Beyond Broadway Joe: The Super Bowl TEAM That Changed Football – An Oral History of the 1969 Jets and the Historic Upset Over Baltimore

by Bob Lederer

A celebration of the Jets’ 1968 historic Super Bowl team, filled with exclusive insights and stories from the surviving players, coaches, and management

In 1968, Joe Namath, the quarterback of the New York Jets, dominated the headlines as a national celebrity and counterculture figure. The Jets were a vastly talented but underappreciated team that drew constant attention due to Namath, but were not taken seriously by fans. When the Jets earned their way to Super Bowl III to face an eighteen-point favorite Baltimore Colts squad, Namath put all the pressure on himself by shockingly “guaranteeing” a Jets victory. He fulfilled his promise, but knew he didn’t do it alone. As Broadway Joe said in the postgame locker “We’ve got the team, brother.”

In Beyond Broadway The Super Bowl TEAM That Changed Football, thirty-six surviving members of that legendary 1968 team share for the first time their funny, poignant, and insightful personal stories about their Super Bowl teammates and coaches, and the historic win that changed football forever. Readers will learn what Namath’s teammates thought about his “guarantee,” find out what Jets coaches discovered on the field early during Super Bowl III that Namath and the defense used to frustrate the Colts, and delight in how the thirty-nine Jets who took the field each week with Namath enabled him to live up to his Super Bowl vow. Author Bob Lederer reviews head coach Weeb Ewbank’s never-before-seen player evaluations—that they didn’t know existed—and provides a rich history of the Jets franchise, from how these thirty-nine forgotten players became Jets, and the road ten of them took to become AFL all-stars in 1968.

This definitive review of the entire Jets’ Super Bowl team is a must for every Jets diehard, for fans of the old American Football League, and for all who love the game.

Genres: Sports, Football, Nonfiction, History

414 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 11, 2018

Reviews

[Scott · Rating 3 out of 5]

"[Team unity] was crucial to our success . . . I love every player on that team. We're like a bunch of brothers. We didn't have chemistry because we were winning, we won because of the intangibles that come from team chemistry." -- 1969 New York Jets safety Jim Richards (#26), on page 291

Arguably most of the attention from the upset that is known as Super Bowl III - when the upstart AFL team the New York Jets, only a decade into existence, beat the respected old-guard Baltimore Colts of the NFL - was directed towards star quarterback (and Pennsylvania native - woot woot!) Joe Namath, who audaciously declared [sic] "We are going to win on Sunday - I guarantee it" one week prior to the big game. He was able to back up this brashness - or was it simply pure confidence? - because he knew that his hungry team was loaded with the required talent and perseverance.

Beyond Broadway Joe goes behind the scenes to "get up close and personal" (as they used to say on ABC's Wide World of Sports) with the Jets roster and coaching staff from that day on January 12, 1969. While noble in effort, the book was a little too often just 'middle of the road' or somewhat pedestrian in the presentation. Not that things had to be sensationalized here, but at times it lacked a certain pizazz in the tame recounted stories and anecdotes. (For an outstanding example of the genre, I much recommend Rich Cohen's edgy Monsters: The 1985 Chicago Bears and the Wild Heart of Football.) However, author Lederer's opening / closing historical-based segments were first-rate.

[Lance · Rating 4 out of 5]

Even the most casual of football fans, no matter their age, know the story of Super Bowl III. The New York Jets of the upstart American Football League were 17 point underdogs to the Baltimore Colts, champions of the well-established National Football League. The brash quarterback of the Jets, Joe Namath, guaranteed a Jets victory and his team delivered, scoring a 16-7 upset over the Colts and gave the newer league credibility.

However, it takes a team to win a championship in football and that means every member of that team makes contributions to the success that led to the victory. Author Bob Lederer focuses on those other players on the 1968-69 New York Jets and provides stories and insights into those other players as well as Namath, head coach Weeb Ewbank and owner Sonny Werblin – those three individuals are also given their due as the book profiles them after the initial chapter describing the game.

It isn’t easy to compile a collection of stories about football players who either play unglamorous positions (every offensive lineman, for starters), are back-ups at their position and see little game action (such as Namath’s back-up, Babe Parilli) or are now deceased and therefore could not share their recollections firsthand to the author. Nonetheless, Lederer does a wonderful job of writing about each of those “other” players. Not only does he mention the role each player had in making the Jets the champions (even if that player did not appear in the Super Bowl), he provides interesting facts about their professional and personal lives. One common theme for each player was camaraderie as it was clear from reading these stories that these men felt they were a total team and would do anything for each other.

