The CRAZIEST CHEATING CONTROVERSY in AFL HISTORY | 1967 Oilers

During the 1967 American Football League season, following a victory by the Houston Oilers over the San Diego Chargers, the New York Jets accused the Oilers of cheating. Call it the original Spygate, if you will. This is the crazy story behind the controversy, including how and why the Jets complained, how it all worked out in the end, and how it wound up deciding the 1967 AFL season
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#nfl #oilers #nflthrowback #nyjets #jets
Members of the 1967 Houston Oilers:
Don Trull
Pete Beathard
Bob Davis
Billy Guy Anderson
Jacky Lee
Miller Farr
Pete Johns
Zeke Moore
Bobby Jancik
Ode Burrell
Larry Elkins
Glenn Bass
Charley Frazier
Ken Houston
Hoyle Granger
WK Hicks
Woody Campbell
Roy Hopkins
Larry Carwell
Sid Blanks
Jim Norton
Bobby Maples
Ronnie Caveness
Garland Boyette
Olen Underwood
Pete Barnes
Tom Regner
Bob Talamini
Ed Marcontell
Sonny Bishop
John Wittenborn
Carel Stith
Willie Jones
George Rice
Willie Parker
Don Floyd
Walt Suggs
Bud Marshall
Glen Ray Hines
Pat Holmes
Andy Rice
Danny Brabham
Monte Ledbetter
Lionel Taylor
Bob Poole
Alvin Reed
George Webster
Ernie Ladd
Wally Lemm (head coach)
This controversy cannot be found in Full Color Football, a documentary chronicling the history of the AFL and the journey of the American Football League

[@scott6828]

The level of obscure and fascinating NFL-AFL history this guy delivers is nothing short of mindstaggering. You don't even see these in-depth stories told at the Hall of Fame in Canton.

[@korbyncarson1924]

I guess I'm kinda randomly asking but does anybody know a good site to watch newly released series online ?

[@keenanmalcolm8014]

@Korbyn Carson flixportal :D

[@korbyncarson1924]

@Keenan Malcolm thank you, I signed up and it seems to work =) Appreciate it !!

[@keenanmalcolm8014]

@Korbyn Carson you are welcome xD

[@kielmaguire5121]

He should have millions of subs. How he pumps this stuff out everyday is crazy

[@levikatriel]

It is crazy you know so much about the premerger era

[@BeeHatGuy]

I taught him everything he knows. Jk

[@DolFan316]

That's because he's actually a time traveler. Think about it.

[@Kylora2112]

The Broncos salary cap scandal from 1996-1998 (including two Super Bowl seasons) by deferring John Elway's and Terrell Davis's salary, resulting in the single largest fine in NFL history needs a deep dive, because you almost never hear about it (skirting the salary cap to have better players on two Super Bowl winning teams seems pretty tainted). And what Gowdy did was no different than the Boston Herald publishing "Walkthrough Gate" as if it really happened, and then quickly retracted it.

[@andrewschultz6608]

That jet taxiing on the field at <a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="65">1:05</a> is awesome. So is the Oiler mascot in the thumbnail. Good information, too!

[@JackOBee29]

This is one of my favorite channels.

[@beyondleftfield4470]

haha, that little Astros blip about no more cheating in Houston professional sports 😂

[@jg9002]

@8:50

[@robertbluestein7800]

Best one yet! I’m from Houston and I guess I know why I cheated in monopoly, risk, solitaire and hungry hippos. It’s a Houston thing.

[@danecranberry6025]

You're a card.

[@alexanderpease4764]

@Eagle Fang Shush

[@nasetvideos]

That was a great video with incredible footage from the 1967 season--Really nice job putting this story together.

[@kyle1910]

You should do a segment about the Dallas-Detroit 1981 game, where the Lions won with an Eddie Murray field goal as time ran out while clearly having 12 players on the field when the ball was snapped. It ultimately had no impact on the playoff picture since if Dallas had ended up winning they still would have been the #2 seed and Detroit missed the playoffs anyway but it sparked quite an uproar at the time.

[@kyle1910]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/pKbccnZmjKZ9q7M

[@diaz5292]

"Hey relax," the Oilers told the media later in the day. "We're just using the cameras to film the barely legal scantily clad cheerleaders, that's all..." <a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="395">06:35</a> ... lol

[@jbratt]

I went to that school. It was worth the trouble to set up cameras on those girls.

