(Namath signs with the Jets. Photo courtesy of Associated Press)

1/02/1965 - Jets sign Joe Namath

Sonny Werblin hands Alabama quarterback Joe Namath $427,000 to play for his New York Jets of the American Football League. The deal was, at the time, the largest ever given to an American athlete, and placed Namath at the heart of the AFL, where he would be known as "Broadway Joe."

Namath's signing was the best thing to ever happen to the AFL, which had been struggling since its inception to compete with the NFL. Now that the biggest football star in the country was playing in the most populated city in the country, the AFL reached a new level of popularity. Namath won the AFL's offensive MVP in 1965, and though his Jets failed to make the postseason that year, he was exciting enough for NBC to hand the AFL a $36 million television contract.

Not long after that, the two leagues decided to merge.

1/02/1982 - Chargers battle Dolphins in Orange Bowl

In one of the greatest NFL games of all time, the San Diego Chargers and Miami Dolphins play an overtime thriller in the Orange Bowl.

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