Curley Johnson, who played for the Jets in the 1960s and helped them win Super Bowl III, has died at the age of 80.
Primarily remembered as a punter, Johnson was a versatile player who also played halfback, fullback, tight end, wide receiver and kickoff returner. And he was also the team’s cutup,.
“Unofficially, he is the Jets’ laugh guy, fun guy, team jester, mimic, story-teller and clown,” a 1965 New York Times article said of Johnson. “His humor is spontaneous, irreverent and flip. And in a high-tension sport in which the average athlete earns $1,000 or so a week for playing a two-hour game, the relief provided by his humor is more of a necessity than a luxury.”
A 1957 seventh-round draft pick of the Steelers, Johnson, who played his college football at the University of Houston, declined to play professionally at first. It was only three years later, in 1960, that he signed for one season with the Dallas Texans, then played for the New York Titans in 1961. The Titans changed their name to the Jets in 1963, and he played for them until he was traded to the Giants in his final season, 1969.
He is survived by his wife, Janet, with whom he celebrated his 61st anniversary on the day before he died.
Photo via New York Jets.