GUEST COMMENTARY FROM A JETS FAN

Ok, now that I have had time to take it all in … I am still a little confused. I just don’t get it.

Mind you, I have been a Jets fan all my life, and have continually been baffled by what the team does both in the off season and on the field. Being a Jets fan is always like living on a roller coaster of emotions. Something will happen to spark hope, a glimmer of greatness if you will (two consecutive AFC championship appearances). But then reality sinks back in and we end up with the same ol’ Jets! I thought that all of our off-season moves were going pretty well — signing valuable players and filling needed positions at safety and back up QB and then … BAM. Tebow time.

(Photo: Businessinsider.com)

As a displaced Jets fan living in Denver, this was like the nausea that arrives after you have been swiftly kicked square in the nuts. It sucked. But theres nothing I can do so I am trying to see the value and not try to understand the “why”. One thought I just can’t shake out of my head is that Woody made the decision to fill seats and sell jerseys. I went to a few home games in New Jersey last year and the stadium was maybe three-quarters full. I know that Tannembaum and Rex are really pushing to “win now”, as it’s likely that their fates are in line with the success of this season, but picking up Tim Tebow doesn’t really seem like the team’s golden ticket.

That being said, maybe that was never the Jets intent. Maybe they just saw an opportunity to bring value to the team at little perceived cost. With the media surrounding Tebow and New York being what it is, maybe we are just blowing this whole thing way out of proportion. If the Jets made this move to get back, say, Brad Smith, no one would be making such a huge fuss about it. Brad was a QB in college and took over 10 snaps in wildcat formation in many games for the Jets. The big difference was his fit on special teams and in other positions. If Tebow is really willing to do what ever it takes to help the team like he said in his press conference he could prove to be very valuable for the Jets.

The major thing that is keeping me from jumping on the Tebow band wagon is the 4th and 6th round pick we traded away. Will the looks the Jets get with Tebow, combined with his unknown in special teams, be better than the other positions we could have filled in those spots? How bout some offensive linemen? Some pass-rushers perhaps? I guess the draft and the season are the only ways to tell, and it never does anyone any good to play the what-if game. He’s here, he’s a Jet, and now we can just wait and see.

The positive side of all of this craziness is it allows the Jets to be very active filling the roster and preparing for the draft without much analyzation outside of Tebowmania. We had a lot of WTF moments at the end last year that people aren’t really talking about too much. Other than obvious tensions in the locker room, the team performed poorly from the ground up. While everyone is looking at what Tim Tebow will do, the Jets can and should focus on fixing the major problems that plagued them last year.

Adding another great athlete and competitor to your team should come to any fan as a positive, but for some reason I still don’t get that feeling from this move. I am open-minded, and know that there are worse things that could have happened because Tim is not going to have baby momma drama or get locked up for a DUI or call out other players anonymously in the press.

I just want to have the team I support with all my being be good at playing regular football. Not surprise antics and wacky formations, ground and pound and play action for long touchdowns. Is that too much to ask?!?!?

Sincerely,

The Ever-Disgruntled Jets Fan
“I bleed green and white”

(Photo: Jeff Zelevansky/Getty Images via BleacherReport.com)

The New York Jets introduced Tim Tebow as their backup quarterback today, which means that the circus has officially rolled into town for Rex Ryan & Co.

The anonymous player quotes and speculation as to whether Tebow will compete for starting time with the newly re-upped Mark Sanchez have already begun, and we’re months away from the start of training camp.  Just wait until Jets nation gets a real taste of Tebowmania …

For his part, let’s just say that Tebow is “excited” to be a Jet.  In fact, let’s let Timmy say it … a total of 44 times during his 30-minute session with the media:

VIDEO AFTER THE JUMP

[H/T Buzzfeed]

In the words of Bart Scott , I genuinely CAN’T WAIT to hear Rex Ryan explain their thinking on this one. Let the Big Apple circus commence!!!

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Before all you Jets fans out there go and purchase your new Tim Tebow jerseys, you might want to wait for the deal for the Broncos QB to actually be finalized.

(Photo: terezowens.com)

It seems that the trade between the Jets and Broncos that would send Tebow (and a 7th round pick) to New York in exchange for a 4th and 6th round pick has hit a snag.

And despite the fact that the Jets announced the deal on their Twitter page (which is still up at the time of this posting), they apparently didn’t really read Tebow’s contract before agreeing to the terms. And now they’re contesting a clause that would require NY to pay back $5 million in advance salaries from his rookie contract in Denver.

If this deal doesn’t end up going through, the Jets are going to end up looking really, really stupid.

