In a project spearheaded by staff writer Matthew Verderame, SI identified the Top 50 Most Influential Teams in NFL History. The 1968 New York Jets headlined the list at No. 1 overall. The 1958 Baltimore Colts finished second followed by the undefeated 1972 Miami Dolphins in third.

Widely viewed as inferior to the NFL in terms of talent and on-field product, the AFL needed to establish legitimacy with a league merger on the horizon. After defeating the Oakland Raiders, 27-23, to secure the 1968 AFL title, quarterback Joe Namath and the underdog Jets earned the chance to face the mighty Colts in the third-ever NFL vs. AFL Championship Game now known as the Super Bowl.

Head coach Don Shula and the Colts were juggernauts in the NFL, heavily favored over the AFL’s Jets, who were led by former Baltimore boss Web Ewbank. In 1968, the Colts rolled through the regular season to the tune of a 13-1 record before blasting the Cleveland Browns, 34-0, in the NFL title tilt.

Despite being double-digit underdogs, the flashy Namath guaranteed a win for the Jets, predicting what would become one of the biggest upsets in sports history. On January 12, 1969, the Jets made good on Namath’s guarantee by controlling the tempo in a wire-to-wire 16-7 victory.

Jets’ current quarterback Aaron Rodgers, a four-time NFL MVP, made it a point to pay homage to the legendary Namath and the 1968 team during his introductory press conference in April 2023.

“It’s being a part of something special,” said Rodgers. “I grew up watching old VHS tapes of the Super Bowls and so, obviously, I know about ‘the guarantee’ and Broadway Joe. It’s been a while since then. I noticed walking in this morning that the Super Bowl III trophy is looking a little lonely.”

The hope is for Rodgers to lift the Jets back to their status of yesteryear. The high-flying 1968 Jets averaged 29.9 points per outing, eclipsing 30-point mark in seven of 14 regular season games.

“While the 1970 AFL-NFL merger had already been agreed upon, the Jets’ victory is the most important in pro football history. The Jets showed the AFL was on par, something hammered home the following year by the ’69 Chiefs, who pummeled the Vikings—13-point favorites—in Super Bowl IV. Instead of the merger being seen as a necessary business decision that could hurt the sport from a competition standpoint, it established the AFL’s superiority over the best the NFL had to offer for the second consecutive year.Moreover, the upset in Super Bowl III sparked additional interest in the AFL and the merger, giving a boost to a sport that was taking over the country by the late 1960s.”