
Sack Exchange
The Definitive Oral History of the 1980s New York Jets
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
$0.99/mo for the first 3 months

Buy for $29.95
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
Bob Dunsworth
-
By:
-
Greg Prato
About this listen
Comprised of exclusive interviews with Jets players, coaches, and other figures surrounding the organization, Sack Exchange: The Definitive Oral History of the 1980s New York Jets is an eye-opening account of a memorable era in one team's history, which also takes a step back and looks at the state of the National Football League as a whole during the 1980s.
From the events that shaped the 1980s Jets, such as the legacy of Joe Namath, to their multiple playoff appearances during the decade, each triumph and disappointment is chronicled and supplemented with insider information. Other highlights include examinations of the beginning of the Jets' rivalry with the Miami Dolphins; the controversial firing of head coach Walt Michaels; the defensive line, given the nickname 'The New York Sack Exchange' and steroid use by certain players and throughout the NFL.
Featured are original interviews with Joe Klecko, Mark Gastineau, Marty Lyons, Abdul Salaam, Wesley Walker, Al Toon, Ken O'Brien, Richard Todd, Pat Leahy, Walt Michaels, and Joe Walton, among many others.
©2011 Greg Prato (P)2012 Audible, Inc.Listeners also enjoyed...
-
Once a Giant
- A Story of Victory, Tragedy, and Life After Football
- By: Gary Myers
- Narrated by: Charles Constant
- Length: 9 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The 1986 New York Giants are legendary. A championship team coached by Bill Parcells and his wunderkind assistant Bill Belichick, featuring future Hall of Famers and All-Pros like Phil Simms, Lawrence Taylor, Mark Bavaro, and Harry Carson. They were dominant on the field and formed a unique and lasting bond off of it. More than thirty years later, it's the friendships that have proved more important—a matter of life and death. In Once a Giant, bestselling football writer Gary Myers tells the story of that team and what became of it.
-
-
Must Read for Big Blue Fan
- By Mark A. McCoy on 03-05-24
By: Gary Myers
-
Football Done Right
- Setting the Record Straight on the Coaches, Players, and History of the NFL
- By: Michael Lombardi
- Narrated by: Dan Woren, Michael Lombardi, Jim Nantz
- Length: 13 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From Monday Night Football to Super Bowl Sunday, the NFL is a dominating force in the lives of millions of fans who tune in and passionately cheer for their favorite teams. And when the games are over, the conversation is just getting started. Who's the greatest player of all time? Which coaches truly shaped the game we known and love today? Why is professional football such an undeniable part of our culture? Three-time Super Bowl winner Michael Lombardi has done it all—from scout to executive to coach—and now he sets the record straight on these questions and more.
-
-
Great overview on history. Not the best top 100 list.
- By Rajiv on 09-05-23
By: Michael Lombardi
-
Badasses
- The Legend of Snake, Foo, Dr. Death, and John Madden's Oakland Raiders
- By: Peter Richmond
- Narrated by: Barry Abrams
- Length: 12 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A book that explores the enduring legends of Snake, Foo, Dr. Death, and John Madden's Oakland Raiders, Badasses is the definitive biography of arguably the last team to play old-fashioned tough-guy football. Peter Richmond, co-author of the New York Times best seller The Glory Game, offers a fascinating look at the 1970s Oakland Raiders, led by colorful greats from another era.
-
-
Good story, slightly obnoxious author and reader
- By Harry Seaward on 01-06-19
By: Peter Richmond
-
Namath
- A Biography
- By: Mark Kriegel
- Narrated by: Scott Brick
- Length: 21 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In between Babe Ruth and Michael Jordan there was Joe Namath, one of the very few sports heroes who transcended their game. The son of a Hungarian immigrant, Namath left the steel country of Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania, for the Deep South, where he played quarterback for Bear Bryant at the University of Alabama. Almost four years later, he signed a $427,000 contract with the New York Jets that changed football forever, transforming a crude, violent game into show business.
