Wikipedia:Today's featured article/September 12, 2011



The history of the New York Jets American football team began in 1959 with the founding of the Titans of New York, of the American Football League (AFL). The team had little success in its early years. In January 1965, New York signed University of Alabama quarterback Joe Namath (pictured), and showed gradual improvement in the late 1960s, posting its first winning record in 1967 and winning its only American Football League championship in 1968. By winning the title, the team earned the right to play in Super Bowl III against the champions of the National Football League, the Baltimore Colts. The Jets defeated the Colts in the game, improving public perception of the AFL as the two leagues prepared to merge. In the following years, New York had limited success, enduring a string of disastrous seasons. In 1997, the Jets hired two-time Super Bowl winning coach Bill Parcells. The new coach guided the team to its most successful season since the merger: in 1998, the Jets finished with twelve wins and four losses, reaching the AFC Championship Game. The team made five playoff appearances in the 2000s, their most of any decade. In 2009 and 2010, under coach Rex Ryan, the Jets achieved back-to-back appearances in the AFC Championship Game, losing to the Indianapolis Colts and Pittsburgh Steelers. (more...)

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