dad was born in flushing when the jets played at shea... jets and mets and a life of miserable suffering awaited
I was born in Long Island New York. My dad was and still is a huge Jet and Met fan. So I became one to.
my dad is a giants fan but i met ken o'brien and al toon and got their action figures autographed so thats what sucked me in to this life long abyss known as being a jets fan
My family is weird. You are either a Yankee/Jet fan or a Mets/Giant fan. Well my dad is a big Yankee fan but his brother use to be a big Namath fan..my uncle will latter become a Giant fan. Anyway my dad use to pick up containers at Shea Stadium when the Jets played there. My big sis went to Hofstra and we would always visit her as well as the Jets during training camp. I fell in love with Vinny and Cherbet. My sis got me Wanye's autograph and I have been hooked ever since.
I became a Jets fan when I was a little kid living in Washington heights(That's in Uptown Manhattan, for those not familiar with NYC) mainly because of my older brother("who's seen on the link below titled "Never bet on the Dolphins"). Since he's 9 years older than me, I was basically brain washed to root for the Yankees,Jets,Knicks,and Islanders from birth. I chose to root for all of them accept the Islanders. I figured since I was from Manhattan I'll root for the Rangers. But, truthfully I became more hardcore as a Jets fan when I moved here to Miami in '89. It might be fun being a Giants fan in NYC, but it's even more fun being a Jets fan here in Miami. It seems like the locals from around here hate everything New York. I think it's largely do to jealousy, and the numerous amount of NYC transplants living down here. I love the fact that every year no matter how bad our season might be, we still are able to put the whoopin on those fish sticks. And although our rivalry is intense, it's also a lot of fun with all the playful taunting. I listen to the local sports station here called 790 the ticket, and I love to call at least once a week as JP the Jets fan just to rub it in. That station is forever putting down our team. And you should here the Dolfans call, they call us every name in the book. But we also have a handful of Jets fan including myself who call on a daily basis on our defense. I don't care what kind of season they have, I am and will always be a Jets fan. Screw the dolphins, Pats, Bills, and Giants. LETS GO JETS!
When I was a kid, my first memories were that of Freeman Mcneil and Johnny Hector, the Sack Exchange, Pat Leahy. At the time, the Giants had Rob Carpenter, a hurt Phil Simms, Todd Rutledge, etc. I always remember the Giants sucking badly back then. I would get bored during their games and go outside to play football. I remember the Jets being more exciting then. My father was a Giants fan but would always watch both. At the time, it was an easy choice. Fast foward 25+ years, it may have not been the best choice at the time, but the Jets are and always will be my team. I have met many cool people and watched many a good football game both live and on TV because of these NY Jets. It only takes me a day or so to get over the heartbreak after devestating losses now so I'm learning to cope a lot better as I get older. My young son recently took an interest in them and hopefully, for his sake more than mine, we can enjoy them together. Good thread!!
Became a Jet fan when my father put a green shirt on me & took me to go see Richard Todd take a snap from Joe Fields & hand the ball to Clark Gaines at Shea.
The funny thing is, I never been to a Jets game at the Meadowlands, and I'm from New York. My earliest memories of GIANT STADIUM was being driven by there by my parents a few times, and being told by my older brother, "That's where the Jets play." I remember wondering "Why the heck is it named after the stinkin' Giants?" The only NFL games I go to is when the Jets come down here to play Miami. Better than nothing right? I always look forward to those games every year. Just like I'm looking forward to finally seeing my Jets play in person live at the Meadowlands. That'll probably happen next season though, since I'm planning to re-relocate my family and I back up north, to either NY or NJ somewhere in '09.
I wasn't that into the NFL as a kid, but I began to follow the Jets during the Kotite era around 1995. When Parcells took over in '97 I became a diehard, and have been ever since.
If I could only find him ... I was a freshman in HS -- 1978 --- and only a luke warm fan of the NFL. The first day in home room I happend to sit next to a guy named Vinny Reitano. He was a huge Jet fan, and he was getting pumped for the start of the season and telling me the Jets were about to have a big year. They had gone a miserable 3-11 each of the previous 3 years but according to him, they were a team on the rise. I started following them closely that season. Sure enough, with only 2 games left in the season they stood at 8-6 ... maybe on the way to the playoffs ... and now I was hooked. Well ... in the next game they trailed Cleveland 27 - 10 as the 4th Quarter started and things looked bleak... But they stormed back with 24 unanswered points to take a 34 - 27 lead with a few minutes left in the game! What an incredible comeback !!! BUT ... Cleveland scored a TD to tie it late in the game, and kicked a FG to win in OT. They lost the final game of the season to finish 8-8. That was my first of many, many heartbreaks as a Jet fan. Here it is ... 30 years later ... and still ... more of the same BS !!!! DAMN YOU VINNY REITANO !!!! If only I could find you today ! Are you on this board you bastard ???
Looks like I have the silliest reason for following the Jets. I'm 34 and I went the the cinema in 1980 to see Flash Gordon. The rest is history. Flash Gordon, quarterback New York Jets! I'm from England and this was a sport I really wanted to find out about. I listened to what I could get on AFN for years and years, earliest memories of games are from the 1985 season.
I was a little kid when I just started watching the Jets play the Houston Oilers at Shea one day.The Sack Exchange-Gastineau,Klecko,Lyons,Salaam.Ben Rudolph was the 5th DL.Richard Todd playing w/broken ribs VS the Fish at Shea.Todd to Jarome Barkum.I was hooked.Freeman McNeil.Scott Dierking.Wesley Walker.Derek Gaffney.Johnny Lame Jones. Nearly 30 years later,it's the same old shit.
Loyalty is important to me and when I was a kid the Jets were still playing in NYC and the Giants had already moved to Jersey so I rooted for the Jets. Jokes on me.
