National Football League

Jets give instructions on cheering

Published Aug. 2, 2013 1:00 a.m. ET

foxsports

Hard to say if being "cool" is among the goals for an NFL team. You'd think so. Everybody wants their brand perceived that way.

Well, the New York Jets have taken to doing something normally associated with Duke, and while Duke is a fine academic institution on a beautiful campus with a great basketball program, Duke fans are not known to be "cool," exactly.

Yeah, the Jets are writing out instructions on how to cheer.

The Jets have a tradition you likely know about. They yell "J-E-T-S Jets Jets Jets" with each letter yelled by a different quadrant of the stadium.

For years, the head cheerleader was a man named Ed Anzalone, more commonly recognized as Fireman Ed. Fireman Ed got fed up with the team and its fans last year, packed up his pom-poms and left, tearing a hole in the Jets universe.

Anzalone wrote this on his reasons for leaving that fireman helmet at home for good:

I decided to leave Thursday [before halftime of a 49-19 loss to the New England Patriots] because the confrontations with other Jets fans have become more common, even though most Jets fans are fantastic.

This is an indication of how society has lost and is continuing to lose respect for one another. The stadium has become divided because of the quarterback controversy as well. The fact that I chose to wear a Mark Sanchez jersey this year and that fans think I am on the payroll — which is an outright lie — have made these confrontations more frequent. Whether it’s in the stands, the bathroom or the parking lot, these confrontations are happening on a consistent basis.

Although I can “hold my own,” I do not want to lose my temper and make a stupid mistake. I have a responsibility to the families and kids that enjoy the game and Fireman Ed.

Welp. Only time will tell how much the Jets have actually lost with Anzalone's retirement, but being forced to give out instructions on how to cheer shows just how important Fireman Ed was to this team.