Matt Snell, a fullback on the New York Jets‘ only Super Bowl championship team, diedTuesday. He was 84.
A three-time Pro Bowler, Snell spent his entire nine-year NFL career (1964-72) with the Jets. He scored the most important touchdown in franchise history as the only man to reach the Baltimore Colts’ end zone in the Jets’ 16-7 victory in Super Bowl III in 1969. It remains the only Super Bowl championship in team history.
Snell arrived in professional football in 1964, at a moment when the sport's balance of power was still unsettled. A fullback out of Ohio State, Snell was selected by the Jets in the first round of the 1964 AFL Draft. The league was still competing for credibility with the NFL, and the Jets were a middling franchise trying to establish an identity.
Snell became part of the foundation. At 6-foot-2 and 220 pounds, he fit the prototype of the era's power back. His value to the Jets was not just in rushing attempts but in versatility. Early in his career he proved to be an effective receiver out of the backfield, an attribute that helped define the Jets' offense when quarterback Joe Namath arrived in 1965.
Snell's best statistical season came in 1967. He rushed for 851 yards and caught 50 passes - a high total for a fullback at the time. That season helped lift the Jets to the AFL championship game, though they fell short against the Oakland Raiders. The loss, however, was a step in the franchise's climb.
By 1968 the Jets had assembled one of the AFL's most balanced offenses. Namath drew most of the attention, but Snell was the offense's stabilizing force. He ran between the tackles, protected the quarterback, and served as a reliable short-yardage option.
His defining performance came in Super Bowl III.
Facing the heavily favored Colts, the Jets leaned on Snell's running to control the pace. He carried the ball 30 times for 121 yards and a touchdown, repeatedly grinding out yardage behind the left side of the line. The sustained drives kept the Colts' offense off the field and allowed the Jets to dictate tempo.
While Namath's famous pregame guarantee came true, Snell's pivotal role in beating the Colts would have made him a credible Most Valuable Player award winner.
Snell remained with the Jets through the 1972 season. Injuries gradually reduced his role, but by then his place in franchise history was secure. He finished his career with 4,285 rushing yards and 1,375 receiving yards - numbers that reflected his indispensible role in the Jets' offense.
After his playing career ended, Snell ran a construction business in Jersey City, not far from where he gained fame in football. But he maintained a distance from the Jets over a rift with the team’s former owner, Leon Hess, who reportedly did not help Snell as a job reference after his playing days ended.
“Matt Snell will forever hold a special place in the history of the New York Jets,” Jets chairman Woody Johnson said in a statement published on the team’s website. “He was the embodiment of toughness, selflessness, and belief - traits that defined our organization’s proudest moments. His performance in Super Bowl III was nothing short of legendary. Against the odds, Matt set the tone with his physical running, delivering the Jets’ lone touchdown and helping secure one of the most important victories in sports history.”
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