New York Jets legend – and scorer of the only touchdown in Super Bowl III – Matt Snell has died at the age of 84, according to his son Beau.
Snell passed away on Long Island on Tuesday morning, as reported by ESPN following conversations with his family. No cause of death has yet been revealed.
He was a Jets Ring of Honor member and scored the most famous touchdown in franchise history against the Baltimore Colts.
Revealing the news on social media, NFL reporter Rich Cimini called him ‘truly one of the all-time greats.’
Snell’s relationship with the Jets was a difficult one, with the fullback holding a 30-year grudge against his former team and refusing to attend his own Ring of Honor ceremony in 2015.
Three years later, Snell revealed that the reason he hadn’t spoken to the Jets was because the team’s former owner Leon Hess had refused to give him a reference for a future job despite having promised him one.
Matt Snell (right, pictured with his long-time backfield partner Emerson Boozer) has died at 84
Snell scores the only touchdown of Super Bowl III as the Jets beat the Baltimore Colts 16-7
‘It may be that no one in Jets management knew about [the] promises to me, but in 1974, there was a recession and I was in line for a construction job,’ he revealed in Bob Lederer’s 2018 book, ‘Beyond Broadway Joe: The Super Bowl Team That Changed Football’.
‘I asked the Jets for a reference. They told me they didn’t do that for players. They said they couldn’t do it! Can you believe that? I can’t prove it, but I don’t think any of that would have ever happened if Sonny [Werblin] were in charge. That’s why I don’t get along with the organization now.’
When Snell was briefly found by ESPN in 2015, he was working alone at his construction business in Jersey City, New Jersey.
The most famous moment in his football career came in Super Bowl III in 1969, in which he rushed for 121 yards on 30 carries, scoring the team’s only touchdown – all while playing on an injured knee.