[@rosannaparra460]

I wouldn't doubt it 😂

[@swisszard6758]

Love the channel bro keep it tf up!!!

[@indianasunsets5738]

Bill and Tom: "Hmm...maybe we could get away with it too?"

[@joachimguderian4048]

And they did. Some minor fines, a draft pick, blah blah. As far as I’m concerned, belicheat should’ve been banned from ALL work within the nfl.

[@fairnorth2733]

I LOVE THIS VIDEO !!!! IT HAS BEEN ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE TO FIND AND SEE VIDEOS FROM NBC-TV BROADCASTS OF "A.F.L. HIGHLIGHTS" OF 1967, HOSTED BY CHARLIE JONES. AS A TEN YEAR OLD, THIS WAS MY FIRST YEAR OF WATCHING PRO FOOTBALL. ALTHOUGH ALMOST ALL OF THE BOYS IN MY NEIGHBORHOOD WERE N.F.L. FANS, I LOVED THE NEW YORK JETS AND THE AMERICAN FOOTBALL LEAGUE. PLEASE POST MORE ACTION FROM "A.F.L. HIGHLIGHTS " MY CHILDHOOD MEMORIES OF THIS SHOW INCLUDE AN SHORT ACTION VIDEO MATCHED TO THE FAMOUS "WONDERFUL WORLD OF TOYLAND" SONG. A JETS DEFENSIVE BACK, I BELIEVE IT WAS JOHNNY SAMPLE TACKLES A BUFFALO BILLS RUNNING BACK OR PASS RECEIVER ONE YARD FROM THE JETS GOAL LINE. THE BUFFALO PLAYER SHOVES HIM AFTERWARDS. ALSO THE BACKGROUND MUSIC OF THIS SHOW WAS FANTASTIC !!!! MY FAVORITE SONG WAS "DEADLY WEAPONS" BY SYD DALE !!!! HERE IN NEW YORK CITY, THIS SHOW WAS BROADCAST AT DIFFERENT TIMES ON A SATURDAY AFTERNOON. I MISSED ONE EPISODE BECAUSE IT WAS SHOWN AT <a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="180">3:00</a>-PM INSTEAD OF <a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="210">3:30</a>-PM. I MISSED ANOTHER EPISODE BECAUSE THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES DAUGHTER WAS GETTING MARRIED, AND NBC-TV CHANNEL 4 TELEVISED IT LIVE. .LONG LIVE "A.F.L. HIGHLIGHTS !!!!

[@mayduck1]

I enjoy your work here and this one may be one of the best. The film clips of 1967 was fantastic and since I live in Titans Country it is nice to see the clips of Wally Lemm who was the last Oilers-Titans coach to win a league championship in 1961. Lemm who was a low key mild mannered coach contrasted with the loud attention getting AFL coaches like Hank Stram, Al Davis, Lou Saban and Weeb Ewbank plus Sid Gillman and all of these coaches have reputations of stretching the rules and if any one believes the Oilers were just taping the halftime show then they were expecting Santa Claus to come down the chimney the next week. The 1967 Oilers out of nowhere after having one of the worst AFL records in 1966 won the AFL East that year but after 1967 did not having a winning season until 1975 makes me believe the 1967 Oilers were taping most or all of their games until after the San Diego game and I guess Wally Lemm probably concluded to keep up with the other rules stretchers(cheaters) then join them.

[@bw-leftturnracing7779]

Houston and cheating controversies. Name a better duo, I'll wait.

[@davesimms8825]

NBC wouldn’t have fired Gordy as he was also their #1 guy on the baseball game of the week.

[@selfdiscardedkingofruin7291]

I miss the original Houston Oilers.

[@brianarbenz1329]

I remember Curt Gowdy very well; I heard him call almost every sport. He was a one-person ESPN. I had never heard this story. Wow, that was some crazy mixup.

[@DolFan316]

If Gowdy was female and made this same kind of completely unfounded accusation today, everybody would believe him even with no proof whatsoever and the life of the accused would be ruined forevermore. Thank God back then they actually investigated accusations to see if there was any proof first.

[@brianarbenz1329]

That is totally off topic and irrelevant to this video. If you’re some misogynist troll, scram!

