Howie Long is one of those rare sports figures who has stayed in the public eye for more than four decades without ever really leaving the spotlight. Fans first knew him as a powerful defensive end for the Raiders, then as a funny and thoughtful studio analyst on Fox, and later as an actor who appeared in action movies and comedies. Born on January 6, 1960, he is 66 years old today, and he is still a regular face on Sunday football television. This article walks through his early life, his football career, his work in broadcasting and acting, and the family that has carried his name into the next generation of the NFL.
Who Is Howie Long?
Howard Matthew Moses Long, known to almost everyone as Howie Long, is an American former professional football player, television analyst, and actor. He played defensive end in the National Football League from 1981 to 1993, spending his entire career with the Oakland and Los Angeles Raiders. He was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2000, and he has been part of the Fox NFL Sunday pregame show since the network began broadcasting NFL games in 1994. Along the way he has also built a lasting presence in popular culture through film roles, commercials, and television appearances.
Early Life and Background
Howie Long was born in Massachusetts in 1960 and grew up in the Charlestown neighborhood of Boston, a close-knit, working-class community with a strong sports culture. Some reference sites list his birthplace as Charlestown and others list the nearby city of Somerville, which is a small difference that comes from how different sources record it, but his connection to Charlestown as the place where he was raised is consistent everywhere. Growing up there shaped the tough, straightforward personality that viewers still notice when he speaks on television today.
His athletic ability showed early. By the time he reached college, he had the size, strength, and competitive drive that coaches look for in a lineman, and he took those traits to Villanova University in Pennsylvania.
College Years at Villanova
At Villanova, Long played defensive line for the Wildcats and became a standout almost immediately. As a freshman he started every game and recorded 99 tackles, which is an impressive number for a lineman in his first season. He continued to produce through the rest of his college career, leading the team in sacks in both 1978 and 1980. He finished as a four-year letterman, and his play earned him the Most Valuable Player award at the 1980 Blue-Gray All-Star Game, an end-of-season showcase for college seniors. Interestingly, the coach of the team he played for in that game was Jimmy Johnson, who later became one of his Fox NFL Sunday colleagues.
Joining the Oakland Raiders
The Oakland Raiders selected Howie Long in the second round of the 1981 NFL Draft, making him the 48th player chosen overall. He arrived in the league one year after the Raiders had won Super Bowl XV, which meant he was joining a team with high expectations and a proud, rugged identity. During the strike-shortened 1982 season he moved into the starting lineup at left defensive end, and from that point on he was one of the most dependable and feared linemen in the league. The franchise also relocated to Los Angeles during his career, so he played for both the Oakland and Los Angeles versions of the Raiders without ever wearing another team’s uniform.
A Career Built on Power and Consistency
Over a 13-season career, Long earned eight Pro Bowl selections, three All-Pro honors, and a place on the NFL’s All-Decade Team of the 1980s. He finished with 84 official sacks, and the Pro Football Hall of Fame notes that this total does not include 7.5 additional sacks from his rookie year in 1981, because sacks were not yet an official statistic at that time. When those are added, his unofficial career total reaches 91.5. He was also named co-Defensive Player of the Year in 1985, sharing the honor with fellow Hall of Famer Andre Tippett, and he was recognized more than once as an outstanding NFL lineman by the NFL Alumni Association.
Long became known for a signature technique called the rip, a quick, uppercut-style arm movement designed to break an offensive blocker’s grip and free himself to attack the quarterback. Teammates and coaches often described him as a leader who acted almost like an extra coach on the field, and his Hall of Fame profile includes tributes from people who worked with him that praise his preparation, intensity, and effort in practice as much as his game-day performance.
Super Bowl XVIII Champion
The high point of his playing days came after the 1983 season, when the Raiders won Super Bowl XVIII against Washington by a score of 38 to 9. The defense, with Long up front, played a major role in that dominant performance, and the title gave him the championship ring that every professional player hopes to earn. He continued playing at a high level for a decade afterward, retiring following the 1993 season and playing his final game at the Pro Bowl in Hawaii in January 1994.
Pro Football Hall of Fame Induction
In 2000, Howie Long was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame as part of the Class of 2000. The honor placed him among the very best players the sport has ever produced, and his enshrinement speech was a warm, humorous tribute to his teammates, coaches, and family. For many fans, it also confirmed what they had long believed, which is that he could not be pictured as anything other than a Raider.
