One thing Monday’s dismantling of Detroit did for the Jets is give the fans something this franchise has been lacking.
Hope.
That’s why tomorrow’s home opener, against the Dolphins feels just so much different than other opening days.
Think about it. There hasn’t been a time this century, where the Jets went into their home opener and you saw a long term solution. There were pockets of the very good, and sometimes even great, but not like this.
The last time you felt this way was 1999, when the Jets came off losing the AFC Championship Game under Bill Parcells and that hope turned to despair quickly when Vinny Testaverde blew out his Achilles.
Sure, you also had Mark Sanchez doing that twice a decade later, but that was with Rex Ryan on the sidelines and you wondered how long that success was to be sustained.
Now, though, the Jets have a young quarterback, who looks like the real deal with an aggressive young team behind him and also $90 million in cap space next year.
This may be the Jets time.
Of course, the jury is still out on Head Coach Todd Bowles, who hasn’t made the playoffs during his tenure. But, he has patient ownership, that has gotten even more patient with Christopher Johnson replacing his brother last year.
“I like it, believe me I’ve worked for Jerry (Jones) too and Jerry was great to me, I have nothing bad to say to there what so ever but Chris has been great as well as Woody (Johnson) when he was here,” Bowles said. “You appreciate guys, they are always ears to listen to and you always tell them what you’re thinking and go from there.”
And now after three seasons, Bowles has his type of team on the field, which maybe gives us a better look at the type of coach he will be for the Jets.
“Well they did a good job Monday,” Bowles said. “I like the players that we have and the chemistry is coming together. We just got to keep our head down and keep working but I like where we’re at.”
And that’s why tomorrow, the Jets are giving their fans so much to look forward to. If they beat the Dolphins, the Jets have a chance to be 3-0 after Thursday in Cleveland, and then anything can happen.
Look, all of this can go south quickly. Sam Darnold looks great, but the NFL will adjust to him and he will have to make those adjustments to be the franchise quarterback the Jets so yearn to have. And there will be ups and downs this year and there will be times, Darnold and his Jets will look flat.
But right now, after a 1-0 start going into MetLife, things look great for Gang Green and finally Jet fans can go to games with something in their pockets they lacked for a long time.
Hope.
About the Author
