The world works in funny ways.
You never know who you’ll cross paths with again.
As Arizona’s race for the state’s 1st Congressional District continues, it has a direct connection to the New York Jets.
Former Jets kicker Jay Feely is the Republican nominee, while Amish Shah, the Jets’ team doctor during Feely’s two seasons with the team in 2008-09, is the Democratic candidate.
The two will now face each other in the general election in Arizona.
Feely, 50, was the Jets’ kicker for two seasons, including their 2009 season that culminated in the AFC championship game.
In 31 games with the team, he converted 54 of his 64 field goal attempts (84.4%) with a long of 55 yards, while drilling all 71 of his extra-point tries.
He ultimately spent 14 years in the NFL before retiring following the 2014 season, his lone year with the Chicago Bears.
Following his retirement, Feely joined CBS Sports Network as a color analyst for college football in 2015. He began taking on an NFL workload with the network in 2017.
After the 2023 season, he left CBS to launch his campaign for Congress, where he has now advanced to the general election.
Shah, 49, has multiple years of political experience in government, having run for Congress on multiple occasions. He served as a member of the Arizona House of Representatives for District 5 from 2023 to 2024.
Shah also served as a Representative for District 24 from 2019 to 2023.
It’s not every day that two former members of the same NFL organization end up facing off against each other in the political sphere.
