Gunslingers - The Quarterback and The Land of The Free

In this week’s episode of ‘The Way We See Sport, The Way See Life’, we are going back to a sunny Autumn afternoon in 1972.  Three years after Woodstock, The Moon Landing and the New York Jets' stunning victory in the third iteration of the Super Bowl, the team from the Big Apple met once more with their vanquished opponents from that day - the Baltimore Colts.

What followed was one of the finest examples of duelling quarterback play in the history of American Football. Records tumbled as touchdown followed touchdown, and all those in attendance knew they were witnessing something special. In an era when conservative play was more often the norm, two sporting superstars showed the world the benefits of fearless attacking play.

The game saw a meeting between two of the finest quarterbacks the game has ever seen: the Colts' Johnny Unitas (who had been a marquee performer since the late 50s) and the Jets' Joe Namath (a flamboyant star whose off-field exploits saw him labelled ‘Broadway Joe’ in the 1960s). It represented not just a competition between gifted sportsmen, but a clash of styles, personality and temperament.

In today’s episode, Nathan leads a deep dive exploration into the notion of the quarterback as the modern-day equivalent of a gunslinger.  We investigate how the role of quarterback is perhaps one that predominates over all other individual roles in the world of professional team sport.  We also explore how this is perhaps reflective of America’s belief in the concepts of freedom, individual liberty and how this sense of the elevation of the individual is integral both to understanding American society and appreciating the sport’s standing as ‘America’s Game’