...they died in 1997. Sorry folks, the Jets will either beat the Chargers or lose to them because the Chargers are a better team. SOJ will not be showing up - if they did, it would have been in Wk 16, Wk 17 or WC weekend. If Sanchez throws 3 picks, its because he is rookie, not because the SOJ kidnapped him and replaced him with a fembot programmed to throw picks. The SOJs died the day Parcells took over in 1997. Don't believe me? Well check this out... 1997 NFL AFC East 3rd 9 7 0 1998 NFL AFC East 1st 12 4 0 Won Divisional Playoffs (Jaguars) 34-24 Lost Conference Championship (Broncos) 23-10 1999 NFL AFC East 4th 8 8 0 2000 NFL AFC East 3rd 9 7 0 2001 NFL AFC East 3rd 10 6 0 Lost Wild Card Playoffs (Raiders) 38-24 2002 NFL AFC East 1st 9 7 0 Won Wild Card Playoffs (Colts) 41-0 Lost Divisional Playoffs (Raiders) 30-10 2003 NFL AFC East 4th 6 10 0 2004 NFL AFC East 2nd 10 6 0 Won Wild Card Playoffs (Chargers) 20-17 Lost Divisional Playoffs (Steelers) 20-17 Jonathan Vilma (DROY) 2005 NFL AFC East 4th 4 12 0 2006 NFL AFC East 2nd 10 6 0 Lost Wild Card Playoffs (Patriots) 37-16 Chad Pennington (CPOY) 2007 NFL AFC East 3rd 4 12 0 2008 NFL AFC East 3rd 9 7 0 2009 NFL AFC East 2nd 9 7 0 Won Wild Card Playoffs (Bengals) 24-14 Divisional Playoffs (Chargers) Since 1997, the Jets are 109-99 with 2 division championships, made the playoffs 6 times and have a 4-5 playoff record in that span. To put this in perspective, in the 13 year period before that (1984-1996), the Jets were 82-124-1, with no divisions championships, made the playoffs only 3 times and had a 1-3 playoff record in that span. The Jets made the playoffs this year with a rookie HC and rookie QB and won a playoff game with them in the cold on the road. They are playing with house money at this point and no matter what happens next week will it be because the SOJs just kicked us in the balls. The fact remains, as a Jets fan, you have been witness to the most successful 13 year run for this team outside the Super Bowl year. To cap it off this year, we have the #1 defense, the #1 rushing offense and *MAY* have found a franchise player at the most important position in football with Sanchez at QB. If you are bitching right now about SOJs, you are simply completely out of your mind. Sit back and enjoy the ride. These aren't your daddy's SOJs and over the next few years you may just enjoy a magical season that has eluded the team for the past 40 years.
I opened this thread expecting it to be another post filled with BS, but nice post klecko and I agree. Although I've only been watching the Jets since about 2002. (I was about 10) I haven't seen that much failure come to think of it, just some tough losses.
Nice post. I agree big things are coming, I hope we see that Trophy soon enough, as long as we can continue to glue this team together and develop more chemistry we will see big dividends ... I like the future of the Jets, we've been pretty successful this decade and maybe one day we will get that monkey off our backs
The big difference prior to 1997 was that the dominant figure for the Jets was Leon Hess. Since then it has been Parcells and Woody Johnson. That's the difference right there.
I always thought people were too quick to play the "SOJ" card. Someone will bring it up after every loss, especially a tough one.
Leon is the one who brought Parcells in to begin with. I don't know if you can say 1997 was the year. While there haven't been any Marino spike games or anything that bad since there still was 'Resign as HC of the NYJ' that brutal loss to Detroit that cost us the playoffs and a few other moments since then. But yeah, the Jets have had a good run since the mid 1990's.
Since when is SOJ defined by wins & losses? If anything, it's defined by wins then losses. It's finding a great parking spot and then your car gets hit while it's parked. It's meeting a great looking girl at a bar and finding out she's nuts. It's seeing a wallet on the sidewalk and finding out it's empty. It's about raising expectations and then smashing them.
Great post, Klecko. As I said before, the best way to kill a monster is to stop believing. San Diego delenda est.
They've had a great run from an SOJ perspective. If we hadn't hired Bradway in 2001 the odds are pretty good we'd have been one of the teams of the '00's.
I love the post. I'm right behind you Bluto but SOJ is like the Ruth curse and Boston or Shoeless Joe and Chicago - only a World Championship will kill it forever.
I dream of a day (hopefully in the not so distant future) when my kids will say SOJ meaning a team that is constantly in the playoffs and has a realistic chance at being in the SB year after year. And I think that day is coming!
SOJ is way more complex than wins and losses and playoff apperances. SOJ is about getting the girl of your dreams in bed and you don't have a condem or worse she's frigid. You got the guy of your dreams with the big bank account only to learn he's 5 minutes from filing chapter 11 after you said yes and he knocked you up. SOJ is cruising at 140 MPH in your brand new Porsche and you look in the rear view mirror and there's a cop 4" behind you in a Ferrari.
