New York Jets: Watching a game in Pennsylvania

As many of my readers already know from my past articles, I am a New York Jets fan transplanted to Pennsylvania. I reside in beautiful Lancaster County, alongside the Amish and Mennonite communities. Its a great place to live, unless you are a Jet fan, as you are surrounded by Eagles and Steelers fans. There isn’t much love for the Green and White around here!

My wife and I decided to throw a football party at the house this week, mostly at my urging, as I was almost certain the Jets would win this one. Forgive me, but I was looking forward to talking some smack to the Eagle guests! Anyway, my wife and I made all the party arrangements and our guests began arriving at noon for the pregame activities.

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We invited a group of twelve friends, five of us are my fellowJets transplants, and the other seven were die-hard Eagles fans.

It’s an interesting mix, we all know one another from past games, and enjoy the back and forth discussion of all things football. To be honest, there was likely more football knowledge in that room on Sunday than some entire analyst panels! This group has been watching, playing or coaching football long before most analysts have been alive! We are an “older group” of seasoned NFL fans.

Pregame was a lot of fun, as with most football game parties in this area, the beer flowed freely and the discussions of the upcoming game began. Several of the Eagle fans were lamenting the first two games for their team, one in particular expressed their disdain for as he put it, the “Chip Kelly Experiment.” that has gone horribly wrong so far. In general many Eagle fans are disgruntled by the many fan favorites Kelly has released or traded away.

Larry, a transplant from Philadelphia, started the game discussion in earnest, predicting an Eagles victory. While he got a lot of grief from both sides, Larry stuck to his guns, and made some excellent points. His take was that the Eagles’ defensive front would make Fitzpatrick uncomfortable all day long and as a result the Eagles’ defense would benefit by turnovers. He also pointed out that the Eagles’ running game, even without DeMarco Murray, were due for a break out game. Hat’s off to Larry as he diagnosed this game better than I did apparently.

We discussed the Eagles lack of offense in the first two games, and the Jets’ offensive output in the first two games. We talked running backs at length as both teams have a competent stable of backs at their disposal. Consensus here was that the Eagles have a better run game when their offensive line brings their A game.

The game was a good one, not the prettiest for either side, but it was fun. The first half was all Eagles, the fans in that group were vocal and took their shots at the Jet contingent at every turn as the Eagles jumped out to a huge lead by half time. Fortunately, the second half provided the Jet contingent with something to shout about. The Jets’ defense stepped up in the second half and shut the Eagles’ offense down for the most part.

With the Jets’ defense shutting down Sam Bradford and company and the Jets’ offense showing signs of life in the second half, it was enough to make Eagles fans a bit nervous and the party’s volume rose. Jet fans cheered and Eagles fans hollered as the Jets slowly began to close the gap! It was a great game to watch with friends.

Sep 27, 2015; East Rutherford, NJ, USA; Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Sam Bradford (7) drops back to pass against the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Steven Ryan-USA TODAY Sports

In the end, the Jets couldn’t get it done. Several of my fellow Jet fans wanted to lay the blame for this one solely on Ryan Fitzpatrick, but we decided that wasn’t quite fair. As the party broke up, the discussion continued. Larry stayed around with two of my Jet fans to discuss the game. While we were discussing the Jets, Larry made some interesting points I’ll include here before closing. Here is Larry’s analysis in brief, as the guy can talk forever! I value his opinions though, and would be hard pressed to claim he’s wrong.

Larry: “The Jets have a good football team, but it is a work in progress. Fitzpatrick is exactly what he has always been, efficient in the short game, but a liability when he is forced to throw often or deep. The Jets’ offensive line played poorly, due to average talent across the board. Their secondary is formidable, but their linebackers are too one dimensional and are a liability in coverage.”

Larry sees the Jets as overrated, predicting an 8-8 season. For the record he sees his team, the Eagles, going 7- 9.

The party was a huge success, the food was excellent thanks to my wife, the football game was good and everyone had a good time exchanging barbs along the way. The Jets lost, but a good time was had by all. The football discussions were a lot of fun. These guys know their football, and I was actually surprised to find out several of the Eagles fans actually read my work! Always nice to hear, especially coming from this bunch!

Thanks for reading as I appreciate all my readers. The Jets lost a game they likely should have won, but it is one game. There is plenty of football yet to be played. There is no need to panic, or create a quarterback controversy. The Jets have a good coaching staff and they will straighten things out. On to London and the Miami Dolphins, then into the bye week. Keep the faith Jet fans, we are still 2-1!

Have any thoughts on Sunday’s loss? We here at The Jet Press want to hear them! As I’m sure many of my Eagle fans friends will be reading this article, feel free to get your barbs in! Please leave us a comment below and as always, Let’s Talk Jet Football!!

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