-
-
Joe Namath #1
- By M on 09-22-10
By: Mark Kriegel
-
Figure It Out
- My Thirty-Two-Year Journey While Revolutionizing Pro Football’s Special Teams
- By: Mike Westhoff
- Narrated by: Mike Westhoff
- Length: 13 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Simply put, Mike Westhoff is the greatest special teams coach in National Football League history. Sharp-witted, creative, and intensely focused, Westhoff spent 32 years working alongside and learning from some of the legends of the sport—including Don Shula, Dan Marino, Bear Bryant, and Woody Hayes—while revolutionizing the most misunderstood phase of the game. Over the course of 657 games, primarily with the New York Jets and the Miami Dolphins, Westhoff was a relentless innovator.
-
-
Inspiring
- By Dan Arriola on 08-10-24
By: Mike Westhoff
-
Blood in the Garden
- The Flagrant History of the 1990s New York Knicks
- By: Chris Herring
- Narrated by: Brian Hutchison
- Length: 11 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The definitive history of the 1990s New York Knicks, illustrating how Pat Riley, Patrick Ewing, John Starks, Charles Oakley, and Anthony Mason resurrected the iconic franchise through oppressive physicality and unmatched grit. Blood in the Garden is a portrait filled with eye-opening details that have never been shared before, revealing the full story of the franchise in the midst of the NBA’s golden era. And rest assured, no punches will be pulled. Which is just how those rough-and-tumble Knicks would like it.
-
-
Great book, horrible performance.
- By Sean Conway on 07-21-22
By: Chris Herring
-
Once a Giant
- A Story of Victory, Tragedy, and Life After Football
- By: Gary Myers
- Narrated by: Charles Constant
- Length: 9 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The 1986 New York Giants are legendary. A championship team coached by Bill Parcells and his wunderkind assistant Bill Belichick, featuring future Hall of Famers and All-Pros like Phil Simms, Lawrence Taylor, Mark Bavaro, and Harry Carson. They were dominant on the field and formed a unique and lasting bond off of it. More than thirty years later, it's the friendships that have proved more important—a matter of life and death. In Once a Giant, bestselling football writer Gary Myers tells the story of that team and what became of it.
-
-
Must Read for Big Blue Fan
- By Mark A. McCoy on 03-05-24
By: Gary Myers
-
Football Done Right
- Setting the Record Straight on the Coaches, Players, and History of the NFL
- By: Michael Lombardi
- Narrated by: Dan Woren, Michael Lombardi, Jim Nantz
- Length: 13 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From Monday Night Football to Super Bowl Sunday, the NFL is a dominating force in the lives of millions of fans who tune in and passionately cheer for their favorite teams. And when the games are over, the conversation is just getting started. Who's the greatest player of all time? Which coaches truly shaped the game we known and love today? Why is professional football such an undeniable part of our culture? Three-time Super Bowl winner Michael Lombardi has done it all—from scout to executive to coach—and now he sets the record straight on these questions and more.
-
-
Great overview on history. Not the best top 100 list.
- By Rajiv on 09-05-23
By: Michael Lombardi
-
Badasses
- The Legend of Snake, Foo, Dr. Death, and John Madden's Oakland Raiders
- By: Peter Richmond
- Narrated by: Barry Abrams
- Length: 12 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A book that explores the enduring legends of Snake, Foo, Dr. Death, and John Madden's Oakland Raiders, Badasses is the definitive biography of arguably the last team to play old-fashioned tough-guy football. Peter Richmond, co-author of the New York Times best seller The Glory Game, offers a fascinating look at the 1970s Oakland Raiders, led by colorful greats from another era.
-
-
Good story, slightly obnoxious author and reader
- By Harry Seaward on 01-06-19
By: Peter Richmond
-
Namath
- A Biography
- By: Mark Kriegel
- Narrated by: Scott Brick
- Length: 21 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In between Babe Ruth and Michael Jordan there was Joe Namath, one of the very few sports heroes who transcended their game. The son of a Hungarian immigrant, Namath left the steel country of Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania, for the Deep South, where he played quarterback for Bear Bryant at the University of Alabama. Almost four years later, he signed a $427,000 contract with the New York Jets that changed football forever, transforming a crude, violent game into show business.
-
-
Joe Namath #1
- By M on 09-22-10
By: Mark Kriegel
-
Figure It Out
- My Thirty-Two-Year Journey While Revolutionizing Pro Football’s Special Teams
- By: Mike Westhoff
- Narrated by: Mike Westhoff
- Length: 13 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Simply put, Mike Westhoff is the greatest special teams coach in National Football League history. Sharp-witted, creative, and intensely focused, Westhoff spent 32 years working alongside and learning from some of the legends of the sport—including Don Shula, Dan Marino, Bear Bryant, and Woody Hayes—while revolutionizing the most misunderstood phase of the game. Over the course of 657 games, primarily with the New York Jets and the Miami Dolphins, Westhoff was a relentless innovator.
