Don Maynard, a Hall of Fame receiver for the New York Jets who made his biggest impact catching passes from Joe Namath in the wide-open American Football League, died Jan. 10 at an assisted-living facility in Ruidoso, N.M. He was 86.
Mr. Maynard was the main target for Jets quarterback Namath in the 1960s, although a leg injury limited his effectiveness in the team’s stunning upset of the NFL champion Baltimore Colts in the 1969 Super Bowl. That game established the credibility of the newer league, but Mr. Maynard had proved himself long before that.
After an unproductive one-year stint with the New York Giants in 1958, the slim, deceptively fast Texan headed to Hamilton of the Canadian Football League in 1959. Then the AFL was established, and he was the first player to sign with the New York Titans, who soon would become the Jets.
Even though the Titans/Jets went through a series of mediocre quarterbacks in their early years, Mr. Maynard made his mark with two 1,000-yard receiving seasons. When Namath showed up in 1965, one of the league’s top passing combinations was born.
Namath excelled at throwing the ball deep, which matched Mr. Maynard’s main talent. As Broadway Joe’s primary target, Mr. Maynard had three seasons with at least 1,200 yards receiving in a four-year span. He caught 14 touchdown passes in Namath’s rookie season and had at least 10 touchdowns in two other seasons.
“I don’t really look at it like I’m the greatest receiver,” he once said. “After you play awhile anybody can break certain records. Longevity is the key. The record I’m proudest of is being the first guy to get 10,000 yards in receptions. Others may do it, but I’m the first, and only one guy can be the first.”
When he retired in 1973 after one season with the St. Louis Cardinals, he was pro football’s career receiving leader with 633 catches for 11,834 yards and 88 touchdowns — all records at the time. He was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1987. The Jets retired his No. 13 jersey.
“Don Maynard is as essential to the history of the New York Jets as anyone. He came to this franchise at our inception and left a Super Bowl champion,” the Jets said in a statement.
Unlike Namath, Mr. Maynard, who never wore a chin strap because it felt uncomfortable, wasn’t made for the spotlight. He preferred ranch life back home in Texas to the bright lights of Manhattan. But his game, based on speed — he claimed he was never caught from behind once he made a catch — and excellent hands made him stand out.
He was named to the AFL’s only All-Decade squad. His defining performance was against Oakland in the 1968 AFL championship game at a frigid Shea Stadium. He drew double coverage from the Raiders’ superb secondary, yet caught six passes for 118 yards and two scores. His six-yard touchdown reception in the fourth quarter provided the winning points, sending the Jets to their only Super Bowl.
“Don was unstoppable that day,” Namath recalled. “On the long pass (52 yards), he made an over-the-shoulder grab after the wind got the ball. It was the biggest play of the game.”
Maynard spent much of the ensuing Super Bowl as a decoy because of a sore leg and didn’t catch a pass. Early in the game, though, he ran a deep route and got open; the pass barely missed his hands. The Colts respected his speed the rest of the way, often with double teams on the hobbled Mr. Maynard while New York’s other wideout, George Sauer, had a big game.
“I knew right away in the Super Bowl that I wasn’t going to catch any balls,” he once told Football Digest. “All I had to do was run, and stride, and clear out, and have a good day in that respect.”
Donald Rogers Maynard was born Jan. 25, 1935, in Crosbyton, Tex. He excelled in the sprints and hurdles in high school track and later played football at Texas Western College (now the University of Texas at El Paso).
After retiring from football, he returned to Texas and was a financial planner.
Survivors include his wife, Anna Maynard; two children; and five grandchildren.
— Associated Press
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