For the New York Jets, the Future Is Now

The phantom of George Allen must come to the New York Jets' Eric Mangini in dreams and hiss his famous phrase, "The Future is now, son, the future is now."

Coming off a 4-12 season, and under the always white-hot glare of the relentless Gotham press, Mangini has decided to assemble his own version of Allen's old "Over the Hill Gang."

Adam Sandler landed the Burt Reynolds role in the much-poorer remake of The Longest Yard. In this remake of the "Over the Hill Gang", Brett Favre lands the coveted role of Billy "Whiskey" Kilmer.

Jets fans hope Gang Green does as well as the Mean Machine.

Favre doesn't drink whiskey like Kilmer anymore, nor is he a youthful Namath-like savior, but he is going to try his best to lead the Jets to the Super Bowl, like the revived Kilmer did with the Washington Redskins in 1972.

Running back Tom Jones is no youngster, having passed through Arizona and Chicago before landing in Jersey.

The high-priced, free-agent guards, grey beards, Alan Faneca and Damien Woody have 20-plus NFL seasons between them.

The giant, expensive left tackle, D'Brickshaw Ferguson, is young but at the vital point in his career where college potential must turn into pro production. The big man from Old Virginny has been a good pass blocker but it's time to be a dominant player.

The Jets' flashy, deep striker, Lavernus Coles, is past 30.

An old Favre favorite, Bubba Franks, has sneaked onto the roster.

Key, defensive free agent Kris Jenkins is almost 30 and has seven years in Carolina Blue under his big belt.

Pass rusher Shaun Ellis is past 30, and defensive anchor Bryan Thomas is also almost the big three-oh, an age when most players have more professional football in their past then in their sore-kneed future. 

At key spots, the Jets are almost ancient, football-wise.

The so called Magic Man must be feeling the pressure. Rolling the dice for Favre will turn up the heat and bring even more media attention to the Jets' every move.

The Favre media feeding-frenzy will be felt by fans all season.

If it works and the Jets make a deep playoff run with their mighty old men, the Magic Man will called magnificent.

If Favre flounders and the defense fails, Mangini's mojo might be mud.

So Mangini must dig out those old George Allen over the hill tapes.

Let Kilmer fire up Favre.

Hope Thomas Jones can make the green, green grass of the end zone his home.

And see if Boyd Dowler, Richie Petitbon, and Jack Pardee are still in playing shape.

To beat those guys in Patriot red, white, and blue, they are going to need all the help they can get.

Watching this ride will be, at the very least, fun, and, Super Bowl wins aside, that's what fans pay for.

Buy the ticket Magic Man, take the ride. 

The future, after all, is now.