-
-
Inspiring
- By Dan Arriola on 08-10-24
By: Mike Westhoff
-
Blood in the Garden
- The Flagrant History of the 1990s New York Knicks
- By: Chris Herring
- Narrated by: Brian Hutchison
- Length: 11 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The definitive history of the 1990s New York Knicks, illustrating how Pat Riley, Patrick Ewing, John Starks, Charles Oakley, and Anthony Mason resurrected the iconic franchise through oppressive physicality and unmatched grit. Blood in the Garden is a portrait filled with eye-opening details that have never been shared before, revealing the full story of the franchise in the midst of the NBA’s golden era. And rest assured, no punches will be pulled. Which is just how those rough-and-tumble Knicks would like it.
-
-
Great book, horrible performance.
- By Sean Conway on 07-21-22
By: Chris Herring
-
The Greatest Summer in Baseball History
- How the '73 Season Changed Us Forever
- By: John Rosengren
- Narrated by: Barry Abrams
- Length: 10 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In 1973, baseball was in crisis. The first strike in pro sports had soured fans, American League attendance had fallen, and America's team—the Yankees—had lost more games and money than ever. Yet that season, five of the game's greatest figures rescued the national pastime. Hank Aaron riveted the nation with his pursuit of Babe Ruth's landmark home run record in the face of racist threats. George Steinbrenner purchased the Yankees at a bargain basement price and began buying back their faded glory.
-
-
Terrible, Just Terrible.
- By Anonymous User on 06-12-23
By: John Rosengren
-
Undisputed Truth
- By: Mike Tyson, Larry Sloman
- Narrated by: Joshua Henry
- Length: 20 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Philosopher, Broadway headliner, fighter, felon - Mike Tyson has defied stereotypes, expectations, and a lot of conventional wisdom during his three decades in the public eye. Bullied as a boy in the toughest, poorest neighborhood in Brooklyn, Tyson grew up to become one of the most thrilling and ferocious boxers of all time - and the youngest heavyweight champion ever. But his brilliance in the ring was often compromised by reckless behavior.
-
-
Fascinating story about a train wreck of a life
- By Brock on 11-19-13
By: Mike Tyson, and others
-
Boys Will Be Boys
- The Glory Days and Party Nights of the Dallas Cowboys Dynasty
- By: Jeff Pearlman
- Narrated by: Arthur Morey
- Length: 13 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
They were America's Team - the high-priced, high-glamour, high-flying Dallas Cowboys of the 1990s, who won three Super Bowls and made as many headlines off the field as on it. Led by Emmitt Smith, the charismatic Deion "Prime Time" Sanders, and Hall of Famers Troy Aikman and Michael Irvin, the Cowboys rank among the greatest of all NFL dynasties.
-
-
This is a football book right?
- By Aaron on 12-07-09
By: Jeff Pearlman
-
The Last Action Heroes
- The Triumphs, Flops, and Feuds of Hollywood's Kings of Carnage
- By: Nick de Semlyen
- Narrated by: Bronson Pinchot
- Length: 9 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Last Action Heroes opens in May 1990 in Cannes, with Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sylvester Stallone waltzing together, cheered on by a crowd of famous faces. After years of bitter combat, the world’s biggest action stars have at last made peace. In this wildly entertaining account of the golden age of the action movie, Nick de Semlyen charts Stallone and Schwarzenegger’s carnage-packed journey from enmity to friendship against the backdrop of Reagan’s America and the Cold War.
-
-
Fantastic!