[@DolFan316]

@@brianarbenz1329 It's VERY relevant in that a whole lot of false accusations have been made by a certain group pf people that have gotten a lot of men's lives ruined who never in fact did anything wrong. Just like the Oilers very nearly had their entire season and reputation ruined forever by being accused with no actual proof other than "Curt Gowdy offhandedly said something on TV".

[@josephhouk6703]

"And this was the last time in the history of Houston pro sports that a team was involved in a cheating controversy..." (Insert Garbage-can banging sound here)

[@andrewpadaetz5549]

There was a brief Astros logo flash when he said that

[@arizonawrestlinginterviews1040]

<a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="523">8:43</a> I was waiting for you to say that and you didn't let me down!

[@pronkb000]

As an announcer, Curt Gowdy was about as exciting as listening to paint dry. Not because he wasn't a Gus Johnson screamer, but because he was just plain dull. He and Red Barber are examples of why I try not to romanticize the past too much when it comes to sports broadcasting or anything else. This incident doesn't exactly cover him with glory.

[@quigonkenny]

So a league announcer exhibits bias against a down-market team in favor of a New York team and receives no official blowback. That never happens... 🙄

[@danv.5568]

Nice Astros jab. Excellent channel. Great directing.

[@iamhungey12345]

I thought it was going to be about the 1979 Oilers before I clicked and saw the title.

[@osu4mul8r]

Houston would have been better off if they had spiked the camera into the ground each play

[@coryshannon3815]

<a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="524">8:44</a> I like that comment. Nice burn.😁

[@scottconner7930]

54 Years Ago

[@robertholmberg6485]

Aaaah yes! The old A.F.L. red uniforms that make one think that they are not official, but ice cream salesmen;

[@robertholmberg6485]

Ref uniforms! Sometimes I get really upset with autocorrect!

[@rudolphguarnacci197]

@@robertholmberg6485 But the stripes were red, weren't they?

[@TheY2AProblem]

What sport hasn’t Houston cheated in?

[@adawg1125]

hockey

[@dwlopez57]

Tiddly winks

[@rudolphguarnacci197]

Badmitton

[@Comixtrip1]

More AFL stories..also can you do a video about Steve Little the kicker from the cardinals who was paralized?

[@JackOBee29]

Do the Jets still have that Jet mobile

[@rudolphguarnacci197]

It's hanging in my bedroom.

[@ryans6969]

The jets weren't wrong, they were just thinking of Houston's baseball team and were 50 years too early

[@JahNuhThunDeeTheOneAndOnly]

*The Astros are impressed*

[@samuraibeastwarrior2886]

Yep

[@GetRidOfCivilAssetForfeiture]

There was another controversy back in 1932. It did decide the NFL Championship that year. Some background first. That was the final year in which the team with the “best” record was crowned champion. However, ties didn’t count in the standings back then (it wouldn’t be until the 1972 season that ties would be counted as a half-win/half-loss). So the Chicago Bears finished 6-1-6 and the Portsmouth Spartans (now the Detroit Lions) finished 6-1-4. Since the ties didn’t figure into the winning percentage, each team was effectively 6-1. This meant the Packers, who finished 10-3-1 (effectively 10-3), finished third (they would have been first under today’s rules). So to decide the championship, the NFL decided to have the Bears and Spartans play one more game which was to count in the standings, meaning the winner would first with an effective record of 7-1, the loser finishing third with an effective record of 6-2 and the Packers would move up to second with their effective record of 10-3. I don’t know what the NFL would have done if the game finished in a tie, not an outlandish possibility given the two teams propensity to play in games ending in a tie. The weather was so bad that day that the teams had to play indoors and the field was shortened due to the confines. Also, there almost no room for the benches so hash marks were introduced to help prevent players from running into the walls on plays that ran out of bounds. The game was tight but the Bears were driving deep into the Spartans territory. The Bears handed off to Bronko Nagurski (perhaps the best first name for a FB ever) and then stopped, jumped up and threw a pass for a TD. Back then, the rules stated that in order to throw a forward pass, the player making the throw had to be at least 5 yards behind the line of scrimmage. The Spartans argued that Nagurski was not and that the TD should be disallowed and the Bears penalized accordingly. The Spartans lost the argument and went on to lose 9-0. In the off-season, the teams met to go over potential rules changes. One was to allow a player to throw a forward pass from anywhere behind the line of scrimmage. As the head coach of the Spartans, who voted for the rule change, put it: “You know Nagurski is going to do it anyway and get away with it so you might as well make it legal.” There were other rules changes, such as splitting the league into two divisions and have annual championship game, as well as having the hash marks be permanent. The former would create more fan interest and increase attendance and revenue by having more teams have a shot at being champion later into the season. The latter opened up the offenses, thus increasing scoring and generating more fan excitement for the game. However, the NFL would wait 40 years before counting tie games in the winning percentages. This would affect which team won the West Division in 1935 and 1949 and almost which team won the Eastern Conference in 1963. Additionally, not factoring in tie games into the winning percentage came close to creating two scenarios for a 3-way tie for first in the West Division but that is a story for another time. But 1935 would also be the only time all the teams in a division finished above .500.

