That was a fun read. I definitely count myself as a Ken O'Brien fan. It's really not fair that his career is compared to Marino and Elway. He was a solid QB, maybe even top 10 in his peak years. That '86 season still haunts me.
That was a great read, I have always been a Ken fan. I love his comment about philly..."under Buddy Ryan they were the Animal House of the NFL"
My mom knew Dan Marino when he was a kid in Pittsburgh. Many years later, late 80s, She offered to let me meet him once. I was like "Why couldn't you know Ken O'Brien?" 13 year old boys are the worst.
Nice read......thanks for sharing. Nice guy...glad he's doing well after football. Very strange seeing that picture of him in a Packers uniform.
Outstanding read. I see him around. I go to MB to work out but can't afford to live there. He was one of my most favorite Jets. Damn, if we can find our young KO we can be on our way to the big dance.
That was such a great read. I was just a little kid when he played for the Jets but it gives me an understanding of Jets history, and that post about hating the Dolphins uniform on general principles and also what he said about Al Toon... great stuff. Also, something about Buddy Ryan feels familiar: That’s what Buddy had instilled—defense would win games, offense just couldn’t screw it up. That’s the short version of the impression I got when I talked with other guys.
Good article. Thanks for posting. Where was the great story about Wesley Walker? I think they must have meant Herschel Walker.
I loved that comment! The Dolphins were the Jets arch enemy when Kenny O played. NE sucked and so did the Bills. Apples don't fall far from the tree. Rex learned that BS from his father, and is too dumb to realize that his father was full of shit.
Yeah, he didn't mention Wesley Walker a single time. He was my dad's favorite receiver. That was disappointing.
Yes it was, but then he wasn't really asked about Wesley Walker. It's really weird that he wasn't asked about him, however. With Toon's career being curtailed, Walker was his primary receiver. What Wesley achieved was phenomenal considering he only had one eye. At a time when many Jets fans despised Kenny O, I always liked him and thought that Walker and he made a great duo. If they had upgraded the OL like they should have, the Jets probably would have made it to a SB, and Kenny O would have garnered a lot more respect.
Some people are down on Ken, because he wasn't Marino, but the the thing is that Ken generally held his own against Marino. I was at the 51-45 game, back in my season ticket days. My friends wanted to leave before the Jets tied the game in regulation, but we took my car to the game that day, and said I'm not leaving until it's over. The 30 for 30 show they mention is really worth watching.
They weren't any more disciplined under Rich Kotite, either. It's too bad that Leon Hess was so enamored with him.
Ken was one of my favorite players, that was an interesting Q&A w/ him but I do believe Jet fans overrated him. If he had the same career in this era that he had in his time he'd get killed on here. against Miami Ken was great, it was the other 27 teams in the league at the time that he struggled with. He outdueled Marino many times.
Yeah, Kenny could throw it from the pocket. As the OLine deteriorated he started to get hit a lot and he went down from there. Sadly he started to leave Toon out to dry a little with his throws and Toon really took a beating. Toon never wavered and competed for every ball. Walker is one of my all time favorites
Toon always took a beating and OL was good most of Ken's time in NY, most of the sacks were on the QB for holding the ball too long trying to make the big play.
