I blame my father whenever nyjunc makes a stupid post. Every Jets fan should because they all have that tiny weak spot in their mind that develops into a person like nyjunc and that spot is weak and must be exterminated.
I have nobody to blame but my own stupid self and a penchant for picking the lamest horse in the race.
I understand everything Joe meant to pro football off the field and I understand how great his ability was and how injuries robbed him of a truly great career. I do not bash Joe as an ambassador of the game, I simply talk realistically about him. His on field play is vastly overrated but in the history of the game there have not been many more important people to be associated with this game. ha, the funny thing is my grandfather was the bigger fan. My Dad didn't push the Jets on me, it was more my grandfather and brother but I thank them. I wouldn't change anything, sure I want Super Bowls(at least one) but I cannot control whether it happens or not and I love the journey.
Oh, my dad didn't push the Jets on me, but he did take me to Shea with him and watched the games on TV every Sunday. He practically discouraged me from wasting my time on them. But once the needle goes in, it never comes out.
Yes I guess the 0.00 mark in the 2nd half of SB3 is probably the most important moment in NYJ history
Hey junc- that's an excellent analysis of him. I was 16 when Joe was drafted (with the Broncos' #1 pick, a juicy tidbit). I watched him from his first exhibition game on and saw him make horrible throws and decisions more times than I can remember. 4 int games, 5 int games, 6 int games (2 I think). Just like Geno he was thrown in as a rookie, starting with game 2. It took him over 3 years before he learned on field decision making with lots of brutal losses along the way. But from his first exhibition game you could see he was different. He threw a 65 yard laser to Don Maynard with a flick of his wrist, the ball dropping in his hands at full stride. That too was repeated more times than I can remember. Dan Marino's quick flick release was very similar but he didn't have Joe's arm. I never cared about his off- field persona. As a football player his arm was superior to any QB in either league at the time. Sonny Jurgensen had a great arm but wasn't the leader Joe was. Bobby Layne, another HOF QB with questionable stats, was a presence on the field just like Joe was; they were both unquestioned leaders, but Layne didn't he have Joe's ability. He really was unique, and that's before factoring in the Super Bowl upset. That cemented his legacy- not his fur coat or his pantyhose or his bar or his affection for blondes.
And the reason I wrote that droning monologue was to post this link, which I forgot to do. It's a different take on Joe's numbers- http://www.ganggreennation.com/2013/6/29/4477160/joe-namath-modernizing-his-statistics
Things were more flexible back then and teams made a lot of deals to help the league survive. When Werblin bought the bankrupt Titans and changed the name to the Jets he had lots of financial backing and a show biz background. He was a very dynamic owner. He stole Matt Snell from the NFL in '64 by giving him a big contract which worked out well as he was AFL ROY ( and SB III MVP?). At that time there weren't many other owners with money- Hunt, Bud Adams in Houston, Conrad Hilton in SD- so teams made arrangements with each other to try and sign as many collegians as the league could. Denver was a poor team, as were Boston, Buffalo and Oakland. "Somehow" the Jets, with all their resources, ended up with the top pick as sort of a league consensus with league commissioner Joe Foss's approval if my memory's correct. The main thought back then was league survival, still very much in doubt. Werblin changed that perception. No one doubted he would sign him.
To add a disclaimer... I'm an old man with lots of dead brain cells. Too much weed and too much booze in my lifetime. Please fact-check anything I say. For example, I was convinced the Jets traded the draft rights to Jerry Rhome in exchange for Namath's draft rights. I remember being disappointed because Rhome had better stats. I can't find documentation of that anywhere so I guess my memory's faulty. Anyone else remember any of this? Champ?