Each player was also graded by the Jets coaching staff on their effort and skills and this grade was explained by the author. Coach Ewbank had report cards for each player and many of these were shared and explained in the book. Hard core football fans will thoroughly enjoy these reports as they will provide insight into just how good this Jets team was and help provide evidence to argue that the victory by New York was not as big an upset as history has told us. Fans of a more casual nature may not catch on to each of these nuances but they still help explain how good a TEAM they were.

This is a must-read for readers who are Jets fans or pro football history buffs. It does provide a different and refreshing viewpoint of a very historic team and game.

I wish to thank Mr. Lederer for providing a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

https://sportsbookguy.blogspot.com/20...

[Tom Gase · Rating 3 out of 5]

This review was really a 3.5 star rating. I enjoyed it and admired the author, Bob Lederer, for trying a different approach with how he wrote this book on the 1968 Jets that won Super Bowl 3 and shocked the world on Jan. 12, 1969 with the upset over the Baltimore Colts. The author describes the season and the game very briefly at the start of the book, but by page 35 or so, that's all over. He's described the whole season, you know what happens. Then he tries something different, which is to write about every single player on the Jets and how they impacted the season and the Super Bowl win. If you're a fan of this team, or remember it more, then this book is a MUST and a five-star book. Sadly for me, I don't remember this team at all and don't know much of the players, so I just didn't enjoy it as much. Although the research is very good by Lederer talking with all the players and something I admire, it falls a little flat at times because you're obviously going to have a bunch of people telling their version, but of the SAME STORY OVER AND OVER AGAIN. That's where the book falls a little short, and there is nothing the author can do about that with the method he used. Like I said, I admire him going against the traditional way of writing a season book, but that's where he's obiviously going to have a problem by having each chapter be a player telling his version of the story. A lot of the stories are repeated. Still, Jet fans will LOVE this book. Especially if you remember the team.

[Ken Heard · Rating 5 out of 5]

This has got to be the most ambitious, well-researched, interesting sports book I've read in quite a while. Mr. Lederer has done an amazing job of getting stories on ALL of the New York Jets who played in the 1968 Super Bowl, upsetting the 18-point favorite Baltimore Colts.

I was 7 when the Jets won; I wasn't really aware of the significance of the game at the time, but was a football fan. I probably rooted for the Colts only because they were in the NFL, the same division as my favorite team the Minnesota Vikings. Mr. Lederer notes that this game was important because, after the Green Bay Packers dominated the first two Super Bowls, wiping Kansas City and Oakland - two AFL teams - there was talk of doing away with the contest between the two leagues. The Jets' victory changed all that. And a year later, the Chiefs beat the Vikings and the validity of the AFL was set.

Mr. Lederer also looks further into the game. Whenever most think of the Jets' Super Bowl win, they automatically think of Joe Namath and his guaranteed victory. Sure, it made headlines and Namath was a flashy character, drawing loads of attention on himself. But the Jets were much more than Namath (in fact, I question if Namath should be a Hall of Fame quarterback. He threw more interceptions than touchdowns in his career and he only really had that one big year). The Jets' defense, built by draft picks, dominated that season, holding teams to about 15 points a game in average.

There are stories for every player and their roles in the Super Bowl game. How can you hold a reader's rapt attention with tales of offensive linemen? Lederer did. Although some of the game recounts could have become repetitive... discussing the same game 36 times may have been difficult, but Mr. Lederer offers fresh takes from different players' perspectives. There are at least three or four different accounts of Tom Matte's bootleg play that the Jets broke up. All are fascinating.

There's also tidbits.. trades, info on players I'd never known about (for example Verlon Biggs was a huge trash talker ala players of this era). Jim Hudson was hit so hard in a game that his heart was moved from its cavity. Later, after recovering, Hudson got bit by a black widow spider.

Like I said, I was never really an AFL fan back in those days. I'm sure it had a lot to do with rooting for the league the Vikings were in and probably my father's own fandom of the Giants over the Jets. But, I really enjoyed this book. Mr. Lederer covers that team and era better than any thing else I've read. Amazing!

The Jets' win was a moment in sports history that's overshadowed by Namath and his guarantee, but if you look deeper, as Lederer did, there's so much more to learn about. This book is a must read on several levels: History, research, sports, culture. I'd give it six stars if Goodreads let me.

