On This Day: NY Jets Upset Baltimore Colts In Super Bowl 3

Joe Namath predicted a win for the heavy underdogs.
On This Day: NY Jets Upset Baltimore Colts In Super Bowl 3
Credit: screengrab
By John Amato — January 12, 2026

The AFL merged with the NFL in 1970 so this was a big moment in pro-football.

Many sports writers consider this the greatest upset in professional sports history.

On January 12, 1969, at the Orange Bowl in Miami, the New York Jets of the American Football League defeat the NFL's Baltimore Colts, 16-7, in Super Bowl III—a result considered one of the biggest upsets in sports history. Days earlier, Jets quarterback Joe Namath guaranteed a victory by New York, an 18-point underdog.

The first Superbowl I watched as a kid was Kansas City vs Minnesota in 1970.

The NFL has blocked all embeds of Super Bowl 3. Click here for the full game.

Open thread.

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