[@Kylora2112]

The 1925 Pottsville Maroons controversy would also be a great story :)

[@GetRidOfCivilAssetForfeiture]

@@Kylora2112 and I think the town is still contesting it to this day.

[@Kylora2112]

@@GetRidOfCivilAssetForfeiture They are. And the Steelers and Eagles are the only NFL teams that support Pottsville (the rest stand behind the Cardinals and the NFL's ruling).

[@GetRidOfCivilAssetForfeiture]

@@Kylora2112 I read that also. You are right, it would make a great story. A book was written about it as well. It got good reviews.

[@jamesage24]

And by background, you mean context. 😁

[@davanmani556]

Gerry Philbin said Joe’s partying cost then the title.

[@jamesdunn9609]

Philbin was a great player but he didn't like Namath and talked ish about him constantly. I think Philbin saw himself as a "tough guy" and he admitted that he always thought Joe was over-hyped and was a "pretty boy." So you have to take what he says with a grain of salt. But Joe admits he was playing too fast and loose and not doing enough to prevent turnovers too so Philbin's criticism seems on target in this case.

[@gluserty]

@@jamesdunn9609 Namath had a big 1967 season, but those 28 interceptions had to adversely affect the team in a few games (he had two 5 INT games in 1968 that the Jets lost, but otherwise was more careful). I do think Philbin was a little harsh on Namath though; I feel Namath's pluses outweigh the negatives.

[@jamesdunn9609]

@@gluserty I agree. Namath was such an amazing talent that his style of play was just something you had to accept. He still belongs in the HoF in my opinion

[@gluserty]

@@jamesdunn9609 I think Dr. Z once explained it well once, that Namath didn't care what the defense was doing, that he was going to attack, and he (Dr. Z) felt that was a great way to play QB. Considering that doctors gave him 4 seasons on bad knees and he ended up playing 13, I think that's an underrated accomplishment. Winning Super Bowl III, a most important game to establish AFL credence among the old guard, was as big of a win a professional team could possibly have, and Namath led that charge with his attitude and play. Yeah, I don't care about the numbers: Namath could play, he was interesting (as he once said about himself: "I had some bad plays, played some bad games. And I admit, and I've said it before that I wasn't always good but I was never dull or boring, and what I mean by that is that I never quit, and I never played with anyone who ever quit"), and his career counted in the overall development of the NFL and not just him individually (or even the Jets, although that SB win remains the apex of that franchise).

[@rudolphguarnacci197]

@@gluserty Yeah, an apex 54 years ago.

[@lightyagami3492]

I'd love to see a video done on the Denver Broncos salary cap cheating scandal in 1997 and 1998. (Full disclosure im a KC fan so im probably biased) I think it's the most egregious cheating scandal in NFL history. The Broncos literally had two HOF players on the field that shouldn't of been there had the league caught on to what happened. Yeah Spygate was bad but it was only one game that we know of for sure while the salary cap scandal lasted a whole 2 years and changed the history of the NFL permanently by granting Denver 2 Superbowl titles in the process.

[@robertbluestein7800]

Can you find the shortest FG ever missed? I think there is old footage of a kicker missing a TEN yarder but not sure if I’m recalling that correctly. How does a kicker in the NFL or AFL miss a 10-yard kick?

[@josephburke7224]

Steve Spurrier missed a lot of points after as a 49er. Goal posts were on the touchdown line and scrimmage was at the two.

