Fear Not, Jets Fans – the Players Are Just As Frustrated As You Are

For New York Jets fans, this was FINALLY supposed to be THE YEAR! And then Aaron Rodgers went down with a season-ending injury and now frustration is at an all-time high. Zack Rosenblatt covers the Jets for The Athletic and as he tells Jim Monaghan, the players are just as frustrated as the fans, and a lot of that frustration is being thrown in the direction of Zach Wilson.

JIM MONAGHAN - He covers the Jets for The Athletic - Zack Rosenblatt joins us this morning here at 105.5 WDHA on the Morning Jolt. Zack, we saw some frustration over the weekend on the sidelines against the Patriots. So let me ask you, what was the mood like in the locker room after the game?
ZACK ROSENBLATT - I think I do sense a level of frustration. I will say a lot of Zach Wilson's teammates have said the right things at the mic, but I think it's pretty clear that a lot of the star players, especially guys like Garrett Wilson, they feel like they're not necessarily being put in the best positions. Whether it's because of the quarterback player, or the play calling. I definitely think there's some frustration because this team thinks they're talented enough to win a lot of games and they're being held back by the quarterback again. And whether they're going to admit that publicly, I think they all know it.

JM - Yeah, I don't think they're going to admit it publicly for a while, at least. I mean, Robert Saleh the other day said the box score doesn't always tell the whole story, and he's right. But we don't have just one or two games worth of box scores with Zach Wilson. We're into our third season now. How did they get it so wrong?
ZR - Yeah, and that's a question that this franchise is going to have to reckon with for a long time because he's become one of the biggest failures of a number two overall pick, maybe ever. I think ultimately, first, when he was a rookie, they put him in before he was ready, and they didn't bring in any competition, which I think was the wrong move. And then last year, he lost his confidence and they benched him twice. And that didn't necessarily help anything, though it was hard to blame him. And then it got to a point where now he just doesn't play like a guy who belongs in the NFL right now. Like, he has not shown that. I think the goal was to have him sit and watch this year. They were not planning to play him. And so when Aaron Rodgers got hurt four plays in, they were thrown for a loop, and I don't think they've handled it particularly well.

JM - You wrote the other day about some options the Jets might consider, Matt Ryan being one of them. And he made it pretty clear he doesn't want any parts of being with the Jets.
ZR - I think the biggest mistake they've made here was not signing somebody as soon as Aaron Rodgers went down. I think the idea was that it would hurt Zach Wilson's confidence, but not signing one didn't exactly help his confidence either. So I think that was a poor roster management move. You could have brought somebody in at that point. They learn the offense, and then by now you'd be able to put them in to replace Zach Wilson. But they don't have a third quarterback in the building, and I don't know if that's going to matt Ryan clearly is not going to be the option. I don't know if it'll be Carson Wentz or like somebody like that. It's not going to be anybody exciting, but they need to bring somebody in because what they have right now is just not good enough for a team that should be a playoff team.

JM - How much of an upgrade do think someone like a Wentz would be?
ZR - I mean, considering Zach Wilson by every measure, has been the worst starting quarterback in the NFL, I think it would be a pretty significant upgrade. Whatever you think of Carson Wentz, and I'm not particularly high himon , you know, he's been kind of thrown out of three different teams that traded for him. And so I don't know that he's a great locker room guy or all that, but as a quarterback, statistically, he's significantly better than Zach Wilson. And they need confidence at quarterback, and he, at the very least, should be able to bring that if they were to bring them in.

JM - And the schedule doesn't get any easier with the Kansas City Chiefs on the horizon. What are your thoughts on that game?
ZR - Yeah, I mean, it's going to be Sunday Night Football in front of the whole nation with Zach Wilson at quarterback. It kind of makes me think of last year when Zach had a start, two games when Mike White got hurt. First the Lions game, which went poorly, and then he went into the Jaguars game where everybody was going to watch it. And it was about as big of a disaster as you could see. And they benched him for a practice squad quarterback. And that's kind of like the feeling I have going to this game. Like the Jets ar... it's early in the season this time, but they view themselves as a playoff team. And if they go and get embarrassed on national TV, it's going to be hard to justify a lot of things like keeping Zach in the game.

JM - I wonder if anybody else's teeth will fall out. That had to be one of the funniest moments. And I felt so bad for the guy, Zach. I mean, here he is, all he wants to do is watch his team play football and he's in this pouring rain. He's probably chilled to the bone. He's frustrated beyond comprehension, and the guy's teeth fall out on national TV.
ZR - Yeah, that was like the image of Jets fans right now, I would say.

JM - You can follow him on Twitter or X, whatever we're calling it these days, @ZackBlatt and read Zack Rosenblatt in The Athletic as he covers the Jets. Zach, thank you so much for your time this morning here on WDHA.
ZR - Yeah, thanks for having me.

"Neon Deion," "Prime Time," and now, "Coach Prime." Regardless of what nickname you have known Deion Sanders by, it is hard to ignore how much this football legend is inspiring the sports world right now.

