Jets Super Bowl legend Joe Namath turns 81: Five facts about Hall of Famer ‘Broadway Joe’

Joe Namath was already a household name when he delivered the biggest guarantee in the history of professional sports. But after he and his team cashed in on the Super Bowl guarantee, “Broadway Joe,” for a brief moment, was arguably the most famous man on the planet.

Namath, who declared that the 18-point underdog Jets would defeat the powerful Colts in Super Bowl III, backed this up by leading a Jets offense that confounded Baltimore’s powerful defense. The Jets’ defense also played a key role in the comeback, forcing five turnovers that included three interceptions by quarterback Earl Morrall, the NFL MVP that season. After the Jets wrapped up a 16-7 victory, Namath further etched his name in pro football lore by pointing his index finger toward the sky as he danced on the Orange Bowl lawn. Namath’s play that day was one of the main reasons his career was immortalized in the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1985.

In light of his 81st birthday, we decided to take a look at five facts about Namath that you might not know. One of them involves a surprising detail of Namath’s greatest achievement, which Namath himself only learned about decades later.

1. A special fraternity of quarterbacks

Of the 26 quarterbacks currently enshrined in Canton, Ohio, six are from Western Pennsylvania: Namath (Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania), George Blanda (Youngwood, Pennsylvania), Johnny Unitas (Pittsburgh), Joe Montana (New Eagle, Pennsylvania), Dan Marino (Pittsburgh) and Jim Kelly (Pittsburgh/East Brady, Pennsylvania). In 2015, the six quarterbacks were honored as a group in Pittsburgh.

“I get goosebumps just thinking about it. It’s a great honor,” said Namath during the event. “It’s our people. The people that were in front of us, our work ethic. When we talk about the six Western Pennsylvania quarterbacks in the Hall, we didn’t do it alone. It’s in our blood, the hard work ethic and the appreciation for others.”

A three-sport star at Beaver Falls High School, Namath led the football team to an undefeated season in 1960. Nearly a decade later, Namath watched as Unitas — a fellow Western Pennsylvania product — tried to rally his Colts after filling in for Morrall during the second half of Super Bowl III. Unitas quarterbacked the Colts for his only touchdown, but his late-game magic wasn’t enough to overcome Namath and the Jets.

2. National champion

During his senior year at Alabama, Namath helped lead the Crimson Tide to a 10-1 record and legendary coach Paul “Bear” Bryant’s second of six national titles. Even though his passing statistics weren’t flashy, Namath went 29-4 as Alabama’s starting quarterback. Although his knees were his undoing in the NFL, Namath had no such problems in college, where he threw for 15 touchdowns, including six scores during the ’64 Bryant season. later called Namath “the greatest athlete I’ve ever coached.”

3. Record holder

The 12th overall pick in the 1965 NFL Draft, Namath spurned both the NFL and the St. Louis Cardinals to sign with the Jets, who selected him with the No. 1 overall pick in that year’s AFL draft. Fittingly, Namath signed with “Gang Green” after receiving a $427,000 contract, the largest rookie contract in professional football history at the time. A professional player in 1965, Namath led the AFL in passing in 1966. In 1967, Namath became the first quarterback in professional football history to eclipse 4,000 passing yards (he also led the AFL with 28 interceptions that season). Namath took full advantage of the talented receiving duo of Hall of Famer Don Maynard and All-Pro George Sauer, who caught a combined 146 passes for 2,323 yards and 16 touchdowns in 14 regular-season games.

4. Zero passes in the fourth quarter

Through the first three quarters of Super Bowl III, Namath completed 17 of 28 passes for 206 yards. Namath did not attempt a single pass during the fourth quarter, a fact that Namath himself only learned decades later, during an NFL Films special in the game.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if it was zero,” Namath told the interviewer when asked how many passes he attempted in the fourth quarter against Baltimore. “Really? It’s the first time they’ve said that to me. I promise.”

With the Jets taking a 16–0 lead in the first minute of the fourth quarter, Namath was content to pass the ball to Matt Snell (30 carries, 121 yards, one touchdown) and Emerson Boozer (19 yards on 10 carries) during the game. . final stanza. Not only did his plays keep the Colts’ defense afloat, but Namath frustrated them further by shortening his drop to offset Baltimore’s ferocious pass rush. Namath also took advantage of the Colts’ focus on stopping Maynard. Although Maynard did not catch a pass during Super Bowl III, Sauer caught eight passes for 133 yards, which included a 39-yard reception that set up the Jets’ final score.

5. Comeback Player of the Year

During his five seasons in the AFL, Namath was a four-time Pro Bowler and the league’s MVP in 1968 and 1969. After injuries wiped out most of his first two seasons in the NFL, Namath earned his first and only Pro Bowl nod in the NFL in 1972 after leading the league in passing yards and touchdowns. Two years later, after injuries limited him to just six games in 1973, Namath won the Comeback Player of the Year award after appearing in all 14 games during the 1974 season. This would be the last significant award Namath would win. during his stellar playing career.