What reception will Jets get from fans on Saturday?
An interesting dynamic is sure to play out on Saturday morning when the Jets hold their first training camp practice in front of fans. The last few years have seen explosions of passion on such circumstances, whether it was greeting Aaron Rodgers in 2023, welcoming Rodgers back in 2024, or embracing Aaron Glenn’s return as a former player turned head coach in 2025. Glenn said last year that he got chills the first time he heard the J-E-T-S chant in training camp.
This year, though, the fanbase has very little to get excited about after a three-win season in which the Jets played some of the worst football in their history down the stretch and a very clear indication from the front office that it is building toward the future. The quarterback is Geno Smith, a player Jets fans know from his first failed incarnation with the organization. Patience is already running thin with Glenn. The frustration of 15 straight years without reaching the postseason is palpable.
It’s impossible to know what kind of reception the team will get.
Chances are it will be mostly positive if not full-throated and full-hearted. The stands will be filled with season-ticket holders which in itself indicates that they were not disgruntled enough to abandon the team. And it’s still July, after all. If you can’t be optimistic in the first few days of training camp, perhaps you never will be.
The Jets are prepared for whatever they get.
“It definitely brings a lot of energy,” linebacker Jamien Sherwood said on Thursday of having the fans on the grounds after two practices in front of just a smattering of family and friends (and reporters). “But it’s no different than if it is Sunday, Monday, if it is training camp, it doesn’t matter if there is nobody in the stands. I feel like everybody is just going out performing to get better. You can’t worry about the outside noise and you can’t worry about who is in the stands whether it is my mom or it’s the season ticket holder Jets fan. You just have to go out there, stay focused, do your job, and make sure you get better at it.”
Tom Rock began covering sports for Newsday in 1996 and became its NFL columnist in 2022. He previously was Newsday's Giants beat writer beginning in 2008.
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