Fans give Jets a real home-field edge
Memorial flag for September 11 prior to the Dallas Cowboys at the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium. (Sept. 11, 2011) Credit: Lee S. Weissman
There was something different about the atmosphere in MetLife Stadium a week ago when the Jets hosted the Cowboys, a supercharged vibe that seemed to be unparalleled in the short life span of the Jets' new $1.6-billion edifice.
"I was telling somebody when we were down two scores in the fourth quarter," running back LaDainian Tomlinson said, "as we kind of got going, our crowd stayed into it. They were loud. That's what kind of got us going . . . that crowd being there and cheering, and getting loud."
Of course, the Jets were playing "America's Team" in a nationally-televised season opener, a prime time game that took on special added significance because of the Sept. 11 anniversary and all of the tributes.
"It got us going. It got that blood flowing and really pumped us up. We need our crowd," Tomlinson said.
The Jets would love nothing more than to keep that vibe going Sunday when they square off against the Jaguars in one of four NFL games in which both teams won their openers. After years of playing in the old stadium bearing the Giants' name, the Jets want to create a true home-field advantage.
"The way our crowd rose up for that game last week -- that's huge," Mark Sanchez said, "and we're going to need them big time this week. We need them screaming when the other team's on offense, we need them to get penalties on offense. That's huge for our defense, going from a third-and-5 to a third-and-10. Just from a quarterback's standpoint, it's like, 'God, we're killing ourselves.' You're shooting yourself in the foot. That's huge.
"We need to play well at home. We want to give our fans support. Our fans love watching us play well at home. It's got to happen and I think that's what we're working toward."
Coach Rex Ryan, whose team is 6-3 at MetLife/New Meadowlands Stadium, had been pining for an atmosphere like that for a while. But he couldn't help but smile as he recalled the unmatched electricity in the crowd, which many of the players believe led directly to five of Dallas' seven penalties. The Cowboys were hit with a pair of false starts, two delay of games and a 12-men-in-the-huddle infraction.
Dallas seemed to get frazzled midway through the fourth quarter, when the Cowboys were holding a 24-17 lead and had the ball in their own territory. A delay of game and a false start on successive plays turned a third-and-12 into a third-and-22, which the Cowboys didn't convert. One play later, Joe McKnight blocked Mat McBriar's punt, and Isaiah Trufant scooped it up and darted 18 yards into the end zone to help square the game at 24.
"Man, that thing was about as loud as it gets," Ryan said. "I really think it contributed to our victory. I believe the edge because it was loud from the start of the game to the end of the game. When we blocked that punt, not only does that kill you, if you have a punt blocked on your team, but the way the crowd was into it, immediately the players got into it, they feed off that crowd, and I thought without question that you can chalk one up for our fans in that game. It was amazing."
That's why the Jets are hopeful they'll soon have that true home-field advantage they haven't witnessed in decades.
"It's like your second wind when you hear the fans out there," defensive tackle Sione Pouha said. "You've got 80,000 strong . . . it's energy. You just feed off it. Just as much as they feed off great plays from us, we feed off noise from the fans."
