Super Bowl III

Super Bowl III was the third AFL-NFL Championship Game in professional American football, but the first to officially bear the name "Super Bowl". (The two previous AFL-NFL Championship Games came to be known, retroactively, as "Super Bowls".) This game is regarded as one of the greatest upsets in sports history. The heavy underdog American Football League (AFL) champion New York Jets (11-3) defeated the National Football League (NFL) champion Baltimore Colts (13-1) by a score of 16–7. It was the first Super Bowl victory for the AFL.

The game was played on January 12, 1969, at the Orange Bowl in Miami, Florida – the same location as Super Bowl II. Entering Super Bowl III, the NFL champion Colts were heavily favored to defeat the AFL champion Jets. Although the upstart AFL had successfully forced the long-established NFL into a merger agreement three years earlier, the AFL was not generally respected as having the same caliber of talent as the NFL. Plus, the AFL representatives were easily defeated in the first two Super Bowls.

After brashly guaranteeing a victory prior to the game, Jets quarterback Joe Namath completed 17 out of 28 passes for 206 yards, and was named the Super Bowl's Most Valuable Player, despite not throwing a touchdown pass in the game or any passes at all in the fourth quarter.

Baltimore Colts
Baltimore's quest for a Super Bowl seemed doomed from the start when starting quarterback Johnny Unitas suffered a pre-season injury to his throwing arm and was replaced by Earl Morrall, a veteran who had started inconsistently over the course of his 12 seasons with four different teams. But Morrall would go on to have the best year of his career, leading the league in passer rating (93.2) during the regular season. His performance was so impressive that Colts coach Don Shula decided to keep Morrall in the starting lineup after Unitas was healthy enough to play. The Colts had won ten games in a row, including four shutouts, and finished the season with an NFL-best 13–1 record. In those ten games, they had allowed only seven touchdowns. Then, the Colts avenged their sole regular-season loss against the Cleveland Browns by crushing them, 34–0, in the NFL Championship Game. By the end of the season, many people thought the Colts were one of the best teams of all time, stronger than even Vince Lombardi's Super Bowl I and II champion Green Bay Packers.

The Colts offense ranked second in the NFL in points scored (402). Wide receivers Jimmy Orr (29 receptions, 743 yards, 6 touchdowns) and Willie Richardson (37 receptions, 698 yards, 8 touchdowns) provided Baltimore with two deep threats, with Orr averaging 25.6 yards per catch, and Richardson averaging 18.9. Tight end John Mackey also recorded 45 receptions for 644 yards and 5 touchdowns. Pro Bowl running back Tom Matte was the team's top rusher with 662 yards and 9 touchdowns. He also caught 25 passes for 275 yards and another touchdown. Running backs Terry Cole and Jerry Hill combined for 778 rushing yards and 236 receiving yards.

The Colts defense led the NFL in fewest points allowed (144, tying the then all-time league record), and ranked third in total rushing yards allowed (1,339). Bubba Smith, a 6'7" 295-pound defensive end considered the NFL's best pass rusher, anchored the line. Linebacker Mike Curtis was considered one of the top linebackers in the NFL. Baltimore's secondary consisted of defensive backs Bobby Boyd (8 interceptions), Rick Volk (6 interceptions), Lenny Lyles (5 interceptions), and Jerry Logan (3 interceptions). The Colts were the only NFL team to routinely play a zone defense. That gave them an advantage in the NFL because the other NFL teams were inexperienced against a zone defense. (This would not give them an advantage over the Jets, however, because zone defenses were common in the AFL and the Jets knew how to attack them.) After winning the 1968 NFL title, the Colts were touted by the sports media as "the greatest team in pro football history".

New York Jets
The New York Jets, led by head coach Weeb Ewbank (who was the head coach of the Colts when they won the famous 1958 NFL Championship game), finished the season with an 11-3 regular season record (one of the losses was to the Oakland Raiders in the infamous Heidi Game) and had to rally to defeat those same Raiders, 27-23, in a thrilling AFL Championship Game.

Jets quarterback Joe Namath threw for 3,147 yards during the regular season, but completed just 49.2 percent of his passes, and threw more interceptions (17) than touchdowns (15). Still, he led the offense effectively enough for them to finish the regular season with more total points scored (419) than Baltimore. More importantly, Namath usually found ways to win. For example, late in the fourth quarter of the AFL championship game, Namath threw an interception that allowed the Raiders to take the lead. But he then made up for his mistake by completing 3 consecutive passes on the ensuing drive, advancing the ball 68 yards in just 55 seconds to score a touchdown to regain the lead for New York.

