The Game That Changed Pro Football

If you are an AFL fan from the baby-boomer generation, a football historian or a Jets fan this is a great book to read. It IS the game that changed pro-football simply for that fact that the Jets victory earned the AFL the respect and notoriety that eluded them in the first two AFL vs. NFL championship games. This was the first officially name SUPER BOWL - now known as Super Bowl III. The book is well laid out and takes you through the first rag-tag days of the NY Titans under the ownership of Harry Wismer (1960-62) to the rejuvenating new ownership in 1963 of Sonny Werblin, his renaming of the franchise and his signing of Joe "Willie" Namath by out bidding the NFL (he also signed Matt Snell a year earlier away from the NFL Giants who coveted him). The player interviews and insights of the 1968 season, the build up to SB3 the descriptions of the plays and the game strategies by several players are outstanding and gives the reader a look at several different points-of-view for the same play. Many candid comments from the losing Baltimore Colt players are equally insightful and adds tremendously to the credibility of the book. I admire those Colt players interviewed for really giving the Jets and the AFL their rightful credit and due for their talent, tenacity and what they accomplished - which proves that the hype, point spread and lack of respect shown to the AFL going into the game was mostly media generated and driven by people who really didn't understand the two leagues differences and similarities and just wanted to discredit the AFL. (Hey, how many NFL teams COULD beat the Packers in '66 and '67 when they were a combined 21-6-1?) I LOVED READING THIS BOOK because of its insight,interviews and its analysis - and even went back and watched Super Bowl III to see the game as described by the players in the book. Remember the AFL!