On This Date in Sports November 10, 1974: New York New York in New Haven
In collaboration with the Sportsecyclopedia.com
In their second regular-season meeting, the New York Jets defeat the New York Giants 26-20 in overtime at the Yale Bowl. It was just the second regular-season overtime game and the first that had a winner, as Emerson Boozer caught a five-yard pass from Joe Namath to win the game. Namath had tied the game in the fourth quarter with a rare three-yard touchdown run.
It was a dark time for New York football. The New York Giants lived a vagabond experience, playing in New Haven, Connecticut, at the Yale Bowl for the second straight season. The Giants were forced out of Yankee Stadium, which was closed for renovations in 1973. The Giants had agreed to move to the Meadowlands in New Jersey, but their new stadium was two years from completion. The Giants had not made the playoffs in a decade and were again struggling at 2-6 under new coach Bill Arnsparger.
The New York Jets were also struggling, having not made the playoffs since the merger. Like the Giants, the Jets had a first-year coach in Charley Winner. Through the first part of the season, Winner was anything but as the Jets held a record of 1-7 entering their Week 9 meeting with the Giants.
The 1974 season was the first season to have overtime in the regular season. The first regular-season overtime game decided nothing as the Denver Broncos and Pittsburgh Steelers played to a 35-35 tie in Week 2 on September 22nd. The Jets and Giants meeting in Week 9 of the 1974 season was their second regular-season meeting. In 1970, the Giants defeated the Jets 22-10 at Shea Stadium. The Giants came into the game after a road win against the Kansas City Chiefs in Craig Morton’s first start with Big Blue, while the Jets had six straight losses, including four at Shea Stadium.
The Jets drew first blood as David Knight caught a 19-yard pass from Joe Namath. The Giants got a field goal from Pete Gogolak and trailed 7-3 at the end of 15 minutes. The Giants found the end zone in the second quarter as Morton connected with Bob Tucker from the two. The Jets would tie the game on a 34-yard field goal by Pat Leahy, only for Gogolak to answer and give the Giants a 13-10 advantage at the end of the first half. After a field goal by Leahy tied the game in the third quarter, the Giants answer again as Bob Grim caught a 12-yard pass from Craig Morton. In the fourth quarter, the Jets tied the game when Joe Namath had a three-yard bootleg in the end zone and held his hand up as he scored out of fear of getting hit.
In overtime, the Giants got the ball first but could not score, as Pete Gogolak missed a game-winning field goal attempt. The Jets would not miss their shot at winning the game, as Joe Namath connected with Emerson Boozer from the five to win the game 26-20. Both quarterbacks had identical stats: Namath completed 20 of 31 passes for 236 yards, with two touchdowns, while Craig Morton was 21 of 32 for 237 yards and two scores.
The Jets would use the win over the Giants to turn their season around as they finished 7-7, while the Giants lost their remaining games and finished 2-12.