[Kevin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Every Jets fan needs to own this book. For the current generation, it’s the scripture of the ancient roots of the franchise and the team that achieved the holy grail. For fans who remember Super Bowl III, it’s a marvelous trip down memory lane combined with a treasure trove of insight and information we never knew and can now be forever grateful to Bob Lederer for giving to us. It’s a gift – the greatest gift any long-suffering Jets fan can get. It belongs on the bookshelf of every green-and-white mancave.

The author provides the obvious and well-known history of the team, the transformation from the Titans to the Jets, the efforts of the original owner, Sonny Werblin, the hiring of Weeb Ewbank and his five-year plan for success, and a detailed account of the drafting and wooing of a franchise quarterback named Namath. He gives us the lead-up to the ’68 season along with the AFL championship game, Namath’s “guarantee” of victory (including some elements of that story that I’d never read before), and the game itself. This alone is an enjoyable remembrance. (At the end of the book, the author gives a play-by-play recounting of Super Bowl III including notes from the involved players.) But that’s just the introduction.

Two things makes this book special – and unique. First, the author puts that Jets team in perspective within the history of the NFL (and the AFL) and how that game and that team changed football. The behind-the-scenes business elements of the league are fascinating and the contextual understanding is mesmerizing. Second – and this is the real meat of the book – the author gives us an up-close and personal look at each member of the team. Not just the stars, but the entire roster. He interviewed thirty-five members of the squad and each player from the offensive linemen to the special teams grunts gets his place in the sun here. It’s not a biography of each person, but it’s a lovingly told biopic of each player’s contribution to the team and to the Super Bowl win. Never before (and certainly never again) will a book about the Jets give us this kind of deep look into everyone involved and show us how each small cog contributed to the ultimate victory.

This is not a book that you sit down and read in one night. You know the outcome. It’s a reference guide – a book you go back to again and again. It’s an inspiration for every player who toiled in obscurity as part of a winning team. It’s a master class in the full scope of teamwork needed to succeed. You can read one story every week for a year and then repeat the cycle again with the expectation that it will be just as meaningful the second time.

Bob Lederer has given us all a gift. Pass it on to the next generation of Jets fans while we all wait for the next Super Bowl victory.

[Andrew Garvey · Rating 4 out of 5]

An impressively researched and conceived piece of oral sporting history, Lederer's (sometimes too) comprehensive look at the entire 1968 Jets team achieves what it sets out to do - brings them out of Joe Namath's long, long shadow. Still, the structure of the book is a bit off. Lederer briefly goes over the events of Super Bowl III before telling the story of that game and (inconsistently and disjointedly) the rest of their 1968 season through the experiences of everyone on the roster and key front office and coaching staff.

Along the way, Lederer covers the Jets' origins as the New York Titans, the hiring of head coach Weeb Ewbank, the acquisition of Namath (whose star power and ticket-selling potential were viewed as far more important than the state of his already-knackered knees) and how each Super Bowl Jet joined the team, what they did in '68 and for the rest of their career in green and white.

This all leads to some fascinating personal and sporting stories (like the Jets and Colts having essentially the same playbooks/calls and no one realising until game day), often told by the players themselves but sometimes told by their teammates and families. But there's a lot of repetition and some eye-watering hyperbole, including the claim that Namath's backup 'Babe' Parilli belongs in the NFL's Hall of Fame. He doesn't. Lederer also goes overboard with how much the Jets' win changed professional football. The NFL-AFL merger was already agreed on long before their upset win. The Jets' win was a historic one, and it improved the standing and bargaining position of the AFL in general but there's no need to go overboard.

Still, this is a fascinating, enjoyable look at one team, at America in the 1960s and at a very, very different sport than the one played today.

[Philip · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bob Lederer writes an excellent account of the New York Jets, nee Titans. Written with a different twist his story reflects on the whole team not just Joe Namath. What is enjoyed in reading this marvelous read is Bob's entire focus is on the entire team. Shockingly, many of these players have passed on to the big stadium in the sky. This is a fluid read in which one gets to know not only the players but the coaches and owners. Sonny Werblin was an owner much like many that followed, an interesting man with his ideas and penchant of bringing a winner to New York. The only Coach to win titles in the NFC and AFC, Weeb Ewbank, comes to life in not only in coaching but configuring the team which finally led to the shocking upset of the Colts. After reading this marvel, it was not shocking or "the canary ate the cat," "the minnow chased the shark," as written by the gifted columnist, Jim Murray. The story of each player, their strengths and weaknesses, their desire, the many frustrations. One thing holds true throughout they were a special group of athletes that changed the face of professional football. Yes! Broadway Joe nailed it not only stating his guaranteed victory, but the way he led and the friendships across racial barriers in a time that was very uncommon.

