My First NFL Game: Jets vs. Bengals

This past Friday, I went with my parents to watch the New York Jets take on the Cincinnati Bengals in a preseason game. I was most excited about seeing the Jets #15--Tim Tebow. I've followed his football career since he played for U of F. Just like Tebow, I was homeschooled for the majority of my childhood. I'm not particularly religious, but I admire the way he stands behind his Christian beliefs. It's hard to find a good sports role model for kids these days, but Tim's one of them. He doesn't drink, commit crimes, or have tantrums when he loses.

As predicted, Paul Brown Stadium was an absolute sea of orange when we arrived. However, I wasn't the only one with Tebowmania. I'd say about 75%-80% of the female Jets fans I saw were wearing a Tebow shirt or carrying a sign related to #15. We were early enough to watch the team warm up. I stood by the rail and watched the heartwarming scene of Tim making a seriously ill child's day.

I'm trying to focus on the positive, but I think the Bengals fans have to be some of the most obnoxious I've ever encountered. And that's saying a lot considering I used to be friends with a diehard Yankees fan. Thankfully I didn't have to listen to the "Bengal Growl" or the equally terrible "Who Dey" chant very much. The attitude of most of the Bengals fans is especially confusing to me because the team hasn't won a Superbowl since before I was born and they're consistently one of the worst-performing teams in the entire NFL. Even their cheerleading squad has a D-grade name: the Ben-Gals. Why not the Tigresses?

I ended up having no voice on Saturday because I spent the majority of the game cheering. I'm not terribly knowledgeable about the game of football, so I can't really comment on Rex Ryan's strategy. I think people really need to stop making jokes about Tebow's passing because the Jets third-string quarterback is infinitely worse. The Jets didn't win, but at least it's only preseason. I have faith that they can bounce back in the first "real" game. J! E! T! S! JETS JETS JETS!