Quarterback, New York
Age: 26
5th
season in pro football & with Jets
College: Alabama
Height: 6’2” Weight: 195
Prelude:
Chosen by
both the NFL Cardinals and AFL Jets in the first round of the respective 1965
drafts, Namath signed a then-huge $427,000 contract with New York. A college
star under Head Coach Paul “Bear” Bryant at Alabama, he had torn ligaments in
his right knee during his senior year that required surgery. Knee and mobility
issues would thus be significant throughout Namath’s career, but he took over
as the starting quarterback for the Jets early in his rookie season and didn’t
miss a game to injury (he wouldn’t in his first five seasons) while gaining
selection to the AFL All-Star game. Charismatic (he quickly became a celebrity
off the field) and a good leader, he also had a quick release and strong arm.
Namath led the league in pass attempts and completions, yards, and TD passes in
1966 and ’67 – in the latter season, he became the first 4000-yard passer in
NFL/AFL history (4007). Prone to trying to force passes into coverage, however,
he also led the AFL in passes intercepted in both years. In 1968, the Jets won
the AFL Championship and an upset win in the Super Bowl – Namath was AFL Player
of the Year for his season performance and MVP of the Super Bowl.
1969 Season Summary
Appeared and
started in all 14 games
[Bracketed
numbers indicate league rank in Top 20]
Passing
Attempts – 361
[3]
Most
attempts, game – 51 at San Diego 9/28
Completions –
185 [2]
Most completions,
game – 29 at San Diego 9/28
Yards – 2734 [2]
Most yards,
game – 344 at San Diego 9/28
Completion
percentage – 51.2 [3]
Yards per
attempt – 7.6 [3]
TD passes – 19
[2, tied with Mike Taliaferro]
Most TD
passes, game – 3 vs. Miami 11/2
Interceptions
– 17 [5]
Most
interceptions, game – 3 at Buffalo 9/14, vs. Houston 10/20, vs. Kansas City
11/16
Passer rating
– 74.3 [3]
300-yard
passing games – 3
200-yard
passing games – 5
Rushing
Attempts – 11
Most
attempts, game – 2 (for 8 yds.) at Buffalo 9/14, (for 3 yds.) vs. Houston
10/20, (for 0 yds.) vs. Miami 11/2
Yards – 33
Most yards,
game – 16 yards (on 1 carry) vs. Boston 10/26
Yards per
attempt – 3.0
TDs – 2
Scoring
TDs – 2
Points - 12
Postseason: 1
G (AFL Divisional playoff vs. Kansas City)
Pass attempts
– 40
Pass
completions – 14
Passing
yardage – 164
TD passes – 0
Interceptions
– 3
Rushing
attempts – 1
Rushing yards
– 1
Rushing TDs –
0
Awards & Honors:
AFL Player of
the Year: AP
1st
team All-AFL: NEA, NY Daily News
2nd
team All-AFL: AP, UPI, Sporting News
AFL All-Star
Game
Jets went 10-4
to win AFL Eastern Division. Lost AFL Divisional playoff to Kansas City Chiefs
(13-6).
Aftermath:
A broken
wrist sidelined Namath five games into the ’70 season, the first of a series of
injuries that dogged the remainder of his career. After appearing in just nine
games in 1970 and ’71, he came back in 1972 to lead the NFL in passing yards
(2816), TD passes (19), and yards per attempt (8.7) and was named to the Pro
Bowl. However, a separated shoulder limited him to six games in 1973 and, with
the team deteriorating around him, he had only sporadic success while leading
the league in interceptions in 1974 and ’75. Namath finished his career with
the Rams in 1977 and ended up throwing for 27,663 yards with 173 TDs and 220
interceptions. His #12 was retired by the Jets and he was inducted into the Pro
Football Hall of Fame, class of 1985.
--
MVP Profiles feature players who were named MVP or
Player of the Year in the NFL, AAFC (1946-49), AFL (1960-69), WFL (1974), or USFL
(1983-85) by a recognized organization (Associated Press, Pro Football Writers
Association, Newspaper Enterprise Association, United Press International, The
Sporting News, Maxwell Club – Bert Bell Award, or the league itself).
