Menu
1968 AFL
In 1968, the New York Jets (11-3-0) would dominate the Eastern Division by four games over the Houston Oilers (7-7-0). It was a different story in the Western Division, as the Raiders and Chiefs would battle to a 12-2-0 tie atop the division. This would force a playoff between the two teams, and the Raiders would blow out the Chiefs 41-6 in the Western Division Playoff. This would set the stage between the Oakland Raiders and the New York Jets, for the AFL Championship Game, which would be played on December 19, 1968 at Shea Stadium in New York. In the AFL Championship Game, it would be a tight battle throughout, with the Jets, led by QB Joe Namath, coming out on top 27-23, giving them the AFL Championship, and the right to meet the Baltimore Colts in Super Bowl III. Super Bowl III was the third AFL-NFL Championship Game in pro football, the first to officially bear the name "Super Bowl".  The game, played on January 12, 1969, at the Orange Bowl in Miami, Florida, is regarded as one of the greatest upsets in American sports history. The heavy underdog AFL champion New York Jets defeated the NFL champion Baltimore Colts by a score of 16–7. This was the first Super Bowl victory for the AFL. 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 as well as 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. 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 late in the third 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 throwing four interceptions, all of which were deep in Jet territory.
$10.00 inc. tax
Quantity
AFL 1968
Product Code
New
Product Condition
Updating Order Details
Please do not refresh or navigate away from the page!
Related
0 Related Products
Featured Products
1945 NFL
1945 NFL
$10.00
In 1945, the Brooklyn Tigers and the Boston Yanks merged for this one season. The combined team, known...
1953 NFL
1953 NFL
$10.00
For the second year in a row, the Detroit Lions beat the Cleveland Browns for the NFL Championship, despite...
1967 NFL
1967 NFL
$10.00
The league expanded to 16 teams with the addition of the New Orleans Saints. The league's teams were...
1988 NFL
1988 NFL
$10.00
In 1988 the Cardinals relocated from St. Louis, Missouri to the Phoenix, Arizona area becoming the Phoenix...
1985 USFL
1985 USFL
$10.00
1985 was the third and final season for the United States Football League. There were numerous changes...
2010 NFL
2010 NFL
$10.00
In 2010, division winners in the AFC were New England in the East, Pittsburgh in the North, Indianapolis...
1937 AFL
1937 AFL
$10.00
The 1937 was part of the second incarnation of the American Football League. The first incarnation was...
2016 CFL
2016 CFL
$10.00
2016 was truly the year of the Underdog, and was another excellant example for the old expression, "That...
1920 CFL
1920 CFL
$10.00
While football had resumed in 1919 with the end of World War I, no Grey Cup / Dominion Championship had...
1925 CFL
1925 CFL
$10.00
In 1925, Canadian Football consisted of 5 separate leagues, which only competed within its own league...
2018 NFL
2018 NFL
$10.00
In 2018, division winners in the AFC were New England in the East, Baltimore in the North, Houston in...
1929 CFL
1929 CFL
$10.00
In 1929, Canadian Football consisted of 7 separate leagues, which only competed within its own league...
0 items
SubTotal $0.00
Checkout
Product Added to your Cart
x

-------- OR --------