New York Jets Team History
 The
history of the New York franchise in the American Football League
is the story of two distinct organizations, the Titans and the
Jets. Interlocking the two in continuity is the player personnel
which went with the franchise in the ownership change from Harry
Wismer to a five-man group headed by David "Sonny"
Werblin in February 1963. The three-year reign of Wismer, who
was granted a charter AFL franchise in 1959, was fraught with
controversy. The on-the-field happenings of the Titans were
often overlooked, even in victory, as Wismer moved from feud
to feud with the thoughtlessness of one playing Russian roulette
with all chambers loaded.
In spite of it all, the Titans had reasonable success on the
field but they were a box office disaster. Werblin's group purchased
the bankrupt franchise for $1,000,000, changed the team name
to Jets and hired Weeb Ewbank as head coach. In 1964, the Jets
moved from the antiquated Polo Grounds to newly-constructed
Shea Stadium, where the Jets set an AFL attendance mark of 45,665
in the season opener against the Denver Broncos.
Ewbank, who had enjoyed championship success with the Baltimore
Colts in the 1950s, patiently began a building program that
received a major transfusion on January 2, 1965 when Werblin
signed Alabama quarterback Joe Namath to a rumored $400,000
contract. The signing of the highly-regarded Namath proved to
be a major factor in the eventual end of the AFL-NFL pro football
war of the 1960s.
The 1968 season was the culmination of the New York AFL hopes
as the Jets, under the guidance of Ewbank and the play of Namath,
Don Maynard and a host of other major contributors, raced to
the AFL East title with an 11-3 record. 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-favored
Baltimore Colts in Super Bowl III. It is considered to be one
of the two most pivotal games ever toward building fan enthusiasm
for pro football. The Jets won the AFL East again in 1969 but
lost to Kansas City in a first-round playoff game and did not
seriously challenge for a divisional championship for 12 more
seasons.
The next decade saw the Jets return to the playoffs five times
in 1981, 1982, 1985, 1986 and 1991. Their high-water marks during
those years came in 1982 and again in 1986, when they advanced
past the first round of the playoffs. In the strike-shortened
1982 season, the Jets advanced to the AFC championship game,
losing to Miami 14-0. Through it all, the Jets have maintained
an excellent attendance record. They have not fallen below an
average-per-game attendance of 54,051 since 1964, their first
season in Shea Stadium. The Jets moved into the Meadowlands
stadium across the Hudson River in New Jersey in 1984 and have
sold out every one of their seats since.
Coach Ewbank in 1978 and two players in the 1980s, all of whom
stand out in Jets history, have been elected to the Pro Football
Hall of Fame. Namath was elected in 1985 and Maynard in 1987. |
