Joe namath biography nfl salary

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On January 2, 1965, Joe Namath, star quarterback of the Alabama Crimson Tide, signed a contract to play professional football with the AFL’s New York Jets. Certainly, numerous other college players from around the country were signing contracts with AFL and NFL teams as that new year began, but Namath’s was indeed unique. The terms of the deal were astonishing for the time—a three year, no-cut, no-trade agreement that was valued at $427,000, and which included a brand new Lincoln Continental convertible that was custom painted New York Jets green. The 400K figure was not only the largest in the history of professional football; it was, by far, the most money ever paid to an individual in a team sport. By comparison, the average salary that year in the AFL was somewhere between $10,000 and $15,000. Even Major League Baseball legend Mickey Mantle, the New York Yankee’s 3-time MVP award winner, made only $100,000 in 1964.

The reason for Namath’s big contra

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Joe Namath

American football player (born 1943)

American football player

Namath as a rookie with the Jets in 1965
Position:	Quarterback
Born:	(1943-05-31) May 31, 1943 (age 81) Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Height:	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Weight:	200 lb (91 kg)
High school:	Beaver Falls (Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania)
College:	Alabama (1961–1964)
NFL draft:	1965 / round: 1 / pick: 12
AFL draft:	1965 / round: 1 / pick: 1
Pro Football Hall of Fame

Joseph William Namath (; NAY-məth; born May 31, 1943), nicknamed "Broadway Joe", is an American former professional footballquarterback 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,

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Joe Namath spurns NFL to sign record deal with AFL’s New York Jets

On January 2, 1965, spelare i amerikansk fotboll Joe Namath spurns the NFL's St. Louis Cardinals to sign with the American Football League’s New York Jets. The contract, reportedly for $427,000, fryst vatten the most lucrative signed by a rookie in any idrott. The deal with Namath, a star at the University of Alabama for head coach Bear Bryant, is a coup for the AFL.

"I took both teams into consideration," Namath told reporters in Miami Beach, Florida, where he signed the contract. "I wanted more than money. I was interested in the coach and the organization. New York City is a fine place. The sports fans are great and Weeb Ewbank is an outstanding coach."

Said Ewbank: "I see in this ung man the same qualities as [Baltimore Colts star quarterback] Johnny Unitas. He has storlek, quickness, courage and a wonderful arm."

The AFL, founded in July 1959, was willing to do almost anything to lessen the NFL’s grip on the sport. With television con