders suffered a huge loss Thursday night. Fans of the Silver and Black and the franchise mourned the passing of one former starter. John Tautolo, who played for the franchise in the late 1980s, died at the age of 66. Cause of death is not known.

The guard only played one season with the team. Which was in 1987 under legendary head coach Tom Flores. But the franchise still paid tribute to him with a heartfelt message.

“The Raiders family mourns the passing of John Tautolo, who played in three games for the Silver and Black during the 1987 season,” the statement began. “A guard out of UCLA, Tautolo entered the NFL with the New York Giants as an undrafted free agent in 1982 and played in 10 career games, including three starts with the Raiders. The thoughts of the entire Raiders nation are with John's family at this time.”

Tautolo was also a local talent who winded up with the Raiders when they played in Los Angeles. He starred at Millikan High in Long Beach during his high school career.

Raiders fans took to social media to send their condolences. Some saying “once a Raider, always a Raider.”

Raiders announce signing to defense 

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The Raiders filled one more roster spot to the 2025 team. Owner Mark Davis and general manager John Spytek helped finalize one deal.

Germaine Pratt joined Vegas on a one-year, $5 million deal Wednesday. The team officially announced the signing on Thursday afternoon. And to make room for the former Cincinnati Bengals linebacker, the Raiders waived safety Jonathan Sutherland.

Pratt enters season seven in the league. He's fresh off delivering 143 tackles in '24 — marking a new career-best mark for him.

He also tallied 80 solo tackles for Cincy. He'll bring new leadership and a veteran presence to the first Pete Carroll Raiders team.