- By Alan on 07-17-23
By: Nick de Semlyen
-
The Bad Guys Won
- A Season of Brawling, Boozing, Bimbo Chasing, and Championship Baseball with Straw, Doc, Mookie, Nails, the Kid, and the Rest of the 1986 Mets, the Rowdiest Team Ever to Put on a New York Uniform - and Maybe the Best
- By: Jeff Pearlman
- Narrated by: Jeff Pearlman
- Length: 10 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
It was 1986, and the New York Mets won 108 regular-season games and the World Series, capturing the hearts (and other assorted body parts) of fans everywhere. But their greatness on the field was nearly eclipsed by how bad they were off it. Led by the indomitable Keith Hernandez and the young dynamic duo of Dwight Gooden and Darryl Strawberry, along with the gallant Scum Bunch, the Amazin's left a wide trail of wreckage in their wake-hotel rooms, charter planes, a bar in Houston, and most famously Bill Buckner and the hated Boston Red Sox.
-
-
Maybe 3.5
- By Lifeisshort on 02-15-22
By: Jeff Pearlman
-
Relentless
- A Memoir
- By: Julian Edelman
- Narrated by: Gregory Abbey
- Length: 7 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Super Bowl champion wide receiver for the New England Patriots shares his inspiring story of an underdog kid who was always doubted to becoming one of the most reliable and inspiring players in the NFL. Relentless is the story of Edelman's rise, and the continuing dominance of the Patriot dynasty, filled with memories of growing up with a father who was as demanding as any NFL coach, his near-constant fight to keep his intensity and competitiveness in check in high school and college, and his celebrated nine seasons with the Patriots.
-
-
Perfect Patriots Fan Book
- By Rich Gasser on 03-02-18
By: Julian Edelman
-
Playing for More
- Trust Beyond What You Can See
- By: Case Keenum, Andrew Perloff
- Narrated by: Case Keenum
- Length: 4 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Case Keenum has traveled one of the most unique paths in the NFL. Recruited by just one college, undrafted, and released three times, Case has overcome every obstacle to become a successful starting quarterback. Keenum shares stories from every stage of his life, starting out as a ball boy for his father’s college team in West Texas, going on to win a state title in high school, and rewriting the NCAA record book at the University of Houston. A devastating knee injury almost derailed his football career, but helped him get closer to the woman who would soon become his wife.
-
-
A must listen!!!
- By Steve R. on 11-11-18
By: Case Keenum, and others
-
No Excuses
- The Making of a Head Coach
- By: Bob Stoops, Gene Wojciechowski
- Narrated by: Bob Stoops
- Length: 11 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In Stoops's journey from player to struggling graduate assistant to legendary head coach, it becomes clear that his dedication to football is about far more than the sport itself. Big Game Bob, as he is known by adorning Sooners, made a name for himself not only by rebuilding the OU football program and leading the team to multiple conference championships but also by adhering to a strong set of principles at a time when corruption was rampant across the NCAA.
-
-
What a Story!
- By Teacher 4832 on 05-07-20
By: Bob Stoops, and others
-
Amazing Tales from the Chicago Bears Sideline
- A Collection of the Greatest Bears Stories Ever Told
- By: Steve McMichael, John Mullin, Phil Arvia
- Narrated by: Tony Craine
- Length: 8 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Chicago Bears are more than a football team - they are a legend. Founded in 1919, the Bears have won more regular season games than any other NFL franchise. With 26 players in the Pro Football Hall of Fame and thirteen retired jerseys, it’s no wonder the Bears can be defined by three phrases: Big, tough, and full of characters. The Bears, like Chicago, are not just people. They are personalities. In Amazing Tales From the Chicago Bears Sideline, Bears fans can hear about the men who have made the Bears one of the greatest franchises in pro football....
-
-
Steve mcmichael
- By teamjed on 08-13-24
By: Steve McMichael, and others
-
Tales from the San Francisco 49ers Sideline
- A Collection of the Greatest 49ers Stories Ever Told
- By: Matt Maiocco, Roger Craig
- Narrated by: David Crommett
- Length: 4 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The San Francisco 49ers shaped the NFL throughout the 1980s with their unique blend of precision, panache, and preparation. Three decades later, NFL teams are still copying the system and the methods that made the 49ers unlike any other organization in professional sports. Now fans of this dynamic franchise will relive all the action and thrills of 49ers football through the eyes of one of the greatest San Francisco legends of all time: Roger Craig.
-
-
Boring!
