Look, there’s no secret that the New York Jets have had a disappointing season. A team that once had Super Bowl aspirations is now wholly engaged in the Tank Standings.
Yet despite the circus antics displayed by the organization itself, far too many fans are in denial of what the team actually is, what its future is, and the fandom that a losing culture has created.
New York Jets fans attack The Athletic … but why?
Far too often in journalism, fans are quick to label stories as clickbait rather than admit that the team that consumes their fandom can be at fault.
The Jets got a first-hand taste of this at the end of last season when The Athletic published a story citing 30 (unnamed) employees who helped paint the picture as to why the Jets had been underperforming under the leadership of then-head coach Robert Saleh.
Some of those reasons included poor leadership, an excuse-making culture, and an ill-equipped staff—all things that were proven true. Yet, instead of acknowledging the franchise’s dysfunction and demanding change, fans decided to attack Dianna Russini (and, to a far lesser extent, Zack Rosenblatt).
Surely, when The Athletic posted a similar, yet more damning story involving the owner’s meddling a year later, Jets fans would react rationally, right? Wrong.
This time, the story involved owner Woody Johnson and his erratic and irrational behavior. This included wanting to bench Aaron Rodgers after their loss to the Denver Broncos in Week 4 (when the team was only 2-2), benching Tony Adams (what?), vetoing trades, and not allowing general manager Joe Douglas to make the personnel moves he reportedly wanted.
Once again, instead of fan displeasure with ownership, attacks were directed at an organization trying to shed light on severe dysfunction at the ownership level.
While the reports unearthed the circus that has become the Jets, they also revealed something else—just how beleaguered New York Jets fans have become.
A simmering hatred finally rises to the top
The Jets have been the butt of numerous jokes for years, largely for things out of their control. One may look no further than the “Butt Fumble,” which was featured on “SportsCenter’s” Not Top 10 for 40 consecutive weeks.
Unsurprisingly, that’s added an extra oomph to Jets fans’ disdain over the years. So, when the Jets finally added a future Hall of Fame quarterback only to see the entire team fall apart, it’s hard to blame them for being upset.
However, their hatred might be directed at the wrong people—far too consistently.
The Jets haven’t made the playoffs since the 2010 season. Despite that, fans are oddly loyal to people they probably shouldn’t be.
Take Joe Douglas, for example. A general manager who contributed to far too many misses during his six-year tenure, his firing was treated like a massive mistake by too many Jets fans.
In fact, many should blame Douglas for the Jets missing the playoffs last year. His stubbornness about Zach Wilson’s abilities left the team on a ship with no rudder, refusing to get an adequate backup behind Aaron Rodgers.
That mistake cost the Jets dearly. And yet while they addressed that prior to the 2024 season, there were plenty of holes and bad signings that have shown their ugly face this year, too.
The greatest culprit by far is owner Woody Johnson. However, despite the “sell the team” chants that occurred in October, Jets fans refuse to take any real, meaningful action. Fans still purchase the merchandise that benefits the team. They also continue to go to the games, supporting a team that quite clearly cares more about their bottom dollar than on-field success.
Obviously, some of this is just natural fandom. To expect 100% of the fanbase to stop attending games and/or stop purchasing merchandise is completely unrealistic. Nonetheless, perhaps the idea needs to spread more fervently.
Where do we go from here?
Fans are loyal to a fault. And, at the end of the day, that’s understandable—to an extent. Yet, Jets fans themselves have started becoming their own running joke. It’s become more than a fanbase that succumbs to misery while maintaining loyalty.
With yet another year of what’s nothing short of a circus, fans themselves need to take a hard look in the mirror and ask themselves one question: Is it possible to change course in a way that somehow, some way actually helps the football team I love?
To that end, I think Jets fans should come clean with how some in the fanbase are conducting themselves. For that group, on-field success has become an afterthought, as a rabid hatred of all things “life” has taken its place.
Perhaps a winning season changes the fanbase’s mentality going forward, but the sad reality is that not even that idea can sufficiently represent a saving grace.
At the end of the day, fans who allow themselves to be continuously roped into the charade of hope add to the ever-growing diatribes of what’s become a confused, beaten-down, and oftentimes entirely too-brutal fanbase.
Yes, I get it … the New York Jets fans have had a rough go of it. They could very well be the most beleaguered group in professional sports today.
Still, pondering thoughts about becoming part of the solution, as opposed to adding fuel to the already nasty fire, might serve everybody better.