The Jets had a number of offensive weapons that Namath used. Future Hall of Fame wide receiver Don Maynard had the best season of his career, catching 57 passes for 1,297 yards (an average of 22.8 yards per catch) and 10 touchdowns. Wide receiver George Sauer, Jr. recorded 66 receptions for 1,141 yards and 3 touchdowns. The Jets rushing attack was also effective. Fullback Matt Snell, a power runner, was the top rusher on the team with 747 yards and 6 touchdowns, while elusive halfback Emerson Boozer contributed 441 yards and 5 touchdowns. Meanwhile, kicker Jim Turner made 34 field goals and 43 extra points for a combined total of 145 points.

The Jets defense led the AFL in total rushing yards allowed (1,195). Gerry Philbin, John Elliott, and Verlon Biggs anchored the defensive line. The Jets linebacking core was led by middle linebacker Al Atkinson. The secondary was led by defensive backs Johnny Sample (a former Colt who played on their 1958 NFL Championship team) who recorded 7 interceptions, and Jim Hudson, who recorded 5.

Several of the Jets' players had been cut by NFL teams. Maynard had been cut by the New York Giants after they lost the 1958 NFL Championship to the Colts. "I kept a little bitterness in me," he says. Sample had been cut by the Colts. "I was almost in a frenzy by the time the game arrived," he says. "I held a private grudge against the Colts. I was really ready for that game. All of us were." Offensive tackle Winston Hill had been cut five years earlier by the Colts as a rookie in training camp. "Ordell Braase kept making me look bad in practice," he says. Hill would be blocking Braase in Super Bowl III.

Super Bowl pregame news and notes
After winning the AFL championship, Namath said that at least four AFL quarterbacks were better than Earl Morrall, including himself, his backup (38-year old Babe Parilli), John Hadl of the San Diego Chargers, and Bob Griese of the Dolphins.

"The Guarantee"
Despite the Jets' accomplishments, AFL teams were generally not regarded as having the same caliber of talent as NFL teams. However, three days before the game, Namath appeared at the Miami Touchdown Club and boldly predicted to the audience, "We're gonna win the game. I guarantee it." Jets' head coach Weeb Ewbank, in an NFL Films segment, once joked that he "could have shot" Namath for the statement. Namath later claimed he only made his famous "guarantee" in response to a rowdy Colts supporter at the club, who boasted the Colts would easily defeat the Jets. Namath said he never intended to make such a public prediction, and never would have done so if he had not been confronted by the fan. Nevertheless, his comments and subsequent performance in the game itself are one of the more famous instances in NFL lore. Some analysts suggested that the Jets' record in the NFL might have been 9-5, which would have made them unlikely to have made the 1968 NFL playoffs altogether, let alone competitive against the dominant Colts.

Despite this, the AFL champions shared the confident feelings of their quarterback. According to Matt Snell, all of the Jets, not just Namath, were insulted and angry that they were 18-point underdogs. Most of the Jets considered the Raiders, whom they barely beat (27-23) in the AFL title game, a better team than the Colts. However, watching films of the Colts and in preparation for the game, Jets coaching staff and offensive players noted that their offense was particularly suited against the Colts defense. The Colts defensive schemes relied on frequent blitzing, which covered up weak points in pass coverage. The Jets had an automatic contingency for such blitzes by short passing to uncovered tight ends or backs. After a film session the Wednesday prior to the game, Jets tight end Pete Lammons, a Crockett, Texas native, was heard to drawl, "Damn, y'all, we gotta stop watching these films. We gonna get overconfident."

Television and entertainment
The game was broadcast in the United States by NBC Sports - at the time, still a "Service of NBC News" - with Curt Gowdy handling the play-by-play duties and joined by color commentators Al DeRogatis and Kyle Rote in the broadcast booth. Also helping with NBC's coverage were Jim Simpson (reporting from the sidelines) and Pat Summerall (helping conduct player interviews for the pregame show, along with Rote). In an interview later done with NFL Films, Gowdy called it the most memorable game he ever called because of its historical significance.

While the Orange Bowl was sold out for the game, the live telecast was not shown in Miami due to both leagues' unconditional blackout rules at the time.

For the first time, famous celebrities appeared for the Super Bowl ceremonies. Entertainer Bob Hope led a pregame ceremony honoring the astronauts of Project Apollo and the recently completed Apollo 8 mission, the first manned flight around the Moon.

Singer Anita Bryant later sang the national anthem, and the Florida A&M University band performed during the "America Thanks" halftime show.

This game is thought to be the earliest surviving Super Bowl game preserved on videotape in its entirety save for a portion of the Colts' fourth quarter scoring drive. The original NBC broadcast was aired as part of the NFL Network Super Bowl Classics series the day before Super Bowl XLI, and again the night before the AFC and NFC Championship games in 2010.

