It's not easy being Green

Week 2 approaches and it's the renewal of the AFC East Holy War. Pats against the Jets. When I was a kid in the '70s, the war was with the Dolphins. That continued through the mid '80s, culminating in the '86 AFC Championship Game in Miami where the Pats exorcised all the Shula demons. But now it's the Jets. It's their last season at the Meadowlands in Jersey. Beating the Jets in the Meadowlands is the highlight of any regular season. OK, maybe a win in Denver is better. But that's only happened once in my lifetime so I don't expect it. But a win in the Meadowlands, that I look forward to every season. It doesn't always happen, but it often seems to happen at the right time.

The first road win against the Jets that I really remember is the playoff game in '86. It was the first of three straight road playoff victories (an NFL first) that, even though it led to the smackdown at the hands of the Bears in the Super Bowl, are still three of the greatest weekends I can remember. I can still see Andre Tippett slamming Ken O'Brien into the turf time and time again. But the Pats got whacked in the Super Bowl. That was always the thing about the Pats and the Jets rivalry. It was shared misery. Other than Broadway Joe's title in '67, the Jets and the Pats mirrored each other in futility and frustration.

That changed when Bill Parcells arrived and turned the Pats into a real NFL team. It was extra sweet to have Parcells be the one to do that because he was the man who led the NY Football Giants to two titles. We got the New York guy. The Big Tuna. The Jets floundered around with coaches like Coslet, Carroll, and Kotite while the Patriots headed to the Super Bowl. The two teams were going in opposite directions. And then, after losing the Super Bowl, Parcells decided to bolt the Pats. To the Jets. There was the Tuna in front of a Gang Green curtain with the hideous '90s Jets logo. He made his famous "Groceries" speech. The NFL version of Nixon's "Checkers" speech. "If they want you to cook the dinner, they at least ought to let you shop for some of the groceries," he said. Then he flashed his "you guys don't know shit" grin at the media -- which I usually loved. Not this time.

And to make matters worse Mr. Kraft made one of his few big misteps during his ownership. Hiring Pete Carroll. Oh sure. He's currently the king of college football, winning national title after national title with USC. But as a pro coach he was in over his head. He was bad with the Jets and worse with the Patriots. I think he single-handedly ruined Drew Bledsoe's career. Then Parcells started raiding the Pats roster, signing the best running back ever to play for the Pats: Curtis Martin. The team slowly declined under Carroll while the Jets got back to the playoffs under Parcells. The Big Tuna quickly grew tired of coaching again and decided to turn the reins over to his longtime protege Bill Belichick. And then the rivalry got really strange.

Let's see if I can recap this quickly: Belichick took the Jets job. Then next day he changed his mind and resigned as the "HC of the NYJ." Then the Pats sent the Jets a first-round pick for the rights to make Belichick their head coach. He then donned his grey hoodie and led the franchise to three titles in four years while the Jets fell to the basement. Then the Jets hired Belichick protege Eric Mangini. Then Mangini ratted on his old boss about that little video business Belichick had going on the side. And the hatred between the two franchises was cemented forever.

So now we head to Week 2 of the 2009 season and the Jets new coach Rex Ryan has decided to elevate the game to playoff importance level. Week 2. Ryan is a great addition to the rivalry. The perfect replacement to Mangini. He's calling Jets fans and leaving voice messages telling them to amp it up in the stands. Gotta love that. It's the last trip into the swamps of Jersey (barring a playoff game). It's always a fun time. The Pats have been mostly having their way with the Jets in recent years. It's going to take more than a Week 2 win by Ryan's Jets to change that.