New York Jets: Ranking the Teams Jets Fans Love to Hate the Most
We are Jets fans.
We're loud, brash and relatively unrefined.
We are at the receiving end of the rest of the league's criticisms, but we also know how to dish them out (usually with four-letter words).
On any given day, a true Jets fan will rattle off 31 unique reasons for hating all other 31 NFL teams individually. Why? Because we're Jets fans.
If someone is wearing a Dallas Mavericks jersey at a Jets-Dolphins game, he or she will get booed. Why? Because they're not wearing a Jets jersey.
But beyond it all, Jets fans have accumulated a certain level of distaste for some teams more than others.
Here are the teams Jets fans love to hate the most.
Honorable Mention: Indianapolis Colts
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A longtime AFC East divisional threat, Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts are never warmly welcomed into the hearts of Jets fans.
But with their move out of the division due to realignment and their proven ability over the years to beat the Patriots, they've gained a little more leeway with Jets fans over the years.
Plus, any Jets fan who's ever made the trip out to Indy knows that taking over the Claddagh Bar in Indianapolis and chanting "J-E-T-S" on their streets is one of the most fun things in the world to do.
Honorable Mention: Oakland Raiders
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With a long history of hate between these two teams dating back to "The Heidi Game," the last thing Jets fans ever want to see on their schedule is a 4:15 away game in Oakland.
The late 90's and early 2000's, were brutal for the Jets in Oakland, as Rich Gannon and Tim Brown found ways to effectively end Gang Green's seasons.
Also, and hopefully I'm not just speaking for Jets fans, but watching images of, "The Black Hole" fan section on TV just angers everyone.
Dear Oakland, it's not the "Rocky Horror Picture Show," it's a football game.
5. Denver Broncos
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I don't care that the Jets and Broncos haven't played a meaningful game in years. I still will never like the Broncos.
1998 was our year. Vinny, Wayne and Curtis were all set to lead the Jets back to the promised land when John Elway, Terrell Davis and Steve "We Got You a Year Too Late" Atwater decided to ruin our plans.
If Tim Tebow ever resuscitates Denver Broncos football back to a respectable degree, just know Denver, Jets fans are waiting for you.
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4. New York Giants
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Let's get straight to it: the New York Giants have won more Super Bowls and have had more success than the New York Jets in each of their respective histories.
However, that time is now over.
Not just because the gospel of Rex Ryan states as such (although it is a useful tool), but the Jets have an immensely brighter future than their pesky neighbors and will continue to attract more young fans due to their flashy nature and spirited character.
But Giants fans will never admit it, nor come to terms with the realization that the Jets will soon overtake their spot as New York's team. Most Giants fans own real estate in an area called "Fairy Tale Land" where Eli Manning is a superior quarterback being coached by the chief of all wisdom, Tom Coughlin.
This season will match these two teams up in a Jets home game, one that's sure to stir some pots after all the anti-Giants buzz Rex Ryan's new book has generated this offseason.
3. Miami Dolphins
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If you asked most Jets fans about 10-15 years ago which team they hated the most, my guess is about 95 percent would agree on the Miami Dolphins.
Throughout Dan Marino's tenure as Miami's quarterback (one that never saw a Super Bowl victory, much to the pleasure of most Jets fans), the Dolphins haunted the Jets and were easily their biggest rival.
Even in some of the worst years of New York Jets franchise history, a victory against Miami would at least put a viable Band-Aid on what was more than likely a deeply wounded season.
But Miami has fallen amongst the ranks of top Jets rivals in the last decade due to their own collapse, New England's surge to the top and the acquisition of former Jets QB Chad Pennington. Don't get me wrong, no Jets fans ever wanted to see Chad lead the Dolphins past the Jets, but most Gang Green supporters also wished Chad the best.
Word to the wise: Whenever you're feeling low on your Miami Dolphin animosity, just watch a recording of the Monday Night Miracle and remember how that felt. The rest will fall into place.
2. Pittsburgh Steelers
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Very few NFL fans like the Pittsburgh Steelers and their fanbase. They're annoying and obnoxious, with a large portion of them defining what it means to be a "front-runner."
As a Jets fan who traveled to the Steel City twice this past season witnessing both a Jets win and a loss, I can think of only one other place I've been which I disliked more. (Hint: that's No. 1!)
Being in Heinz Field when the Steelers were only a minute away from a trip to the Super Bowl, I witnessed a large exodus of fans to the gates in order to get to their cars and escape that "big city traffic" of Pittsburgh.
What? If the Jets were about to win the AFC Championship at home, you would never see a seat empty. Steelers fans are ungrateful for their success and completely ignorant to everything else around them.
Most Jets fans would love nothing more than a reunion with Pittsburgh next year and squashing them on their way to the Super Bowl.
Wait a Minute, the Buffalo Bills Aren't on This List?
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No, they're not. We officially feel bad for them.
Despite divisional rivalry and their successes in the early 90's, beating the Buffalo Bills twice a year is starting to lose its fun.
As a Jets fan, the only thing I look forward to about a Jets-Bills game these days is if the game is being played in Toronto because it would be kind of interesting to go see a Jets game in Canada. Period.
1. New England Patriots
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Around the league and especially on the NFL Network, you'll hear people discuss how the Steelers-Ravens or the Bears-Packers is the best rivalry in the NFL. They're wrong.
The Jets and the Patriots hate each other like no other. Ever since Bill Belichick stiff-armed the Jets coaching job back in the late 90's, these teams have grown to despite one another.
They ridicule and taunt each other at every opportunity and want to see nothing more than the other's complete demise.
No Jets fan ever wants to go to Foxborough, and they make sure Patriots fans are never welcomed in Jersey.
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