What have the New York Jets had to say following their ‘revenge’ win over the Denver Broncos?
With the anticipation that preceded their game, it was always going to be huge Now that the Jets have won, they’re making sure their victory is remembered.
When the Broncos coach openly criticized the man who was both his predecessor and the current offensive coordinator of the New York Jets, many felt a line had been crossed. It would be safe to say that for those who were still bothered about the situation, Karma has been delivered.
Week 5 in the NFL was all about Jets vs Broncos
While there were surely some Dallas Cowboys fans who would have voted for their team’s game against eternal rivals, the San Francisco 49ers, as the game of the week, the reality is that the Cowboys’ loss to the still-undefeated 49ers was nothing more than a starter for what was the feisty contest between the New York Jets and the Denver Broncos. With both teams entering the game on a record of 1-3, there was already the statistical pretext. Yet, what really made the clash the tastiest of all was the war of words between the two teams leading up to the game.
If you didn’t know, it was just this offseason, that new Broncos head coach Sean Payton publicly criticized his predecessor, Nathaniel Hackett, the man who is now the Jets’ offensive coordinator. Hackett was of course fired by the Broncos after leading the team to a less-than-ideal 4-11 start last season. Payton at the time called Hackett’s run in 2022 “maybe one of the worst coaching jobs in the history of the NFL.” Needless to say, coming into Sunday’s game there was a lot of chatter, including comments from the Jets themselves, who made it clear that they were looking for revenge. While we remain skeptical, there is hope that the 31-21 win that the Jets recorded in Denver on Sunday will hopefully go toward quelling any bad blood that still exists between the two teams. On the night, the standout player was undoubtedly running back Breece Hall who rushed for 177 yards, including a 72-yard score, on 22 carries.
Was Nathaniel Hackett about vengeance?
From what we can see, no. To be honest, Hackett avoided making any comment on the idea of revenge following the game. “Not saying anything about that. All I’ll say is glad we won the game,” he said. On the other hand, there were several others from the Jets’ camp that weren’t so diplomatic. Further to that, it was clear that despite Hackett’s stance the entire Jets organization was behind their OC. From the countless individuals who made the effort to shake Hackett’s hand after the game, to head coach Robert Saleh who gave Hackett the game ball, it was clear that the win held a great deal of importance. However, others shared their thoughts after the Jets dropped the Broncos to 1-4 on the year.
There was also injured Jets quarterback, Aaron Rodgers, a player who previously worked with Hackett during three seasons when both were with the Green Bay Packers. Rodgers tweeted his support for the coach immediately after the game ended. The Jets’ star cornerback, Sauce Gardner, wasn’t long in following suit as he made it clear that he was in Hackett’s corner.
Sean Payton may have got it wrong about the New York Jets
One of the interesting things to note about Payton’s initial comments was the idea that the former Saints tactician seemed to imply that the Jets were getting ahead of themselves in terms of title ambitions, after signing four-time MVP Rodgers. As you can probably imagine, the Jets didn’t let that slide. What did they do? Believe it or not, the Jets got the help of actor Kevin James - he played Payton in the Netflix movie “Home Team” - in an effort to hammer home the point. If you didn’t know, Netflix’s movie was about what Payton did during the 2012 season when he was suspended for the Saints’ BountyGate fiasco.
It didn’t end there either. Indeed, light was shed on the idea that during the preseason, Payton reportedly had some very different rules and regulations for his starters which included no removal of uniforms after a game’s end, no sunglasses, no bucket hats, and no interviews during games. Clearly in the mood for jokes, the Jets posted a picture of wide receiver Garrett Wilson in clear violation of all of the aforementioned rules. While it’s still early days for both teams, the game serves as yet another example of why there’s nothing quite like the NFL.