[John Geary · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting book. I read it back to back with the book, “Joe Namath All the Way.” Like the title sums up, it delves into the entire team that won Super Bowl III in January 1969. The book only spends a few chapters talking about that season and the game itself and then it’s a series of minibiographies of all the key players broken down by offence, defence and special teams, further broken down by position. It also has a section on the coaches and a final chapter about the huge historic impact that the Jets made on the future of the NFL by winning that game.
It was kind of a weird feeling reading it at times, because it just seems every second or third player or coach that I was reading about had already passed away. That’s not necessarily an odd thing if you’re reading a book about sports history; however, because I actually watched that game (Super Bowl III was the first Super Bowl I ever watched) and I saw all those players play, it left me feeling just a little more than just nostalgic. Wistful, melancholy, and maybe even experiencing a little bit of the blues.
Again, I would rate this book higher than a 3 if I could but not quite a 4: it’s a 3.5.

[John Yingling · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was a big fan of the AFL right from the beginning, and then with all the bad-mouthing from old-time NFL people, I was even more vociferous in my defense of the newer league. It hurt to see the Green Bay Packers easily beat the Kansas City Chiefs and Oakland Raiders in the first two Super Bowls. As the third Super Bowl rolled around, I was even more motivated to see an AFL team win, since the Colts beat badly my beloved Cleveland Browns two weeks previously in the NFL Championship game. Needless to say, I was ecstatic when the Jets won, so I was very eager to read this book. It didn't disappoint me in the least, as the author gives the reader a warm, personal look at the team and players. This group of men met the definition of a team, and it was this pulling together for a common cause, as well as hard work and dedication that led them to defeat not only an excellent team, but to assert the quality of a team and a league that would be here to stay. Top notch in every way, touching and riveting, this is a first-rate book.

[Billy Beasley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting story. I was like many kids- a huge Joe Namath fan.

George Sauer, in the 80's showed up where I worked to play in a beach volleyball tournament that our Park put on. No one figured out who he was but me. He was so nice. Volleyball was very competitive and his team that showed up in a beat up van from Charlotte won. Those receiving hands were pretty good on a volleyball court as you could well imagine.

Hard to believe it has been 50 years and my biggest childhood sports memory remains Joe walking near the end with that finger jabbed in the air.

Good job Bob..

[Keith Hamilton · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Very Insightful Read about the Super Bowl Jets

This book reveals insights on every player of the JETS SUPER BOWL TEAM. It contains candid, revealing accounts of players regarding themselves as well as their thoughts and anecdotal comments regarding their teammates, coaches, owners, players from other teams and more. This is a "must read" for JETS FANS!

[Brett Van Gaasbeek · Rating 3 out of 5]

You would need to be a huge fan of the Jets or this specific team in order to really get into this book and enjoy the content. It glosses over the season and Super Bowl and then spends the bulk of the book on individual backstories and recollections from players, their relatives and people around the game. It is tedious reading and not all that gripping to the average football fan.

[Brian · Rating 2 out of 5]

If you are a New York Jets fan this is the book for you. The team’s win in the third Super Bowl is the stuff of legend and led to the merger of the old AFL and the NFL. The author spends a lot of time on the biographies of each player, which almost feels like filler to make a complete book.

[Pat Kamuf · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must read for New York Jet fans! It contains background info on so many of the players and coaches behind the Super Bowl III win. Very concise, a good read.

[Greg M · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book for Jets fanatics!!! I found that the author included details never read in any Jets book I‘be read.

[Pat Betker · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bob Lederer brings to life the 1968 New York Jets and the men who changed the landscape of Professional Football with their iconic victory in Super Bowl III. Fifty years have passed since that glorious season and the men who authored it are back in a way never before presented to take you along on their journey as if it happened yesterday.
Lederer's meticulously research and storytelling make this a book you won't want to put down! Come along for the ride to 1968, The American Football League, and the World Champion New York Jets.