[@MrMike77471]

THE ASTROS DIDN'T CHEAT!!!! Stealing signs is not cheating. It's been going on since about 2 seconds after they started having signs. As a lifelong Astros fan, I'm sick of hearing it. The only mistake the Astros made was apologizing for doing something everyone knows that everyone else was doing. As former All-Star 1B Will Clark (who played 15 years for the Giants, Rangers, Cardinals and Orioles and who has NO allegiance to the Astros) said when asked about the controversy, "The only difference between what the Astros were doing and what everyone else was doing is that the Astros got caught. Everyone is doing something. The Astros just got caught." As far as I'm concerned, the Astros should just start randomly banging on trash cans during random games, just to get into everyone's heads. GO ASTROS!!!!!!!!

[@rudolphguarnacci197]

What are you talking about? The Astros stole my sign. I had it on my lawn. Bastids!

[@F40PH-2CAT]

Houston and cheating...perfect together

[@CTubeMan]

I know Curt Gowdy got on the wrong side of Red Sox fans when the 1975 World Series was being played in Cincinnati. As a result NBC pulled him from the booth when the series returned to Boston.

[@nicholassmith479]

He was NOT a sweetheart of Reds fans either.

[@chrino21]

I miss mud. And silver Oilers helmets.

[@chrino21]

holykuhrap Good point!

[@DachampsterStudios]

is JG9 from philly/south jersey? he sounds like it

[@michaelanon1968]

JETS. Always whining, never winning...

[@markbeavers4946]

The Jets want to be like the Giants who have 4 super bowl wins instead of 1.

[@emma12345678961]

No such thing as cheating, only poor losers.

[@brettpatterson404]

Joe Namath wasn’t the first Pro QB to pass for over 4000 yards. That would belong to Sam Etcheverry of the Montreal Alouettes in 1956. CFL players were payed in the 50s just as much as NFL/AFL players too so the skill level of the CFL back then was closer than it is today.

[@Davepool-hs7vr]

The Canadian Football League stats are different from the NFL’s stats

[@diaz5292]

Hey if you ain't cheatin' you ain't tryin'...lol

[@thawkereynolds]

Only winning 4 of the first 8 games? So they were 4 and 4?

[@DolFan316]

Haha I caught that too.

[@kyledamron]

Gowdy should know better than to make accusations like that

[@Boomhower89]

Teams cheat since the old days when Halas was owner player.

[@JM-fr5ge]

Cheating and Houston go well together

[@elitehb_]

Fun fact: I am joule granger’s grandson

[@1959markie1]

Hoyle

[@btay2165]

And Walt Suggs is my grandpa. He always liked Hoyle. We lost my grandad last Sept.

[@eddiekulp1241]

What's wrong with video taping and looking during game ? They take pictures of plays and look at during game or use to do

[@diaz5292]

Is Curt Gowdy related to Trey Gowdy?? I wonder. Looks similar.

[@DolFan316]

Maybe, just maybe, if the Jets hadn't lost 3 in a row after starting 7-2-1 they would've won the division regardless. Just sayin'.

[@willpgarrett2940]

The good old days....when a QB could be hit, full speed by any Defensive player, 5 seconds after release of the pass. Despite the whistle being blown....

[@emma12345678961]

Yeah, the days when a brain meant nothing.....

[@grimtea1715]

This guy is quickly becoming a GOAT in KZbin football channels (includes Secret Base, Flemlo, UT, and Pat McAfee)

[@aaronrother5396]

1 min ago. Let's go Edit: Throwing shades at the Houston Asterisks always deserves a like

[@Boomhower89]

🇺🇸👍🏼

[@Lawomenshoops]

Hello Lance Alworth is the greatest WR in the AFL!

[@tygrkhat4087]

The Raiders accusing others of cheating is supreme irony. Since Al Davis took over, a Raider slogan has been, "If you ain't cheating, you ain't trying."

[@iamhungey12345]

Or "Just Win Baby!" which has some of the same implications.

[@chrisrobinson8339]

Oilers was cheating like the Patriots.

[@robparadise6099]

F- Altuve

[@orangelab6846]

F -U

[@robparadise6099]

@@orangelab6846 Back at cha

[@whataboutrob442]

F**k the asstros

[@douglasleavy5147]

Fire Curt Gowdy? Curt Gowdy, Chris Schenkel and Jim McKay WERE NBC Sports. No way he gets fired.