Joe Namath the most underserving player in the Hall of Fame?

Question

Why is Joe Namath in the Hall of Fame? I don't think one game makes you Hall of Fame worthy. Look up his statistics they are horrible. It is like saying Buster Douglas should be in the Hall of Fame of boxing for one good night. Neither should Namath for Superbowl 3 also remember Unitas was out as starting quaterback.

Answer 1

Joe Namath coming out of Alabama played under Paul Bear Bryant. in college he was more of a running quarterback than a passer, mainly because to the system the Tide ran. In his senior bowl game, Namath suffered a his first of many knee injuries. He signed for, what at the time unheard of, $400,000. his signing gave instant credibility to the AFL which it was sorely needing at the time. Agreed, his stats were not that great compared to stats of other QB's, but for the time he played, he was the main star. the year the jets won the SB, he was heads above others. when he was injured, the Jets went nowhere. When Namath was healthy, there were few QBs of his era that were more feared.

PS- Unitas was injured all that season and was in the late stages of his career. he did play in that SuperBowl but was ineffective. Earl Morrell did a fantastic job all season, losing only one game. that is why everyone considered the Colts a heavy favorite.

Answer 2

no he's deserving of being in the hall of fame

Answer 3

Only the ones who vote to put players in the Hall know why Joe is in. He was an average Qb in the league but he got in due to the fact he led and underdog team from an underdog league to become the first SB champs and changed the face of the league for his accomplishment. Thats about the only reason why he ever made it to the Hall Of Fame.  

Answer 4

Chatter Joseph D said it all. Certain players redefine certain positions.

Namath redefined the QB position just as Montana did 15 years later.

Dickerson did just as LT has now done 20 years later.

The HOF isnt just about stats. Its also about those who had the ability to change the face of the game itself, mold it, bring it to another level.

Answer 5

No.  He was the face for the AFL - NFL merger.

oh, yeah, he was only pretty good and without the merger shouldn't be there.  However the merger exists and he gets in for that.

If you want the least deserving HOFer, look up Lynn Swann as compared to his contemporaries.

http://www.profootballhof.com/hof/member...

http://www.pro-football-reference.com/pl...

http://www.profootballhof.com/hof/member...

http://www.profootballhof.com/hof/member...

http://www.pro-football-reference.com/pl...

(to compare with Morgan)

Answer 6

While his career statistics are not exceptional, Namath was the first great modern era quarterback, and by modern I mean he could not only throw the ball, but run it as well (at least until his knees got bad). Namath was the first NFL quarterback to throw for 4,000 yards a season (and he did it in 14 games). No one threw for 4,000 again until Dan Fouts did in the 1979 (a 16 game season). And remember during the day when Namath played there was much less protection giving to both the quarterback and receivers (no such thing as pass interfernece or unsportsmanlike conduct hitting the quaterback after the throw) Namath's play on the field in the years before his knees seriously limited his mobility helped evolve the quarterback position.  And when Namath was inducted (class of 85) all though his stats may not be good under today's standards he was in the top 15 of all passing catagories) Namath has been called one of the 3 smartest quarterbacks of all time, by Coach Don Shula (that's saying something)

Answer 7

Read some football history because you look like an ignorant.

He played in an era when the passing game was developing, obviously a Drew Bledsoe or a Kerry Collins have better numbers than him. This also goes to the guy who said that Lynn Swann doesn't deserve to be in.

5 times All Pro, 2 MVP awards, led the league in yards 3 times and TDs once...and of course, the Super Bowl ring by pulling the biggest upset ever (sorry Giants). And like Joseph said, he was the first to throw 4000 yards in a season and noboby did it again in the following 12 years.

He was a true general on the field and numbers don't show that.

Answer 8

You have gotten some bad stats on Broadway Joe. He gave football a

new hero. I saw Joe play and he was a wily quarterback.

Answer 9

Namath basically brought about the merger with the AFL and NFL with his victory in Super 3. His performance was brilliant and he set the tone for the victory with his bragging and boasting that was followed up by living it out on the field. Broadway Joe was a huge figure in the 60's culture and even bigger in NFL history.

The impact of the Jets victory is profound in NFL history and comparing it to Buster Douglass is totally missing the point.