They celebrate Super Bowl 3 now. Underdog story, guarantee, how wonderful and exciting and stunning it was When it actually happened the NFL wanted to crawl into a hole and die For the Mara asswipes as well. The fact that we in our 9th year of existence were sitting there with the NFL's Trophy in the greatest upset of all time absolutely paralyzed them
U know because Wberlin did not ask Hesses permission to sign JWN Hess bought him out So the NYJs stupidity began in 65
The Jets proved the AFL belonged in the same class as the NFL. Owners in the NFL were already starting to think about reneging on the merger agreement after the Chiefs and Raiders got blown out by the Packers in the first two games. The press just assumed that the Jets, who were not seen as being as good as the Raiders and the Chiefs teams that lost big, were going to be a third straight blowout. The Colts were seen as the best NFL team of the decade at that point. Namath's guarantee changed the perception of the game before it even started. This was an era where blowhard athletes were the exception not the rule and when a star athlete said something they generally backed it up. Namath stepped into the settled perceptions of the game forcefully and when the Jets were competitive early on the perceptions swung further. A week after the game when everything had settled in the perceptions of the NFL and the AFL had completely changed. Nobody anywhere thought the merger was a travesty waiting to happen at that point.
Ah the game that began the losing which now spans over 50 years. It was the 1st time I left Shea depressed
This is NOT true most thought SB 3 was some kind of fluke SB4 was the real turning point in the AFL/NFL relationshi[p when KC beat Minny
https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/sports/nfl/longterm/superbowl/stories/sb3.htm This was the day after Champ. Similar stories ran all over the country.
Yes buuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuut the average fan thought it was a fluke sometimes U actually have to be there to understand what occurred not read some quote or newspaper. Oh yes I have all the papers from the day after SB3 also
I agree with Champ here. The Chiefs demolition of the Vikings the next year probably convinced as many "average" fans that not only was the AFL equal, in many ways they were now better. How would the Jets have faired against Minnesota? I think they would've won again. Chiefs were a great team that year, but we were right there too.
Ewbank, Buddy Ryan, Walt Michaels on our sidelines. That's not a fluke that those 3 could pull this off.
Ewbank was the Colts HC before becoming the NYJs HC Ryan was the DC Michaels if he was with the 68 team must have some kind of asst.
I am talking of the very average FB who does not go into depth about there team. Were you even around in 69 when the game was played? If not how can U even comment what when ever before & after SB3
This! Great staff and Weeb had an easy going personality that helped the Jets win that game. The pressure on the Chiefs and the Raiders in 1 and 2 was enormous and they played like the weight of the league was on their shoulders. They were tight and played tight. The public perception of the Packers was Lombardi was an extreme disciplinarian who kept the team tight. The reality is they had some great personalities and came into both championship games loose and just ran over the Chiefs and Raiders who were playing for the league and came out of the gate losers before the game even started. Lombardi was under enormous pressure to win but the players broke curfew, partied and played like they never had a doubt. Lombardi was tight but it never negatively impacted the players on those great Packer teams. Namath kept the Jets loose before the SB and the Colts were tight as a drum to start the game. Shula had a great team but that Colt team played terribly at the beginning of the game. Shula and the Colts looked like they came to play with a steel rod up their asses. I really think that the pressure played into all 3 of the first AFL/NFL championship games. The Chiefs team that won 4 was more of an indication of how good the AFL was. Namath's greatest quality in SB 3 was his confidence. The Jets went into the game loose enough to play well. There was real belief in the team and the game plan. The Chiefs and Raiders never got it going in the first two games. They never believed they could play with the Packers. No doubt Weeb having been there before and his steady hand played into the teams state of mind. The rest of the staff put together a great game plan and the Jets players just went out and executed.
I thought Michaels was the DC and Buddy was the defensive line coach. Could be wrong about that though. Was very young at the time.
The next best thing to Namath's guarantee was this: And of course everyone was all over the comparison. Not only did Messier deliver on that guarantee, he did it all by himself with a hat trick. Good times, and it made every Jets fan worth their salt relive the moment automatically without even thinking.
