New York Jets Recap: Only Three Weeks Into Season, Fans Are Starting To Believe

All the hype for the debut of the Jets came to a screeching halt after Week 1 when the team couldn’t “walk the walk” after “talking the talk”.  Jets fans were finding it hard to defend the franchise after a slow and disappointing start to the season.  Fortunately, “Weak” 1 has been left in the past and the team’s real debut began. Week 2 on Sunday, September 19^th at 4:15pm.  By 8:00pm that evening, the Jets finished a game that may go down as a turning point for the franchise, and more importantly, stopped the onslaught of negative press (temporarily, at least). 

And temporary it was.  When Braylon Edwards, the star from Week 2, was caught driving while intoxicated almost over twice the legal limit.  The media was back in the locker room focused on the outside issues that can destroy a season (example: New York Football Giants still have not recovered from the arrest Plaxico Buress to this day).

Week 3 brought up more old memories and not-so-old memories of the Dolphins finding a way to beat the Jets home and away last season.  The Jets’ last visit to Miami ended with the defense getting punched in the mouth by the Dolphins running game. 

With the additions of LaDainian Tomlinson and Jason Taylor –both of whom are looking like 20-something-year-old kids with something to prove –the Jets were poised to right last year’s wrongs.  Sunday night started the same way it finished against the Patriots; fast, bold, and strong.  Four quarters later, the Jets were on top of the Division.  The defense may have looked weak again, but as Rex Ryan always says;

“The offense will need to pick up the defense some days.”

And that is exactly what happened.  The team finished the week with two wins and one loss, placing at the top of the AFC East, with the media jumping on the bandwagon.  

So where does this leave the New York Jets, and more importantly, New York Jets fans?

Jets fans are starting to believe; the belief started at halftime of the Patriots game and has not stopped yet.  Even during the team’s first away game in Miami you could still hear “J-E-T-S JETS JETS JETS!”, echoing through the stadium. It only helps the Jets that the New York Giants, the team’s hometown rival, are starting to implode on the field and in the headlines. Finally, Jets fans are filling the City’s bars with confidence – confidence and anticipation of what kind of team they may have become. 

As Jets fan will tell you, however, you need to hold back, knowing reality is always one trap game, penalty flag, or fake spike away from breaking our hearts all over again.  So Damian Woody’s comment to Braylon Edwards on the sideline against the Patriot holds true. 

“We talk about the Super Bowl, Take it from someone who has been there, all we gotta do is take it one play at a time, one game at the time, we will be alright, we will be alright.”