Former NFL quarterback for Los Angeles Rams, Roman Gabriel, dies aged 83

Former record-breaking NFL quarterback Roman Gabriel has died at the age of 83 of ‘natural causes’ in his home in Little River, South Carolina. His death was announced by his son, Roman Gabriel III, on his official X (formerly Twitter) page.

In the post, he wrote: “I am sad to announce my father Roman Gabriel passed away peacefully this morning of natural causes at his home. The entire family asked for your prayers, and to please respect our privacy - I love you dad.”

One of the greatest players in the history of the Los Angeles Rams, Gabriel set the record of 154 touchdown passes during his time with the club - it is a record still lasts to this very day. After ten years with the Rams, Gabriel joined the Philadelphia Eagles in 1973, where he remained until his retirement in 1977. He made several forays into coaching after this, with teams such as the Boston Breakers and the Raleigh-Durham Skyhawks.

Following Gabriel’s passing, a statement on the LA Rams’ official club website reads: “Former Rams great Roman Gabriel, the NFL's first Filipino-American quarterback, passed away on Saturday morning at age 83.

“Gabriel arrived in Los Angeles as the No. 2 overall pick in the 1962 NFL Draft out of North Carolina State, where he had set 22 program records and nine ACC records. He had also been chosen first overall by the Raiders in the 1962 AFL Draft, but chose to sign with the Rams.

“His post-playing career included stints as the coach at Cal Poly Pomona from 1980 to 1982 and offensive coordinator of the Boston Breakers of United States Football League (USFL) in 1983. Gabriel also spent decades raising millions of dollars for various charities after his NFL career. Gabriel was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1989.”