American Football has a great history but it is fair to say that the New York Jets have not made their mark on it as much as they would have liked. With the off-season rebuilding underway, fans of the Gang Green will be starting to hope again in the way that all sports fans do when the dust has settled on the previous campaign. With that in mind, here is something to remind all those that follow the Jets that miracles do happen.
Back in January 1969, The Gang Green won the Super Bowl for the only time in the team’s history. Super Bowl III is known by many as the greatest upset in the history of the great final. This was before the formation of the current NFL, which took place a year later. In 1969, the Super Bowl was played between the winners of the NFL (National Football League) and the winners of the AFL (American Football League). The NFL and the AFL would merge in 1970 to form the modern NFL as we know it today.
The final in January 1969 was the first to be known as the Super Bowl and was between the New York Jets and the Baltimore Colts. The Colts were the overriding favorites because they were from the NFL. Many people thought that the teams in the AFL were less talented than their counterparts in the NFL so, when the Jets ran out winners by a score of 16-7, it caused a massive shock amongst experts. The Jets had finished the season with an 11-3-0 record before beating the Oakland Raiders 27-23 in the AFL Championship game to progress to the Super Bowl.
The modern Gang Green should take heart from this. Even though the Colts might have been the better team, they weren’t on the day and that’s all that counts. Backing the Jets ahead of the 2018 season might tempt fans to consider using their free bets from Champion Bets in hope that the Gang Green can cause another famous shock.
Super Bowl III was played at the now-demolished Orange Bowl in Miami, Florida. Having hosted Super Bowl II, the stadium is the only one in NFL history to host back-to-back finals.
The MVP of Super Bowl III was Joe Namath, despite the fact that he didn’t throw a touchdown pass during the game. In fact, the Jets are the only Super Bowl-winning team to win the final with only one touchdown (either offensive, defensive or special teams). Namath didn’t have a standout game but was solid, completing 17 out of 28 passes for 206 yards.
The Colts struggled and starting quarterback Earl Morrall threw three interceptions before he was replaced by Johnny Unitas. After a scoreless first quarter, the Jets took the lead in the second when they grabbed their only touchdown and increased their lead in the third quarter, which they dominated. In fact, during that third quarter, the Colts only had possession for three minutes, in which their seven offensive plays mustered just 11 yards. Two field goals by Turner increased the Jets' lead and, despite a brief injury to Namath, they held on in the fourth to complete the victory.
The Jets proved that day that they were capable of achieving great things against adversity and the modern day Gang Green could look to emulate the heroes of that 1969 final. There is no doubt that the Jets need a starting quarterback and, whether this is achieved by draft or trade, they need to get something done quickly but, until then, the players from 50 years ago should always act as an inspiration to pulling on the jersey today.