Being a NY Jets fan, I've experienced quite a bit of ridiculousness in my years of following this team. If there is a Jets fan out there that is between the ages of 18 and under, then they have no idea what a true Jets fan has had to endure. Even I will admit that I haven't endured all that the long time fan has suffered.
About a year ago, I went out for pizza with a friend in Rock Hill, SC. The name of the pizza parlor was Empire Pizza. As an aside, their pizza is outstanding. Apparently, the owners are long time Jets fans. We went in to order and my friend, Becky, told them that I was a big Jets fan, as well. Their first question was surrounded around the length of time I've been a Jets fan. You see, many Jets fans haven't experienced the embarrassment and disappointment that the old time fans have.
There has never been a greater period of Jets prosperity than the previous 15 years. When the Jets won the Super Bowl, they had an additional 1 or 2 years where they were good, but otherwise they were mediocre to putrid. The entire decade of the 70s was a disaster. The 80s was hit or miss with 81-82 being good, 83-84 disappointing, 85-87 good, 88-89 a joke. The 90s were similar to the 70s in that the team was mostly underperfoming, outcoached, and they drafted as poorly as any other team. That changed once Bill Parcells marched into town in 1997.
From 1997-2011, a period spanning 15 seasons, the Jets have only had a losing record on 3 occasions. Their Win-Loss record during this time is a respectible 128-112, or a .533 winning percentage. They made the playoffs 7 times during this stretch. To consider that the team has only made the playoffs 14 times in its entire existence, this is a pretty impressive accomplishment.
That brings us to the present day. With Rex Ryan at the helm, the Jets have had their training camp in Cortland, NY over 3 of the past 4 seasons (including the current camp). Each year, there is some kind of fan fare. Year 1 was the welcoming of Ryan and Sanchez to right the ship. Year 2, the team was featured on HBO's Hard Knocks series. This year, it's Tebowmania. Tim Tebow, who was traded to the team in the offseason from Denver, has to be the most bally-hooed back up quarterback in the history of football. Every time he speaks, the sports writers listen as if they are at "The Last Supper" or something. Today, Tebow takes his shirt off at the end of a rain drenched practice and every writer in America caught a picture of it. Remarkably, the writers are so focused on Tebowmania that they aren't even paying attention to the starting quarterback, Mark Sanchez. One reporter even addressed Sanchez as "Tim", to which Sanchez replied, "I'm Mark."
Where does the acquisition of Tebow rank in terms of the Jets blunders and missteps? Time will tell on that one. It gives the opposition another dimension to prepare for, but is it worth the media circus that the team is going to have to endure?
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