Game summary
New York entered the game with their primary deep threat, wide receiver Don Maynard, playing with a pulled hamstring. But his 112-yard, two touchdown performance against the Oakland Raiders in the AFL championship game made the Colts defense pay special attention to him, not realizing he was injured. Using Maynard as a decoy—he had no receptions in the game—Joe Namath was able to take advantage of single coverage on wide receiver George Sauer, Jr.. (After studying the Colts' zone defense, Ewbank had told his receivers, "Find the dead spots in the zone, hook up, and Joe will hit you.") The Jets had a conservative game plan, emphasizing the run and short, high-percentage passes to minimize interceptions. Meanwhile, with the help of many fortunate plays, the Jets defense kept the Colts offense from scoring for most of the game.

1st half
The game started badly for the Jets. After taking the opening kickoff, they gained only 15 yards on five plays and were forced to punt. However, Colts safety Rick Volk was knocked out and sustained a concussion on the game's second play tackling Snell and would miss much of the game. On the Colts' first drive, they advanced the ball from their own 27-yard line to the Jets' 19-yard-line in an 11-play drive, aided by a 19-yard catch-and-run from Earl Morrall to tight end John Mackey on their first play. But after two incomplete passes and a quarterback run for no gain, they came up empty when defensive lineman/kicker Lou Michaels' 27-yard field goal attempt went wide right. "You could almost feel the steam go out of them," said Snell.

On the Jets' second possession, Namath threw deep to Maynard, who, despite his pulled hamstring, was open by a step. The ball was overthrown, but this one play helped change the outcome of the game. Fearing the speedy Maynard, the Colts decided to rotate their zone defense to help cover Maynard, leaving Sauer covered one-on-one by Lenny Lyles, helping Sauer catch 8 passes for 133 yards, including a crucial third quarter 39-yard reception that kept a scoring drive alive. The Jets kept rushing Snell to their strong left, rushing off tackle with Boozer blocking the linebacker, and gained first down after first down as the Colts defense gave ground. The Colts defense was more concerned about Maynard, the passing game, and the deep threat of a Namath to Maynard touchdown. Although the Colts were unaware of Maynard's injury, the Jets were aware that Lyles had been weakened by tonsillitis all week, causing them great glee when they saw the one-on-one matchup with Sauer.

With less than two minutes left in the period, Colts punter David Lee booted a 51-yard kick that pinned the Jets back at their own 4-yard line. Three plays later, Sauer caught a 3-yard pass from Namath, but fumbled while being tackled by Lyles, and Colts linebacker Ron Porter recovered it at New York's 12-yard line. However, on third down (the second play of the second quarter) Baltimore quarterback Earl Morrall's pass was tipped by Jets linebacker Al Atkinson, bounced crazily, high into the air off tight end Tom Mitchell, and was intercepted by Jets cornerback Randy Beverly in the end zone for a touchback. "That was the game in a nutshell," says Matte. Starting from their own 20-yard line, Snell rushed on the next 4 plays, advancing the ball 26 yards. The Jets would have success all day running off left tackle behind the blocking of Winston Hill, who, according to Snell, was overpowering 36-year-old defensive end Ordell Braase, the man who had tormented the rookie Hill in Colts' training camp. Said Snell, "Braase pretty much faded out." Namath later completed 3 consecutive passes, moving the ball to the Colts 23-yard line. Jet's RB Boozer gained just 2 yards on the next play, but Snell followed it up with a 12-yard reception at the 9-yard line, a 5-yard run to the 4-yard line, and capped the drive with a 4-yard touchdown run, once again off left tackle. The score gave the Jets a 7-0 lead, and marked the first time in history that an AFL team led in the Super Bowl.

On Baltimore's ensuing drive, a 30-yard completion from Morrall to running back Tom Matte helped the Colts advance to the New York 42-yard line, but they once again failed to score as Jets cornerback Johnny Sample broke up Morrall's third down pass and Michaels' missed his second field goal attempt, this time from 46 yards. Two plays after the Jets took over following the missed field goal, Namath's 36-yard completion to Sauer enabled to New York to eventually reach the Baltimore 32-yard line. But Namath then threw two incompletions, then was sacked on third down by Colts linebacker Dennis Gaubatz for a 2-yard loss. New York kicker Jim Turner tried to salvage the drive with a 41-yard field goal attempt, but he missed.

On their ensuing possession, Baltimore went from their own 20-yard line to New York's 15-yard line in three plays, aided by Matte's Super Bowl record 58-yard run. But with 2 minutes left in the half, Morrall was intercepted again, at the Jets' 2-yard line, deflating the Colts considerably. The Jets then were forced to punt on their ensuing drive, and the Colts advanced the ball to New York's 41-yard line. What followed is one of the most famous plays in Super Bowl history. Baltimore tried a flea flicker play, which had a huge impact on the momentum of the game. Matte ran off right tackle after taking a handoff, then pitched the ball back to Morrall. The play completely fooled the NBC Camera Crew, and the Jets defense, leaving receiver Jimmy Orr wide open near the end zone. However, Morrall failed to spot him and instead threw a pass intended for running back Jerry Hill that was intercepted by Jets safety Jim Hudson as time expired, maintaining the Jets' 7-0 lead at halftime. Earlier in the season, against the Atlanta Falcons, on the same play, Morrall had completed the same pass for a touchdown to Orr, the play's intended target. "I was the primary receiver," Orr said later. "Earl said he just didn't see me. I was open from here to Tampa." "I'm just a lineman, but I looked up and saw Jimmy open", added center Bill Curry. "I don't know what happened."

