09/09/2025
Johnny Unitas & Joe Namath 🏈
Johnny Unitas "Johnny U" and "the Golden Arm"
Unitas was considered the prototype of the modern era marquee quarterback and is regarded as one of the greatest NFL players of All time.
During his Professional career from 1956 to 1973, Unitas set many NFL records and was named Most Valuable Player three times in 1959, 1964, and 1967, in addition to receiving 10 Pro Bowl and five first-team All-Pro honors. He helped lead the Colts to four championship titles; three in the pre-merger era in 1958, 1959, and 1968, and one in the Super Bowl era in Super Bowl V. His first championship victory is regarded as one of the league's greatest games and is credited with helping popularize the NFL. Between 1956 and 1960, he set the record for most consecutive games with a touchdown pass at 47, which held for 52 years. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1979.
Unitas is one of only six players to be named to the NFL's 50th, 75th and 100th Anniversary All-Time Teams, one of the others being his Baltimore Colts teammate Gino Marchetti. He led the league in fourth quarter comebacks in six seasons, more than any other quarterback. He is credited with perfecting the two-minute drill.
1958: "The Greatest Game Ever Played"
Unitas continued his prowess in 1958 passing for 2,007 yards and 19 touchdowns as the Colts won the Western Conference title. The Colts won the NFL championship under his Leadership on December 28, 1958, by defeating the New York Giants 23–17 in sudden death overtime on a touchdown by fullback Alan Ameche. It was the first overtime game in NFL history, and is often referred to as the "greatest game ever played". The game, nationally televised by NBC, has been credited for sparking the rise in popularity of professional football during the 1960s.
With the Colts fresh off back-to-back championships, Unitas was lauded by rookie head coach of the Green Bay Packers, Vince Lombardi, who said of the 26-year-old signal caller: "Without him, they're just ordinary. With him, they're great. He's the best quarterback I've ever seen."
Super Bowl champion (V)
3× NFL champion (1958, 1959, 1968)
3× NFL Most Valuable Player (1959, 1964, 1967)
NFL Man of the Year (1970)
5× First-team All-Pro (1958, 1959, 1964, 1965, 1967)
3× Second-team All-Pro (1957, 1960, 1963)
10× Pro Bowl (1957–1964, 1966, 1967)
4× NFL passing yards leader (1957, 1959, 1960, 1963)
4× NFL passing touchdowns leader (1957–1960)
2× NFL Passer rating leader (1958, 1965)
NFL completion percentage leader (1967)
NFL 1960s All-Decade Team
NFL 50th Anniversary All-Time Team
NFL 75th Anniversary All-Time Team
NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team
3× Bert Bell Award (1959, 1964, 1967)
Baltimore Colts No. 19 retired
Louisville Cardinals No. 16 retired
Pro Football Hall of Fame
There is a Difference between conceit and confidence. Conceit is bragging about yourself. Confidence means you believe you can get the job done. - Johnny Unitas
Joe Namath, Nicknamed "Broadway Joe", is an American Former Professional football quarterback who played in the American Football League (AFL) and National Football League (NFL) for 13 seasons. He spent the majority of his Career with the New York Jets. Namath played college football for the Alabama Crimson Tide, where he won the national Championship as a senior, and was selected by the Jets first overall in the 1965 AFL Draft.
During his five AFL seasons, Namath was a two-time MVP and twice led the league in Passing yards, while winning One AFL championship and one Super Bowl. Both victories remain the Jets' Only championships. Following the 1970 AFL–NFL merger, he joined the NFL with the Jets, where he was the League's passing yards and touchdowns leader during the 1972 Season. He played in New York for seven more seasons and spent his final Year as a Member of the Los Angeles Rams.
Namath Cemented His Legacy in 1969 when he guaranteed his heavy underdog Jets would win Super Bowl III before defeating the NFL's Baltimore Colts in one of the greatest sports upsets of all time. The Super Bowl victory was the first for an AFL franchise, helping dismiss notions that its teams Were inferior to the NFL's and demonstrating they would enter the merger as equals. Namath received Super Bowl MVP honors in the game, while also becoming the first quarterback to win both a college national championship and a major professional championship. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1985.
Super Bowl champion (III)
AFL champion (1968)
Super Bowl MVP (III)
AFL Championship MVP (1968)
AFL Most Valuable Player (1968)
NFL Comeback Player of the Year (1974)
AFL Rookie of the Year (1965)
First-team All-AFL (1968)
Second-team All-Pro (1972)
3× Second-team All-AFL (1966, 1967, 1969)
Pro Bowl (1972)
4× AFL All-Star (1965, 1967–1969)
NFL passing yards leader (1972)
2× AFL passing yards leader (1966, 1967)
NFL passing touchdowns leader (1972)
George Halas Award (1969)
AFL All-Time Team
New York Jets Ring of Honor
New York Jets No. 12 retired
National champion (1964)
First-team All-SEC (1964)
2× Second-team All-SEC (1962, 1963)
Pro Football Hall of Fame
