New York Jets: Five losses worse than Thursday night

Head coach Todd Bowles of the New York Jets (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images)
Head coach Todd Bowles of the New York Jets (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
2 of 6
Next

Embed from Getty Images

The Mud Bowl

More from Empire Writes Back

This is one Jets fans that were alive will never forget.

It was the 1982 season and it was marred by a work stoppage. A players strike lasted 57 days and it reduced the schedule to nine games.

The playoffs were changed, as the NFL ran a 16 team tournament where eight in each conference were seeded 1-8 based on record.

Led by Walt Michaels, the Jets finished 6-3 placing them second in the AFC East.

On to the playoffs in January of 1983. After a blowout victory over the Bengals and a three-point win over the Raiders, it was on to Miami for the title game.

Then the trouble arrived.

The Jets were known for their speed, especially on offense with the likes of Wesley Walker and Freeman McNeil just to name a couple.

It rained heavily the night before the game, but Dolphins head coach Don Shula had the field left uncovered. It became very muddy, neutralizing the Jets team speed.

Richard Todd threw five interceptions, three of them to linebacker A.J. Duhe, and the Jets lost 14-0, sending Miami to the Super Bowl.