We have never had the good fortune of witnessing a New York-New York Super Bowl, so we are forced to settle once every four years for this Backyard Brawl that is certain to fan the flames and inflame our fans.
This was Hall of Fame owner Wellington Mara on Nov. 1, 1970, after his Giants, at Shea Stadium, had won the first regular-season meeting against the Jets — quarterbacked by Al Woodall because Joe Namath was nursing a broken wrist:
“You know, you’ve got to be champions of your neighborhood before you think of conquering the world.”
The grandiose plans of conquering the world are sadly unrealistic for Brian Daboll’s 2-5 Giants and Robert Saleh’s 3-3 Jets, but not a single soul inside MetLife Stadium, in the stands or on the field or on the sidelines, will allow it to put out the five-alarm fire of emotion and passion that will begin at the parking lot tailgates and rage inside the arena for three hours.
Champions of the neighborhood still means plenty around these parts:
Joe Benigno and Fireman Ed and Ira From Staten Island on the green and white side of the neighborhood.
License Plate Guy on the blue side of the neighborhood.
So it will be impossible not to hear that familiar desperate plea from Giants fans who have cheered only one playoff win since Super Bowl XLVI:
Give us a season, please!
Trick, or treat?
And it will be impossible not to hear that familiar desperate plea from Jets fans who have endured a dozen consecutive seasons without a playoff berth:
Give us a season, please!
Trick, or treat?
This one, of course, was supposed to be Aaron Rodgers, No. 8 of the New York Jets, playing grandmaster chess against Giants defensive coordinator Wink Martindale at the place he called JetLife Stadium back in August.
It was supposed to be Daniel Jones, No. 8 of the New York Football Giants, showing the Jets defense what a $40 million quarterback looks like.
Instead, it is Zach Wilson for the Jets versus Tyrod Taylor of the Giants.
Backup Quarterback Backyard Brawl.
First touchdown pass wins.
First interception loses.
Or something like that.
Defense wins championships of your neighborhood.
Wilson’s challenge: Do not flinch when a rejuvenated Giants pass rush comes hunting for him and the blitz-crazed Martindale makes him see stars, if not ghosts.
Taylor’s challenge: Continue to be poised and decisive getting the ball out of your hand when the waves of Jets pass rushers wash over his patchwork offensive line, and as pretty as your deep ball has been, don’t try Sauce Gardner.
“I don’t even see him as like a backup right now. He’s a starting quarterback in this league,” Jets defensive end Quinton Jefferson told The Post. “We got to come with it and be ready to hunt him down.”
For Wilson to survive, he will need his interior protectors to make sure that Dexter Lawrence doesn’t wreck the game. And beware Kayvon Thibodeaux.
For Taylor to survive, he will need his interior protectors to make sure that Quinnen Williams doesn’t wreck the game. And beware Bryce Huff and Jermaine Johnson and John Franklin-Myers.
For Wilson to survive, he will need to be in sync with offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett and listen to whatever sweet nothings Rodgers whispers in his headset.
For Taylor to survive, he will need to be on the same page as coordinator Mike Kafka the next time he is 1 yard from the end zone.
For Wilson to have another chance to change Broadway Joe’s mind about him, it would behoove him to target Garrett Wilson early and often.
For Taylor to continue to show Giants fans the team is in good hands with him, it would be a good idea for him to target Darren Waller early and often.
But it is not out of the question that Breece Hall versus Saquon Barkley could ultimately be the deciding factor.
That would make it a Running Backyard Brawl.
For Wilson to capture his third straight win, he will just give Hall the damn ball, and let him run with it and catch it out of the backfield.
For Taylor to play a third consecutive game without an interception, he will just give Barkley the damn ball, and let him run with it and catch it out of the backfield.
“He can do everything,” Hall said.
How does he compare to Barkley?
“He’s who he is, I am who I am,” Hall told The Post.
Giants safety Dane Belton played against Hall when his Iowa Hawkeyes beat Iowa State, 27-17, early in the 2021 season. Hall was 19-for-69 with a touchdown on the ground and 4-for-24 receiving. Iowa LB Jack Campbell scored a 7-yard TD on a Hall fumble.
“You got to hit him multiple times, you got to stay on him the whole game, you can’t let him get a sliver of space,” Belton told The Post.
Giants co-owner John Mara does not wish to feel the way his father did when Namath’s Super Bowl III champions trounced the Giants, 37-14, in that Yale Bowl exhibition game on Aug. 17, 1969.
Woody Johnson hates being reminded that the Giants have won two Super Bowls since he became owner and four overall, and the Jets’ one and only Lombardi Trophy from Jan. 12, 1969, isn’t any less lonely than it was when Rodgers greeted it for the first time inside the Atlantic Health Jets Training Center.
King for a day on a New York-New York Sunday.
Play brawl.