Joe Namath has strong message to Jets before pivotal Raiders game

Joe Namath has a stern message for his beloved Jets before their pivotal game against the Raiders: “I’d like to see them play the kind of game to give themselves a chance. Don’t do stupid things like lining up offsides or forgetting the snap count. Or forgetting which way to run,” Namath said. “Don’t beat yourselves to start out with. The opposition’s out there to kick your butt in the first place. You’re making mental mistakes, that’s downright ignorant, and you’re not gonna win.”

In other words: No more stupid Jet tricks.

“The first meeting we ever had as a team with Coach Paul [“Bear” Bryant] at the University of Alabama,” Namath recalled, “we were freshmen, there were 44 of us, and the first things he said, ‘I’m gonna teach y’all how to keep from beating yourselves.’ I came from a high school championship team, we didn’t beat ourselves, I didn’t know what he meant. You gotta be disciplined out there, your mind can’t be wandering around. The focus is not always in the right direction.”

Namath understands why the Jets keep Zach Wilson in the game despite his shortcomings. “Is the backup as good as Zach? No, or he wouldn’t be the backup,” Namath said.

The animosity that was prevalent between the Jets and Raiders back in the day has faded over the decades, but with so much at stake for the 4-4 Jets, it would be a good idea for them to show up with the kind of mindset Namath’s Jets did when they lined up against the trash-talking Silver and Black. “Well, it’s gonna be a fight,” Namath recalled, adding with a laugh, “We knew we had to be mean, too. You did everything you could to win. You just knew it was gonna be a real grudge match, a real battle personality-wise, because they had some talkers. Phil Villapiano, you had to love Phil Villapiano. He was a big communicator on the field, not only with their team but with us, with me, with our team, and always had a smile out there.”

Namath has fond memories of Al Davis, despite legendary former Raiders owner’s reputation for doing anything to win. “He was terrific,” Namath said. “He had a great smile. You didn’t trust him because of Weeb Ewbank. But he was out to win. He was gonna win any way he could, including guys accusing [placekicker] George Blanda of taking air out of the ball so he could kick it better. He was kind of like a pirate or something. He was trying to get every bit of information out of you that he could when we were talking away from the field.”

The Jets went on to become the first AFL team to win the world championship, a victory that Namath claimed was important “for the league.”

Reference

John Smith

ohn Smith is your NFL insider, providing in-depth coverage of football’s biggest league. With a passion for the game and a keen eye for statistics, John delivers game analysis, player profiles, and breaking news to keep readers updated on all things NFL.