The head coach of the University of Colorado Buffalos has not only taken the college football world by storm, but he also seems to be everywhere in American culture. Sure, there are the creative Aflac and California Almonds commercials, but what Sanders is doing within his team's locker room is the real story. Before we dive into Sanders' impact, let's take a moment to remind ourselves of Sanders before he was "Coach Prime."

Born in Fort Myers, Florida, in 1967, Sanders was a star defensive back for Florida State University from 1985 to 1988, where he arguably made the #2  jersey cool in football. He was also an outstanding baseball player, drafted by the Kansas City Royals and, later, the New York Yankees. Along with Bo Jackson, Sanders became one of the only two-sport professional athletes playing Major League Baseball and the NFL. He was the fifth overall pick by the Atlanta Falcons in the 1989 NFL draft. He would sport #21 for the Falcons.

From 1989 to 2005, Sanders dazzled the professional sports world with his abilities and charisma. He was ubiquitous, insisting he was the definition of his designed nickname, "Prime Time." And he was correct. Sanders became a two-time Super Bowl champion (with the 49ers and the Cowboys). He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2011. As for baseball, Sanders had a career batting average of .263, playing for five franchises from 1989-2001.

If accomplishing these things while playing two professional sports was not enough, Sanders also graced the cover of Sports Illustrated five times, held numerous endorsements (Nike, Pizza Hut), and was the only non-QB to host Saturday Night Live prior to 2019.

Sanders joined the NFL Network as an analyst while simultaneously dipping into the world of coaching. From 2012 - 2017, Sanders coached in Texas High School programs, where he had the opportunity to join his sons. Ultimately, this led to Jackson State hiring Sanders in 2020. Over three seasons there, Sanders led the team to a 27-6 record. Moreover, he began to establish a reputation for his positive impact on his players. Star recruits opted to join Sanders' lesser-known program. For example, Travis Hunter chose Jackson State because of Coach Sanders instead of going to a bigger-name school.

In December of 2022, Sanders was hired by the University of Colorado. This is where the modern-day "Coach Prime" really begins. With the Buffalos sitting at 3-0 heading into their biggest game of the year in Oregon, let's dive deeper into four ways Deion Sanders is inspiring everyone.

You will notice, graced upon the black, gold, and white jerseys of Colorado football players, there will be an occasional "L" patch or "D" patch. These marks replace the traditional "Captain" badge. They are believed to be awarded to players who exemplify great leadership amongst the team, and to those who are relentless on the field. When Sanders first arrived at Colorado, he was brutally honest with the team he was inheriting. Coach Prime advised that many of them may want to look at transferring. Eighty-six new players were brought into Colorado to eventually make up Sanders' team. Three of the most notable new Buffalos were his sons Shilo (safety), Shedeur (quarterback), and the aforementioned Travis Hunter (receiver and defensive back). Shedeur sports a "L" while Hunter has the "D." But really the two patches mean something similar. Regardless of who you are or where you came from, you hold yourself accountable on and off the field.

Sanders never had a problem telling you what he would accomplish or letting everyone know that he is the best. And he backed it up. Coach Prime is not installing an offensive or defense that has never been seen before. He's simply getting his team to believe in him, but more so, to believe in each other and themselves as individuals. Sanders casually told his players that "he ain't hard to find." In other words, he's there for them and has their best interest at heart. This has become a slogan that even Sanders himself sports on Colorado sweatshirts. If you Google it, Instagram and TikTok posts galore come up.

Last week, prior to Colorado's matchup against rivals Colorado State, Sanders was ridiculed by the opposing coach, Jay Norvell. Norvell criticized his choice of wearing a hat and sunglasses. Sanders did not jab back in the media. He casually led his team to believe that now it's "personal." Prior to Colorado's first game, Sanders's pre-game speech rallied behind a quote, "We ain't got tomorrow, we got now." He followed with, "We ain't coming no more," to which the locker room erupted into "We here." It's an attitude the team has embodied all season. They won the Colorado State game in overtime. And Norvell may have done Sanders a great favor. Prior to the game, Sanders gave each player on his team a pair of Blenders Eyewear, his new sunglasses partner. In the following days, $4.5 million worth of Blenders Eyewear was sold. The reportedly moved about 70,000 units. Unfortunately, Travis Hunter was injured during the game after an awful hit by Henry Blackburn. This week, Sanders with grace, said Blackburn did not deserve the threats he was getting from fans. He reminded everyone this is a game, and the young man made a mistake.

Coach Prime inherited a Colorado team that was in rough shape. They were coming off a 1-11 season, and Sanders was brought in to turn it around over the next few years. Well, three games in, each game has been nationally televised, all home games are sold out, and if you attempt to buy tickets, they are difficult to come by. ESPN's College Gameday has already been to Boulder, with Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson in-tow as a special guest. Still, the Buffalos have their biggest games ahead with Oregon this week and USC after that. Their opponents will certainly have a challenge playing against a team with a ton of self-confidence, who believe in one another, and are "already here."

For daily inspiration and motivational quotes you can follow Coach Prime on Twitter.