Bragging rights in New York is as common as Liposuction in Los Angeles.
My doctor is from Long Island, he has an interesting combination for what sports teams he aligns with as a fan. He is passionate about the Mets in baseball and the Giants in football. It is not a common combination, most often Giants fans go hand-in-hand with the New York Yankees and the Jets crowd lean with the Mets in baseball.
This week, baseball fans from both camps had their seasons dashed in different ways; the Mets turning one of their best two months in history to open a season only to fall out of the playoff field on the final day of the season, and the Yankee followers getting dominated by the Toronto Blue Jays in the playoffs.
While baseball fans are licking their wounds, New York Jets followers are hiding in alleys … not wanting to confront Giants fans who are celebrating the arrival of their franchise quarterback following a huge upset win over the defending Super Bowl Champion Philadelphia Eagles. The victory was orchestrated by Jaxon Dart, who doesn’t have to pay for his own drinks at any bar in New York.
While the Jets are the only team winless through six weeks of NFL action, the Giants have triumphed in two of Dart’s three starts and suddenly consider themselves in the race for a playoff berth.
Okay, if you’ve followed me for any length of time, I’ve been doing this for over a half-century, you might suspect that this is not a story about the skyrocketing Giants continuing on a winning path but more likely the prospects of the much-maligned Jets.
Last week, the Jets took their act out of the country, but television coverage allowed their fans and detractors to both bemoan their play in London or rub in the results like a bully on the playground. Giants fans are so full of themselves right now, and the poor Jets followers are wearing jackets with no team affiliation over their green New York jerseys.
The Jets traveled to London last week to meet the Denver Broncos on the same day the Giants were upsetting the Eagles. It appears the Jets offense missed the flight, they got a total of 82 net yards in their loss to the Denver Broncos, which included a minus 10 passing yards. How do you do that? You pass for 45 yards and get sacked for 55 yards in losses.
Still, the Jets won the game with the point spread. As poorly as New York played on offense, their defense limited the Broncos to 12 first downs, a single touchdown and a pair of field goals, which was enough for Sean Payton’s team to eke out a 13-11 win. The Giants were getting a touchdown on the point spread.
This week the Jets are at home, their win starved fans will show up again with hope against all odds that their team can rise from the winless ranks. Their opponent, the Carolina Panthers, have won three games this season.
On the same day the Jets were absorbing incoming in a London blitz, the Panthers were celebrating a win over the Dallas Cowboys. The Panthers three wins this season have all been scored in front of their home fans. Carolina has lost all three games away from Bank of America Stadium by a combined 50 points.
Let’s see; the Jets are at the bottom with no excuses to hide behind, and the Panthers come to town with confidence that their long recent path of losing is behind them.
No, it’s not.
Not this week.
Not on Sunday.
This is where the Jets fly. The point spread is close, Carolina a slight favorite. The game won’t be, as the Jets take off.
Qoxhi Picks: New York Jets (+1½) over Carolina Panthers