I mean, did GM Mike Tannenbaum just get so geeked up about landing Tebow that he didn’t bother to read the fine print on the man’s contract? The Broncos – who even with Twitter-happy John Elway at the helm, have made no official announcement, by the way - feel as though the Jets need to hold up their commitment to the deal, since it’s their own fault they didn’t pay closer attention before signing off on it.

But apparently, the trade was never registered with the league, and was therefore never valid. So it’s all pretty much up in the air for now, with teams like Jacksonville re-entering the fray for Tebow’s services.

And even if the deal with the Jets does go through in the end, we have a feeling Tebowmania is not going to play very well in New York, what with the Ryan-Sanchez circus already in full effect … so this whole situation really feels like a lose-lose for the Jets.

Which uniform looks best on Petyon? (Image via Adam Schefter/Facebook.com)

So far, the story of the 2012 NFL off-season is Colts QB Peyton Manning, and where he’s going to play next season. The back-and-forth between Manning and Colts’ owner Jim Irsay has reached a near-comical level of he said-she said, with Irsay saying on Thursday that they’re currently in negotiations with the veteran quarterback. But the general consensus seems to be that Irsay is just posturing for the media, and that Pey-Pey has likely played his last down as a Colt.

Vegas released updated odds today on where Manning will play in 2012, which place the Dolphins as the favorite to land Peyton at 2.5-to-1, barely edging out “Does Not Play” (currently getting 3-1 odds), for those who believe Peyton’s neck injury could force him into early retirement. The Redskins are next in what seems like a perfect Dan Snyder move, followed by the Colts and Cardinals at 5-1, and Jets at 6-1.

My gut says Peyton will end up in either Washington or Arizona … what do you think?

SEE THE COMPLETE PEYTON MANNING ODDS AFTER THE JUMP

[Via R.J. Bell at Pregame.com]

UPDATED Peyton Manning odds
(next season’s team):

Dolphins: 17% ($100 wins $250)
Does not play: 15% ($100 wins $300)
Redskins: 13% ($100 wins $350)
Colts: 10% ($100 wins $500)
Cardinals: 10% ($100 wins $500)
Jets: 9% ($100 wins $600)
Seahawks: 5.5% ($100 wins $1,000)
Chiefs: 3% ($100 wins $1,800)
Texans: 3% ($100 wins $2,000)
Broncos: 2% ($100 wins $2,500)
49ers: 1.5% ($100 wins $4,000)
Titans: 1% ($100 wins $5,000)
Any Other Team: 10% ($100 wins $500)

Biggest adjustments from opening odds:
Cardinals from (25-1) down to (5-1)
Seattle from (unlisted) down to (10-1)
Chiefs from (50-1) down to (18-1)
Texans from (75-1) down to (20-1)

(special thanks to Cal-Neva sportsbook)

(Image via reddit.com/r/nfl)

New York’s love affair with Rex Ryan might finally be over. After yet another year of bluster, bravado and championship guarantees from their head coach, the Jets failed to make the playoffs following an ugly 8-8 season. Today, the organization seems to be in an utter state of disarray, as supposed team leaders Santonio Holmes and Bart Scott lead the way with infighting, finger-pointing and wildly immature behavior, both during and after their season-ending loss at Miami.

It’s gotten so bad that Rex actually broke down in tears while addressing his team yesterday, overcome by the emotion of the season. But then again, Ryan has never been one to apologize for letting his passion getting the better of him:

“I’m Irish. So what do you want?” Ryan said … “It’s hurtful. I’m extremely prideful. I want to be the best. I want to win. Sometimes it comes out like that.”

With his unabashed, fun-loving & always-quotable style, Ryan has turned the Jets into one of the league’s most high-profile teams and twice brought them to the brink of a Super Bowl appearance in his three seasons with the club. But now, people around the league are questioning whether Ryan’s “player’s coach” mentality ultimately points to a lack of control over his team … which in turn leads to sloppy, undisciplined play at the most critical times from his players.

Is it finally time for Rex to grow up and instill some discipline into his routine?  Only time will tell, but there’s one thing most can agree on: Ryan’s schtick has grown tired, and without the hardware to back it up, his bluster will soon turn to white noise and players will start tuning him out completely.

Cromartie searches for his jock on the MetLife Stadium turf (Image via Sportsgrid.com)

We’ve got another late contender for play of the year already today.

With the Giants trailing the Jets 7-3 and looking relatively lifeless heading into the half, facing 3rd and 10 from their own 1 yard line, Eli Manning hit Victor Cruz right around the first down marker … at which point Cruz makes an unbelievable sidestep move to elude two Jets defenders and break free for the 99-yard score.

