NFL Profile - The New York Jets
Who are the NY Jets? Where do they play? What is their History? We profile New York’s other NFL team
Welcome to The Sporting Blog franchise overview series. In this series, we will review each National Football League franchise and give you an in-depth history of who they are and how they came to be.
In today’s edition, we are talking about the New York Jets!
History of the New York Jets
In 1959, the Titans of New York became the hottest football team in the state of New York. (Yes, you’re reading the Jets article, keep reading on.) The Titans played in the American Football League and were bought by a new ownership group in 1963 when they were renamed the New York Jets. The new group bought the team for $1 million as the Titans were in bankruptcy. Despite the on-field success of the Titans, they made nearly no money. In 1970, the Jets were in the AFL-NFL merger. Just two years after the team was renamed, they drafted a quarterback by the name of Joe Namath who would change the fortunes of the franchise forever.
1968 was a year to behold for fans of the Jets. They defeated the Oakland Raiders 27-23 in the AFL championship and then stunned the entire sports world with a 16-7 victory over the overwhelmingly-favoured Baltimore Colts in Super Bowl III. The Jets success didn’t carry over into the 1970’s but it was in the 1980’s where the Jets went back to the playoffs in ‘81, ‘82, ‘85 and ‘86.
Stadium
When the Titans of New York were playing, they were housed by the old Polo Grounds. Of course, the Polo Grounds were the home of the New York Giants, not the football team but rather the baseball team that eventually became the New York Mets. The Polo Grounds were closed in 1963 and in 1964, the stadium was demolished.
In 1963, when the team became the Jets, the team was moved to Shea Stadium. Shea has its own unique history and is mostly known for being the home of many great New York Mets teams. The Mets eventually took over as sole users of Shea Stadium. In 1984, the Jets moved to the famous Meadowlands Sports Complex. It became a controversy as the stadium was actually in New York. Meadowlands is based in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
In 2010, the Jets made another move, kind of. They built a new stadium in the Meadowlands called Metlife Stadium. It became the first stadium to be jointly owned by two football teams as the New York Giants also play there. The stadium can hold more than 82,000 fans.
The MetLife Stadium - Home of the NY Jets and the NY Giants
Playoffs and Championships
The Jets have played in 25 different playoff games with a 12-13 record. They went on a nasty dry spell of playoffs during the 1970’s and then again in the 2010’s. In the last century, the Jets have played in two different AFC Conference Championship Games. In both of those games, which took place in 2009 and 2010, they lost. They were defeated by the Indianapolis Colts in 2009 by a score of 30 to 17. They also lost in 2010 to the Pittsburgh Steelers by a score of 24 to 19.
The Jets have one Super Bowl win. That came in 1968 in Super Bowl III. This was the Super Bowl where Joe Namath famously guaranteed that the Jets would beat the superpower Baltimore Colts. Before playing in the Super Bowl that season, they also won an AFC Championship Game. In the Super Bowl, the Jets won 16 to 7. The Colts were favoured by 18 points, the largest in history of the game. Joe Namath was named the game’s MVP.
The Best Coach in Team History
The Jets have certainly had a history of having some very charismatic head coaches like Bill Parcels and Rex Ryan. They also had Bill Belichick as their head coach for all of a day. But the greatest coach in team history was Weeb Ewbank. Despite having just a 71-76-6 record as a head coach, Ewbank is the only coach to win a Super Bowl for the Jets.
He is the only coach in history to win the game in the National Football League and the American Football League. Ewbank became the coach in 1963 when the new ownership group took over and he is credited for the patient and slow approach that led them to taking Joe Namath and then winning a Super Bowl.
Three Best Players in Franchise History
Many great players have played for the New York Jets over the years, leading to their success in playoffs and championships. However, these are the top 3 best New York Jets players in history.
Curtis Martin:
Martin was a running back for the Jets from 1998 to 2006. He is now in the Pro Football Hall of Fame and led the league in rushing in 2004. Martin was a five-time Pro Bowler and was named to the first-team All-Pro twice in his career. Martin is currently in the Jets Ring of Honor and his number #28 is retired.
Don Maynard:
Maynard was a wide receiver for Joe Namath and a member of the 1968 Super Bowl winning Jets. Maynard played for the Jets from 1960 to 1972 and was the first player to carry over from the Titans to the Jets. He is the franchise leader in receptions, receiving touchdowns and receiving yards and is in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Joe Namath:
From 1965 to 1976, Joe Namath was one of the greatest quarterbacks in NFL History. Namath was infamous during the 1968 season for his big mouth and even bigger play. The Hall of Famer went to the AFL All-Star Game in four different seasons and was a two-time AFL MVP.
“Broadway Joe” - Joe Namath
Greatest Draft Pick in Team History
Joe Namath was the best pick the Jets have ever had and he wasn’t even picked first by them. In fact, Namath was selected 12th overall by the St.Louis Cardinals in the NFL Draft but they didn’t meet his salary requirements. After Namath was selected first overall in the AFL Draft by the Jets, he decided to play for them. The decision turned out pretty well for “Broadway Joe.”
Best Free Agent Signing or Trade in Team History
In 2007, the Jets traded their first round, second round and fifth-round selections to the Carolina Panthers for their first-round pick. With the 14th pick, the Jets selected Darrelle Revis who had one of the greatest cornerback careers of all-time. Revis played for the Jets from 2007 to 2012 and then again from 2015-2016. They called his area “Revis Island” for the lack of passing that happened on it. Revis went to seven different Pro Bowl Games and was selected to four First-Team All-Pro honours. Revis lead the league in interceptions one season with six and holds the record for most passes defended for the New York Jets with 111 passes. ee
The Team’s Greatest Moment
The greatest moment in team history will always go down as Joe Namath sitting poolside before Super Bowl III telling reporters that he guaranteed a win against the Baltimore Colts. As you’ve learned in this article, Namath was right on the money with the pick and his Jets beat the Colts for their first and only Super Bowl win.
