 Both the Oilers and Jets realized that the Jets had a far better chance of signing Namath in competition with the NFL team which drafted him (as it turned out, the St. Louis Cardinals, formerly the Chicago Cardinals), and the Jets were able to acquire the number-one pick.Neither the Jets nor the Cardinals could sign Namath until Alabama played its final game of the season, the Orange Bowl, on January 1, 1965.Both the Jets and Cardinals negotiated with Namath's attorney, and when the price got too high for the Cardinals, the Giants secretly acquired Namath's NFL rights.