Becoming a Television Analyst
Long’s second career began almost as soon as his first one ended. When Fox won the rights to broadcast National Football Conference games, the network built a new pregame show called Fox NFL Sunday, which debuted on September 4, 1994. The original cast included James Brown, Terry Bradshaw, Jimmy Johnson, and Howie Long, and the show quickly stood out for its relaxed, joking style compared with the more serious pregame programs that came before it. It was also the first hour-long NFL pregame show on a broadcast network.
Long often serves as the straight man to Terry Bradshaw’s comic energy, but he is also respected for his direct and informed opinions about line play, which naturally reflect his years in the trenches. He has been recognized with a Sports Emmy Award for his studio work, and he received a long run of Emmy nominations in the same category in the late 1990s and early 2000s. From 2018 to 2021, he also served as a pregame and halftime analyst for Thursday Night Football on Fox. In 2019, the Fox NFL Sunday program was inducted into the NAB Broadcasting Hall of Fame.
According to Fox Sports’ 2026 lineup announcement, Long remains part of the studio team this season, appearing alongside host Curt Menefee, Terry Bradshaw, Michael Strahan, and Rob Gronkowski, with insider Jay Glazer. Industry reporting this September also noted that the show has led all networks in pregame viewership for 31 straight years, which says a lot about how steady the format and the cast have been.
Howie Long’s Tough Guys
In the early 2000s, Long hosted an annual Fox special called Howie Long’s Tough Guys, which honored the NFL players he considered the toughest in the league. The winner received a Chevrolet truck, and the show added a playful, tribute-style feature to his broadcasting résumé. It also fit his public image, because toughness has always been the quality people most closely connect with him.
Acting, Movies, and Pop Culture
Howie Long also built a steady side career in film and television. He appeared in the 1996 action film Broken Arrow, where his character’s dramatic death scene used a stock sound effect that fans later nicknamed the Howie scream. He also took roles in Firestorm in 1998, Dollar for the Dead in 1998, and 3000 Miles to Graceland in 2001, the last of which starred Kevin Costner and Kurt Russell. In That Thing You Do!, released in 1996, he played a small part, and he voiced a character on the animated series King of the Hill. He has made guest appearances on comedy programs as well, including Malcolm in the Middle, and in 2024 he made a cameo appearance as himself in the comedy The Underdoggs.
Beyond the screen, Long became familiar to the public through commercials, including a long-running run of RadioShack ads with actress Teri Hatcher. He also shared his football knowledge in print as the author of Football for Dummies, whose third edition was published in 2007.
Family Life and the Next Generation
Away from the cameras, Long is a devoted family man. He lives with his wife, Diane, and the couple has three sons named Chris, Kyle, and Howie Jr., along with several grandchildren. Both Chris and Kyle followed their father into the NFL as linemen and have since built careers in sports media, while Howie Jr. works in player personnel for the Raiders. Kyle played for the Chicago Bears and later joined the Kansas City Chiefs, which means that the Long name has remained a familiar one in professional football for more than forty years.
His public biography also highlights his charity work, which focuses on children, health issues, and youth athletics. He and Diane have been longtime supporters of the Boys and Girls Clubs, including chapters in Central Virginia and Montana.
Why Howie Long Still Matters
Howie Long’s story is a good example of how to build a lasting career by adapting without losing your identity. He was a dominant lineman who earned a Super Bowl ring and a gold jacket, and then he became a trusted television voice without ever leaving the sport that made him famous. His humor, his honesty, and his willingness to laugh at himself keep him relatable to fans of all ages, and his family’s continued presence in football means his influence is likely to continue for many years.
Frequently Asked Questions About Howie Long
How old is Howie Long?
He was born on January 6, 1960, which makes him 66 years old in October 2026.
Which team did Howie Long play for?
He played his entire 13-year NFL career with the Raiders, in both Oakland and Los Angeles.
Is Howie Long in the Hall of Fame?
Yes, he was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2000.
Does Howie Long still work on television?
Yes, he is part of the 2026 Fox NFL Sunday studio team.
Are Howie Long’s sons in the NFL?
Chris and Kyle both played in the NFL and now work in sports media, while Howie Jr. works for the Raiders in player personnel.
Disclaimer
This article is written for general information and educational purposes only. It is based on publicly available information about Howie Long’s career and public life, which can change over time, so readers should confirm current details with official sources such as the Pro Football Hall of Fame and Fox Sports. The article is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or authorized by Howie Long, his family, the Raiders, or Fox Sports, and all names and trademarks belong to their respective owners.
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Written by Hassan, founder and editor of NTX Magazine — an independent news and biography publication. Every article is researched and cross-checked against multiple public sources before publishing; see our Sourcing Standards page for details.
