The year was 1981: A president and a pope survived assassins, gas cost about a buck-thirty and “Don’t Stop Believin'” was Top 10. And a phenomenon was sweeping the NFL. The Jets’ front four of Mark Gastineau, Joe Klecko, Marty Lyons and Abdul Salaam — all of whom the team drafted during the 1970s — led the league with 66 quarterback sacks and became stars.
The 1984 NFL season, which began at a time when the league was facing declining ratings, the lingering effects of the 1982 NFL strike, and the upstart United States Football League, among others.
Howard Cosell hosted the first instalment of Monday Night Football.
