# 1970 New York Jets season

The 1970 New York Jets season was the 11th season for the team and the first in the National Football League, following the AFL–NFL merger. It began with the team trying to maintain or improve upon its 10–4 record from 1969 under head coach Weeb Ewbank. The Jets finished with a record of 4–10. One of the highlights of the season was the Jets' first game when they appeared on the first ever Monday Night Football game vs. the Cleveland Browns. The Jets lost the game 31–21. In the fifth game of the season, quarterback Joe Namath was lost for the season when he broke his wrist vs. the Baltimore Colts in Shea Stadium, the first meeting between the teams since Namath guaranteed victory in Super Bowl III. Namath's injury occurred when he hit his hand on the helmet of Colts defensive tackle Fred Miller. With Namath on the sidelines, the Jets were forced to play untested Al Woodall, who guided New York to upsets of NFC powerhouses Los Angeles and Minnesota, but only one other victory, over the lowly Boston Patriots.

## Offseason
### Draft

1970 New York Jets draft :
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | College |
| 1 | 20 | Steve Tannen | Defensive back | Florida |
| 2 | 46 | Rich Caster * | Wide receiver | Jackson State |
| 3 | 72 | Dennis Onkotz | Linebacker | Penn State |
| 4 | 98 | John Ebersole | Linebacker | Penn State |
| 5 | 108 | Cliff McClain | Running back | South Carolina State |
| 5 | 124 | Gary Arthur | Tight end | Miami (OH) |
| 6 | 150 | Terry Stewart | Defensive back | Arkansas |
| 7 | 176 | James Williams | Defensive back | Virginia State |
| 8 | 187 | Jack Porter | Guard | Oklahoma |
| 8 | 202 | Mark Lomas | Defensive end | Northern Arizona |
| 9 | 228 | Eddie Bell | Wide receiver | Idaho State |
| Made roster † Pro Football Hall of Fame * Made at least one Pro Bowl during career ||||||

## Schedule

| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance | Recap |
| 1 | September 21 | at Cleveland Browns | L 21–31 | 0–1 | Cleveland Stadium | 85,703 | Recap |
| 2 | September 27 | at Boston Patriots | W 31–21 | 1–1 | Harvard Stadium | 36,040 | Recap |
| 3 | October 4 | at Buffalo Bills | L 31–34 | 1–2 | War Memorial Stadium | 46,206 | Recap |
| 4 | October 10 | Miami Dolphins | L 6–20 | 1–3 | Shea Stadium | 62,712 | Recap |
| 5 | October 18 | Baltimore Colts | L 22–29 | 1–4 | Shea Stadium | 63,301 | Recap |
| 6 | October 25 | Buffalo Bills | L 6–10 | 1–5 | Shea Stadium | 62,712 | Recap |
| 7 | November 1 | New York Giants | L 10–22 | 1–6 | Shea Stadium | 63,903 | Recap |
| 8 | November 8 | at Pittsburgh Steelers | L 17–21 | 1–7 | Three Rivers Stadium | 50,028 | Recap |
| 9 | November 15 | at Los Angeles Rams | W 31–20 | 2–7 | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum | 76,378 | Recap |
| 10 | November 22 | Boston Patriots | W 17–3 | 3–7 | Shea Stadium | 61,822 | Recap |
| 11 | November 29 | Minnesota Vikings | W 20–10 | 4–7 | Shea Stadium | 62,333 | Recap |
| 12 | December 6 | Oakland Raiders | L 13–14 | 4–8 | Shea Stadium | 62,905 | Recap |
| 13 | December 13 | at Miami Dolphins | L 10–16 | 4–9 | Miami Orange Bowl | 75,099 | Recap |
| 14 | December 19 | at Baltimore Colts | L 20–35 | 4–10 | Memorial Stadium | 60,240 | Recap |
| Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text. ||||||||

## Standings

AFC East :
| viewtalkedit | W | L | T | PCT | DIV | CONF | PF | PA | STK |
| Baltimore Colts | 11 | 2 | 1 | .846 | 6–1–1 | 8–2–1 | 321 | 234 | W4 |
| Miami Dolphins | 10 | 4 | 0 | .714 | 6–2 | 8–3 | 297 | 228 | W6 |
| New York Jets | 4 | 10 | 0 | .286 | 2–6 | 2–9 | 255 | 286 | L3 |
| Buffalo Bills | 3 | 10 | 1 | .231 | 3–4–1 | 3–7–1 | 204 | 337 | L5 |
| Boston Patriots | 2 | 12 | 0 | .143 | 2–6 | 2–9 | 149 | 361 | L3 |
    Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.