- By JayMK on 05-14-24
By: Matt Maiocco, and others
-
Bo's Lasting Lessons
- The Legendary Coach Teaches the Timeless Fundamentals of Leadership
- By: Bo Schembechler, John U. Bacon
- Narrated by: John H. Mayer
- Length: 3 hrs and 35 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In Bo's Lasting Lessons, the coach draws on his years of experience, using first-person anecdotes to deliver timeless lessons on leadership, motivation, and responsibility. With pithy language, Bo explains that true leadership requires the compassion to actively listen to your people, and then to have the courage to do what is right every time.
-
-
Bo
- By Onlyme on 03-28-24
By: Bo Schembechler, and others
-
Basketball
- A Love Story
- By: Jackie MacMullan, Rafe Bartholomew, Dan Klores
- Narrated by: James Fouhey, Jim Frangione, Sullivan Jones, and others
- Length: 16 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A sweeping and revelatory history of basketball, drawing upon hundreds of hours of interviews with the greatest players, coaches, executives, and journalists in the history of the game. In an effort to tell the complete story of basketball in all its fascinating dimensions, acclaimed authors Jackie MacMullan, Rafe Bartholomew, and Dan Klores have compiled nearly a thousand hours' worth of interviews with a staggering number of basketball greats. The audiobook that grew out of those interviews is an extraordinary project and quite possibly the most ambitious basketball work ever made.
-
-
Underwhelming
- By Adam Kosberg on 12-02-18
By: Jackie MacMullan, and others
What listeners say about Sack Exchange
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Tania Sandage
- 05-09-19
Delusions of Grandeur the Novel!
Greg Prato has constructed a monument to suspect player narratives, built entirely by the 1980s New York Jets football players. Many of whom seem to be completely without an self awareness or at least clinging to their view that they were an 80s football powerhouse done wrong by their management & coaches, mother nature, dumb penalties, player strikes and other various nods from the football gods that all went against the Jets and in many cases them individually.
Some Key non-spoilery highlights:
-Wesley Walker may be more detached from reality than you can possibly imagine. He's an integral interview throughout the book and you will laugh and shake your head several times. Don't ever change, Wes, not that you could.
-The entire Jets team clings to narratives over and over again that are simply not supported by facts. Which if it was a couple dudes or one particular game, would just be fun and sour grapes kinda stuff. But every single major loss and failure, and there are excuses and what ifs to last a lifetime. Has to be difficult to believe you are part of a powerhouse football team, only to look back at the end of a decade and see a total of 3 playoff wins and zero division titles.
- The 1983 draft will never run out of storylines. Perched right in the middle of this story and the Jet spin on getting the 4th best QB in a 3 Hall of Fame QB draft is a true testament to how deep narratives hold.
- Walt Michaels is a fascinating dude. Every story he's involved in is fantastic and has so much humanity.
-There are some at times Jarring interviews with Super Jet Fan. Some of his stories are great, sometimes you are thinking "Can we get back to the games?" But they do add some color particularly in the move from Shea to the Meadowlands/Giants Stadium and the Jet fan reactions.
Highly recommend this book to 80s NFL fans NOT of the New York Jets. If you're an 80s Jets fan, this should be both repetitive and painful. Would have liked a little more game detail in the 15 hour narrative, but the completely entertaining comments of Jet players and coaches keeps this as a solid A/A- listen.
Not recommended for: People under 30, non football fans and anyone trolling for a lurid tale of 80s/90s football jock culture. There are plenty of Oklahoma Sooner, New York Met, Miami Hurricane, Dallas Cowboys and Oakland Raiders stories out there to get your soap opera on. Mark Gastineau is obviously a character football fans are familiar with, but he tends to stand out more on this team as just goofy and aloof. For as much as these Jets are a little delusional, they seem to be really likeable and compelling men who mostly stayed out of trouble. If you are desperately in search of a political or social narrative to attach to this, it's not there.
On the technical side: The Narrator is pretty clean and fades into the stories and interviews properly and handles the slang and jargon pretty well. A couple hiccups but not many. Most of the errors in the players' memory are corrected with a few exceptions that probably don't mean anything to anyone but the biggest football dorks, like me.
Cheers!
Here's a vote for a book on the 80s Browns, Eagles, Falcons, Bengals and Oilers all of whom have similar stories that haven't been explored.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Ernie Balabanis
- 11-29-20
alot of filler, no thriller
its a lot of listing of players and coaches and season records and very surface level storytelling. i was hoping for some interesting insider stories, none to be had here
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!