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What would it be like if the Giants and Jets kept up their winning ways this season and made it to Arizona for the Super Bowl?
The last time both teams even made the playoffs in the same season was 2006, and you would have to go back to the 1986 season for when both teams had their fans thinking Super Bowl.
Only one of them — and as a Jets fan I’m still reeling from this — actually made it to Pasadena.
The Jets raced out to a 10-1 start before losing their last five regular season games. After a wild-card win over the Chiefs, the Jets lost to Cleveland in the divisional round.
That season, the Giants beat the 49ers and Redskins in the NFC playoffs before dismantling the Broncos in Super Bowl XXI at the Rose Bowl for their first-ever Vince Lombardi Trophy.
There have been numerous Subway World Series in baseball, including the Yankees beating the Mets back in 2000. The Islanders have played the Rangers multiple times in the Stanley Cup Playoffs but they can’t meet in the Stanley Cup Final because they’re in the same conference.
The same goes for the Knicks and Nets, who have also squared off multiple times in the post-season.
But it would be absolute bedlam if the Jets and Giants met in the Super Bowl.
Where we stand now
If you’re a Jets or Giants fan and you had pre-season thoughts of your team having a shot at the playoffs this season, raise your hand.
Now put your hand down because I don’t believe you.
But here we are.
Of course, it’s just six games into the NFL season. Yet for the moment, local football fans are indeed feeling super with the Giants off to a 5-1 start and the Jets at 4-2 after three straight wins.
There’s still a long way to go before Super Bowl LVII on Feb. 12 in Arizona, but fans of Big Blue and Gang Green across Long Island are all smiles right now.
“It is a nice change to not have to look forward to the next baseball season in Week 3 of the NFL season,” said Ed Dall’Aste, a Giants fan from Seaford.
Jets fans are happy, but they’re proceeding with caution.
Being a Jets fan myself, I can’t blame them for not being completely over the moon with euphoria because, well, that’s just life being a Jets fan.
We never expect too much.
“I’m actually shocked that they are doing well so this season,” said Melinda Gress-Bradbury of South Huntington. “I hope they keep up the momentum.”
The Jets will look to keep things rolling when they look for their fourth straight win Sunday in Denver.
Fans of Gang Green are hoping there won’t be a Mile High meltdown, with the season then going off the rails — like Jets seasons of the past.
“I’m cautiously optimistic about the Jets start,” said Kevin McIntyre of East Meadow. “They are playing beyond expectations, but I’m always leery of the Jets history.”
“I am definitely excited about the Jets start this season,” said Debbie Lichtenstein of Lake Grove. “But I’ll remain cautiously optimistic because, well, you know, it’s the Jets. Things can change very quickly.”
Expectations were not high for either the Jets or the Giants coming into the season, but both teams are proving the experts wrong.
Like the Jets, the Giants have also won three straight games, as Big Blue gets ready to head south to face the Jaguars in Jacksonville on Sunday.
And Giants fans couldn’t be happier.
“I’m very excited,” said Pete Petriccione of Huntington. “After the first four games, I was still very skeptical, but after the last two wins against Green Bay and Baltimore, I am thinking that they are better than we thought.”
“I love that both New York teams are doing so good this year,” said Barbara Besdansky, a Giants fan from Westbury.
The prevailing thought was that both the Giants and Jets would have no chance of contending for a playoff spot this season.
Surprise, surprise.
So let’s imagine
Let’s suspend reality for just a minute and think about something that has never happened before.
“I would love to see a Jets/Giants Super Bowl,” said Gress-Bradbury. “That would be better than a baseball subway series.”
And if you’re a Jets fan, the wait just to get to the big game goes back to 1969.
“I’d take Jets in the Super Bowl against anyone,” said McIntyre. “I’ve been waiting my whole life for that. The opponent wouldn’t matter for me.”
“I’d like to see the Jets in any Super Bowl,” said Lichtenstein.
The Jets and Giants meet every year in the pre-season but they only play once every four years in the regular season. That would certainly make a local Super Bowl so special.
And what a war of words it would be!
Could you imagine the back-and-forth verbal abuse that would go on between the fan bases?
“Jets versus Giants would be amazing,” said Shawn Klotz, a Jets fan from Wantagh. “To think of all the trash talking between friends and co-workers on all social media outlets would be so much fun. There is nothing better than playoff sports in New York and when arch rivals from the same city meet up.”
Sounds like the trash talking has already started and we’re not even close to that game even being a possibility.
“A Jets/Giants Super Bowl would be crazy,” said Dall’Aste. “The Giants would have bragging rights forever after winning that game.”
“A Giants/Jets Super Bowl would be great,” said Petriccione. “As my wife and her family are Jets fans, along with my niece’s husband, we may have to split up to watch it. Of course, the Giants will win the game.”
I don’t know, Ed and Pete. You may be eating those words somewhere down the line!
Where to watch?
There’s one final thing to consider about a Jets/Giants Super Bowl and that’s: where to watch it?
Tickets for the Super Bowl are hard to get at face value and the secondary market numbers for a Giants/Jets clash in Arizona would be through the roof.
So how would one watch the game?
Seems like the Jets fans I spoke to would be content with just watching on television.
“I’d watch the Super Bowl in the comfort of my home,” said McIntyre. “That would allow me to get loud and excited. It’s still a dream but a dream I’ve had my whole life.”
“I’ll most likely watch at our home or with friends,” said Gress-Bradbury. I’m not a fan of watching the Super Bowl at a sports bar.”
“I would do whatever I can to try and get a ticket,” said Klotz. “But if not, I would love to have all my Jet fan friends over and watch it at our house.”
“We’d watch the game at home I’m sure but would definitely make it a party,” said Lichtenstein.
Meanwhile the Giants fans that I queried about this seem to have mixed feelings on where to watch a Giants/Jets dream Super Bowl matchup.
“I usually don’t see the games live,” said Besdansky. “I either watch at home or at a bar like Miller’s Ale House.”
“For a Jets/Giants Super Bowl, I would need to be with friends at a bar with many TV’s like Miller Ale House or The Main Event,” said Dall’Aste
“I like watching major sporting events at home,” said Howie Wirtheim of Bay Shore. “It is easier to follow but I do try to cater from a local establishment because it is an important economic day for our local businesses.”
“I would likely watch it at home or at the home of a Giants fan,” said Petriccione. “I need to be able to focus on the game and not be distracted by going to a sports bar.”
Pete’s take
What would a Jets/Giants Super Bowl be like?
I guess what you would have to do is imagine Yankees/Mets, Islanders/Rangers and Knicks/Nets all wrapped up together and then multiply it by 100.
It’s so hard to fathom just how electric that would be.
It wouldn’t matter if you were lucky enough to score a ticket, you’re watching from home or you’re at a sports bar because it would be a sporting event like no other.
It would literally shake the foundation of New York sports, and you would be able to feel it all over Long Island.
Top: The New York Jets offense sets up against the New York Giants defense at the line of scrimmage in the first half of a preseason NFL football game, Sunday, Aug. 28, 2022, in East Rutherford, N.J. (AP Photo/John Munson)