2nd half
The third quarter belonged to the Jets, who controlled the ball for all but three minutes of the period. Baltimore ran only seven offensive plays all quarter, gaining only 11 yards. Matte lost a fumble on the first play from scrimmage in the second half, yet another demoralizing event, which led to Turner's 32-yard field goal to increase the Jets' lead, 10-0. Then, after forcing the Colts to punt again, Namath completed 4 passes for 40 yards to set up Turner's 30-yard field goal to increase the lead, 13-0. On that drive, Namath temporarily went out of the game after injuring his right thumb, and was replaced by backup quarterback Babe Parilli for a few plays. Namath returned by the end of the third quarter, but the Jets would not run a pass play for the entire fourth quarter.

Matt Snell said, "By this time, the Colts were pressing. You saw the frustration and worry on all their faces." After Turner's second field goal, with 4 minutes left in the third quarter, Colts head coach Don Shula took Morrall out of the game and put in the sore-armed Johnny Unitas to see if he could provide a spark to Baltimore's offense. Unitas could not get the Colts offense moving on their next drive and they were forced to punt again after 3 plays. Then, aided by a 39-yard pass from Namath to Sauer, the Jets drove all the way to the Colts 2-yard line. Baltimore's defense wouldn't quit, and kept them out of the end zone. Turner kicked his third field goal early in the final period to make the score 16-0.

On Baltimore's next possession, they managed to drive all the way to the Jets' 25-yard line. However, Beverly ended the drive by intercepting a pass from Unitas in the end zone, the Jets' fourth interception of the game. New York then drove to the Colts 35-yard line with 7 consecutive running plays, but ended up with no points after Turner missed a 42-yard field goal attempt.

Unitas started out the next drive with 3 incomplete passes, but completed a key 17-yard pass to Orr on fourth down. Ten plays later, aided by three Jets penalties, Baltimore finally scored a touchdown on a 1-yard run by Hill to cut their deficit to 16-7, but with only 3:19 left in the game. The Colts then recovered an onside kick and drove to the Jets 19-yard line with 3 consecutive completions by Unitas, but they turned the ball over on downs after his next 3 passes fell incomplete. That ended any chance of a Baltimore comeback, as the Jets ran the ball for 6 plays before being forced to punt.

When the Colts got the ball back, only 8 seconds remained in the game. The Colts then attempted two final passes before time ran out, and the Jets had won Super Bowl III. Matt Snell said, "Leaving the field, I saw the Colts were exhausted and in a state of shock. I don't remember any Colt coming over to congratulate me." As he ran off the field, Namath, in a spontaneous show of defiance held up his index finger, signaling "number one."

Years later Morrall said, "I thought we would win handily. We'd only lost twice in our last 30 games. I'm still not sure what happened that day at the Orange Bowl, however; it's still hard to account for." Wrote Matt Snell, "The most distinct image I have from that whole game is of Ordell Braase and some other guys--not so much Mike Curtis--having a bewildered look."

Namath finished the game having completed 17 of his 28 passes. He is the only quarterback to win Super Bowl MVP without throwing a touchdown pass. Snell rushed for 121 yards on 30 carries with a touchdown, and caught 4 passes for 40 yards. Sauer caught eight passes for 133 yards. Beverly became the first player in Super Bowl history to record 2 interceptions. Morrall had a terrible day—just 6 of 17 completions for 71 yards, and was intercepted 3 times. Despite not being put into the game until the fourth quarter, Unitas finished with more pass completions (11) and passing yards (110) than Morrall, but he also threw one interception. Matte was the Colts' top rusher with 116 yards on just 11 carries, an average of 10.5 yards per run, and caught 2 passes for 30 yards. The Colts were minus-4 in turnovers, four of five deep in Jet territory.

Final statistics
Source:The NFL's Official Encyclopedic History of Professional Football, (1973), p. 141, Macmillan Publishing Co. New York, NY, LCCN 73-3862

Starting lineups
Source:

Officials

 * Referee: Tom Bell (NFL) #7
 * Umpire: Walt Parker (AFL) #25
 * Head Linesman: George Murphy (NFL) #30
 * Line Judge: Cal Lepore (AFL) #72
 * Field Judge: Joe Gonzalez (NFL) #54
 * Back Judge: Jack Reader (AFL) #42

Note: A seven-official system was not used until 1978