Right from the start of his professional career his knees were in bad shape: he couldn't run the way some quarterbacks could; and he got rid of the football when he was in trouble, to avoid further damage from onrushing linemen. That's what the critics were saying about Joe Willie Namath, the 427,000-dollar-a-year rookie, during his first season with the New York Jets. But Joe made those critics eat their words by winning the 1965 Rookie of the Year award on the strength of a marvelous throwing arm and a display of guts and cool under pressure.

Despite his weaknesses, there was something about the 6' 2", 200-lb University of Alabama star that stamped him as "great". It might have been the magical way he could spot a receiver and hit him with a perfect pass. Or perhaps it was the fact that although his banged-up legs underwent one operation after another, he still came back to the gridiron wars. Joe gave his all whether his team was in contention for the playoffs or just going through the motions of a poor season. In good years or bad, he never complained, even though he knew he could have been No. 1 with any of several other teams that fielded devastating offensive lines—the kind of protection the Jets seldom gave him.

It wasn't until the 1968-69 season —his fifth as a pro—that Namath was finally surrounded by a team of really strong offensive and defensive squads, and that was all he needed to establish himself as a king among quarterbacks. Balancing the Jets' running game with a slingshot passing attack, he spearheaded the New Yorkers to the American Football League title. Then, against the rock-hard NFL champion Baltimore Colts-18 point favorites—Joe led the Jets to a Super Bowl win that put the AFL on a par with its NFL rivals for the first time.

JOE NAMATH Born May 31, 1943, Beaver Falls, Pa.

AWARDS AND RECORDS
AFL Rookie of the Year (1965)
Most yards gained passing, season (1967), 4,007
Most games 300-plus yards, passing, season (1967), 6

Photo: Where to, now?