1973 New York Jets season

1973 New York Jets season
Head coach	Weeb Ewbank
Owner	Leon Hess
Home field	Shea Stadium
Results
Record	4–10
Division place	4th AFC East
Playoff finish	did not qualify

The 1973 New York Jets season was the 14th season for the team and the fourth in the National Football League. It began with the team trying to improve upon its 7–7 record from 1972 under head coach Weeb Ewbank. The Jets finished with a record of 4–10. This season is the final season under head coach Weeb Ewbank.

The memorandum of understanding signed by team original owner (as the New York Titans) Harry Wismer gave Shea Stadium's co-tenants, the New York Mets, exclusive use of the stadium until they had completed their season. The Jets were required to open 1973 with several road games. As the Mets had a long playoff run to the World Series, the Jets' first six games were on the road.^[1][2]

The Jets playing host to the Buffalo Bills at Shea Stadium during a 1973 home game.

Regular season

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Game site	Attendance
1	1973-09-17	at Green Bay Packers	L 23–7	Milwaukee County Stadium	47,124
2	1973-09-23	at Baltimore Colts	W 34–10	Memorial Stadium	55,942
3	1973-09-30	at Buffalo Bills	L 9–7	Rich Stadium	77,425
4	1973-10-07	at Miami Dolphins	L 31–3	Miami Orange Bowl	63,850
5	1973-10-14	at New England Patriots	W 9–7	Schaefer Stadium	58,659
6	1973-10-21	at Pittsburgh Steelers	L 26–14	Three Rivers Stadium	48,682
7	1973-10-28	Denver Broncos	L 40–28	Shea Stadium	55,108
8	1973-11-04	Miami Dolphins	L 24–14	Shea Stadium	57,791
9	1973-11-11	New England Patriots	W 33–13	Shea Stadium	51,034
10	1973-11-18	at Cincinnati Bengals	L 20–14	Riverfront Stadium	55,745
11	1973-11-25	Atlanta Falcons	L 28–20	Shea Stadium	47,283
12	1973-12-02	Baltimore Colts	W 20–17	Shea Stadium	51,167
13	1973-12-09	at Philadelphia Eagles	L 24–23	Veterans Stadium	34,621
14	1973-12-16	Buffalo Bills	L 34–14	Shea Stadium	47,740

Schedule notes:

• The October 14 game vs. the Patriots was originally scheduled to be played in New York, but due to the New York Mets' involvement in the World Series, the sites for that game and the November 11 rematch were switched.
• The October 21 game vs. the Steelers was originally scheduled to be played in New York, but was moved to Pittsburgh due to the Mets' ongoing participation in the World Series.

Season summary

Week 2

1 2 3 4 Total • Jets 3 0 10 21 34 Colts 3 7 0 0 10 Date: September 23 Location: Memorial Stadium • Baltimore, Maryland Game start: 1:00 p.m. EST Game attendance: 55,942 Game weather: 71°F • Wind 10

Scoring summary 1 NYJ Bobby Howfield 22 yard field goal Jets 3–0 1 BAL George Hunt 17 yard field goal Tie 3–3 2 BAL Glenn Doughty 23 yard pass from Bert Jones (George Hunt kick) Colts 10–3 3 NYJ Eddie Bell 12 yard pass from Al Woodall (Bobby Howfield kick) Tie 10–10 3 NYJ Bobby Howfield 16 yard field goal Jets 13–10 4 NYJ Emerson Boozer 1 yard pass from Al Woodall (Bobby Howfield kick) Jets 20–10 4 NYJ Ralph Baker 22 yard interception return (Bobby Howfield kick) Jets 27–10 4 NYJ Rich Sowells 30 yard interception return (Bobby Howfield kick) Jets 34–10

^[3]

Week 5

1 2 3 4 Total • Jets 3 0 3 3 9 Patriots 0 0 7 0 7 Date: October 14 Location: Schaefer Stadium, Foxboro, Massachusetts Game start: 1:00 p.m. Game weather: 64°F, wind 23 mph

Scoring summary 1 NYJ Bobby Howfield 40 yard field goal Jets 3–0 3 NYJ Bobby Howfield 39 yard field goal Jets 6–0 3 NE Will Foster recovered fumble in end zone (Jeff White kick) Patriots 7–6 4 NYJ Bobby Howfield 22 yard field goal Jets 9–7

^[4]

Standings

AFC East
	W	L	T	PCT	DIV	CONF	PF	PA	STK
Miami Dolphins	12	2	0	.857	7–1	9–2	343	150	W1
Buffalo Bills	9	5	0	.643	6–2	7–4	259	230	W4
New England Patriots	5	9	0	.357	1–7	3–8	258	300	L2
New York Jets	4	10	0	.286	4–4	4–7	240	306	L2
Baltimore Colts	4	10	0	.286	2–6	2–9	226	341	W2

^[5]

References

1. Ryczek, pp. 158-159
2. Chastain, pp. 87–88
3. Pro-Football-Reference.com
5. NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York,NY, ISBN 0-7611-2480-2, p. 296

Bibliography

Ryczek, William J. (2009). Crash of the Titans: The Early Years of the New York Jets and the AFL (revised ed.). Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Co. ISBN 978-0-7864-4126-6. Chastain, Bill (2010). 100 Things Jets Fans Should Know & Do Before They Die. Chicago: Triumph Books. ISBN 978-1-60078-522-1.

External links

• 1973 statistics