Watch as Cruz makes Antonio Cromartie look silly after the catch, then uses his speed to do the rest:

VIDEO AFTER THE JUMP

Cruz – one of he breakout offensive stars in the NFL this season – continues to come up with big plays when his team needs him most. The undrafted free agent has already set the new Giants franchise record for receiving yards in a season (1,322), and the play came at a critical point in the game for New York, who desperately need to win today to stay alive in the hunt for the division title.

And now, he’s made NFL history with a record that can never be broken. Merry Christmas, Victor.

(Photo: the700level.com)

Lest you were worried that the world had forgotten, the good people of Philadelphia are to here to remind everyone about Jets Head Coach Rex Ryan’s foot fetish.

Timely or not (the story originally broke around this time last year), it’s just nice to see fans so committed to their mockery of the opposition. Instant classic.

(Image via everyjoe.com)

Points for creativity, but not exactly the classiest move we’ll see this year.

After scoring a touchdown during the second quarter of today’s Bills-Jets game, Buffalo WR Stevie Johnson mocked Jets WR Plaxico Burress by pretending to shoot himself in the leg. As we all know, Burress spent 20 months in prison after shooting himself in the thigh at a Manhattan nightclub in 2008.

But Johnson wasn’t finished there, continuing through the endzone while mimicking Santonio Holmes’ “flight” celebration and crashing to the ground in the endzone, ultimately drawing a 15-yard unsportsmanlike penalty:

VIDEO AFTER THE JUMP

With the pre-planned routine, Johnson not only managed to mock two Jets players at once, but he also drew a critical, if not game-changing penalty, all in one fell swoop.

“I was just having fun and part of having fun ended up being a penalty and a touchdown for the Jets,” Johnson said. “It was a stupid decision by myself.”

The Jets seemed to use the play as a rallying point, and aided by the extra 15-yards in field position, New York scored a touchdown the ensuing possession to tie the game at 14-14 heading into the half. Oh, and that touchdown was scored by none other than Plaxico Burress.

For his part, Plaxico had this to say after the game:

“I’ve seen worse and I’ve heard worse,” Burress said. “It doesn’t bother me at all. The result I’m looking at is that we won the football game and he turned around and dropped three wide open balls to lose the game for his team. If I was a player that’s how I would evaluate myself.”

I’ve honestly never understood these kinds of celebrations so early in the game. You’d think these guys would have enough common sense to wait until the game was in the bag before busting out their choreographed dance moves and gloating in the face of their opponents.

After today, maybe Johnson will think twice before celebrating prematurely next time around.

Then, you just sit there and marvel at the sheer breadth of this kid’s knowledge (even in the midst of a full-on meltdown), while mom tries to help him come to terms with the years of inevitable pain & suffering that lay ahead for this young Jets fan.

That’s just good parenting, right there.

(Image via instntrply.com)

Oh boy … get ready, folks. If you thought Tim Tebow-mania had already reached its pinnacle in this country, you ain’t seen nothing’ yet.

Last night, after turning in his usual sub-par performance for 3-1/2 quarters, Tebow once again stepped up as the hero, leading the Broncos on game-winning 95-yard drive to defeat the Jets 17-13.  Tebow capped the impressive drive himself with a 20-yard touchdown run (video below), and now, after leading his team to a 4-1 record as starter, even his biggest doubters are genuinely starting to believe that there’s something special about this kid.

Critics will continue to argue that Tebow doesn’t have an NFL caliber arm, and going 9-for-20 for 104 yards passing won’t exactly change anyone’s mind about that, but the bottom line in this game is winning, and you just can’t argue with his results. Tebow rushed for 58 yards on the final drive alone, but his greatest skill might be his ability to avoid the big mistake … something Mark Sanchez knows all about after throwing a crucial pick-six that may have cost the Jets the game. By not making costly turnovers, Tebow has been able to keep the Broncos in every game he’s played until the end, and that’s all you can really ask for from a quarterback in this league.

And as he proved once again against a talented Jets defense, Tebow’s ability to make the big play when its most needed is simply uncanny.

“I like winning,” Tebow said after his third comeback in a month, “but I wish it wasn’t this stressful.”

Well, if he keeps winning games like this – and evoking the comeback prowess of one John Elway for Denver fans – I think everyone will learn how to manage the stress level just fine.

PS – Lost in all this Tebow talk, it’s really the Broncos defense that won this game for Denver. Oh, and Von Miller is quietly running away with the defensive ROY award. Just sayin’ …

VIDEO AFTER THE JUMP