The first game of any new season is always packed full of excitement, anticipation and a fair amount of nerves. A clean slate, a new start, a chance to right the wrongs of a season that feels as though it concluded around the same time Joe Willie was strolling down 5th Avenue searching for the latest trends in fur fashion. 

The excitement has been turned up with the arrival of former Jets first round pick Aaron Glenn as New York’s 22nd Head Coach. Darren Mougey wasted no time signing his young stars Garrett Wilson and Sauce Gardner to extensions and the roster makeover means the Jets head into the 2025 season with one of the youngest squads in the NFL. 

Before we get to the action on Sunday, I wanted to take a trip down memory lane and look at five opening games to remember. These may not be the five most important opening days or the five biggest victories, but all five of these hold an importance, even if we are looking at them through the lens of hindsight. 

5) 2018 – New York Jets 48-17 Detroit Lions

The Sam Darnold era may not have ended as many of us expected, but it started with a bang. The Jets aggressively moved up in the draft to take the USC man, sending their first-round pick and three second-round picks to the Colts in exchange for the #3 overall selection and the opportunity to take Darnold. 

The first challenge was to head to a boisterous Ford Field to take on a Lions side who had just hired former New England Patriots defensive coordinator Matt Patricia as their new Head Coach. The start was forgettable as on his first pass attempt Sam Darnold rolled to his right before throwing back across the field, resulting in a pick-6 for Quandre Diggs.

But Darnold quickly showcased why not only the Jets, but a host of NFL teams and analysts had been high on him throughout his college career. Despite the hostile atmosphere, Darnold responded by completing 16 of his next 20 throws for 198 yards and 2 touchdowns. Jets fans walked out of Detroit with a feeling that they had found their franchise QB. 

4) 1960 – New York Titans 27-3 Buffalo Bills

No list of season openers would be complete without the very first game this franchise played. In 1959 Harry Wismer proclaimed that the city of New York was ready for a second football team to compete with the New York Giants, Wismer later proclaiming that “Titans are bigger and stronger than Giants” as the reason for the name of the AFL upstart. 

When looking for a stadium to call their own, the decision was made to call the Polo Grounds (“The Bathtub”) home. Opened in 1890, the stadium had had many tenants call it home, but even with the prestigious history it was clear that the stadium was on the way out. The Mets joined the Titans in calling it home in 1962, but both franchises packed up and left for Shea in 1964. 

But that opening game will live long in the memory for those who witnessed it. The dawn of a franchise that we have all come to know and love. In that 1960 season opener, the Bills were visitors. The Titans dominated from start to finish scoring 27 unanswered points to clinch their first victory. 

The Titans limited Buffalo to 39 net passing yards, 113 total yards and forced 3 turnovers. The Titans would finish the 1960 season with a 7-7 record, but on that day anything seemed possible. 

3) 1968 – New York Jets 20-19 Kansas City Chiefs

The start of what would be the most memorable season in franchise history came courtesy of a narrow victory in Missouri at Municipal Stadium. 

The Jets were coming off a good season in 1967 having finished with a 8-5-1 record, and while that wasn’t enough for playoff football, there was a buzz of anticipation ahead of 1968. 

The Chiefs were coming off a better year, 9-5 and having seen 9 players named to the AFL All-Star team. Unfortunately for the Chiefs they played in the AFL West with the Oakland Raiders, a team that went 13-1 and was packed with talent from top to bottom. 

The Jets never trailed in this game and the defense came up with big stop after big stop; the only time the Chiefs visited the end zone was courtesy of a Noland Smith 80-yard punt return TD. 

This game showcased one of the most lethal combinations in Jets history, with Joe Namath finding Don Maynard for scores of 57 yards and 30 yards. Maynard ended with 203 yards on 8 catches and Namath threw for over 300 yards. 

Months later the Jets would stun the football world with a 16-7 victory over the heavily favoured Colts in Super Bowl III. 

2) 1997 – New York Jets 41-3 Seattle Seahawks

A lot of people reading this article will probably remember this game. It represented the return of the Jets following a 1996 season where embarrassment could be the word of choice. The less said about that 1-15 1996 season the better, but without the lows, the highs wouldn’t mean as much. 

Throughout 1996 it became clear that the Jets wanted Bill Parcells who was overseeing a Super Bowl run for the New England Patriots. When Parcells made his famous quote indicating his frustration with his role in Massachusetts: “If they want you to cook the dinner, at least they ought to let you shop for some of the groceries”, hope grew that the Jets would prise him away. 

After a messy negotiation period which resulted in commissioner Paul Tagliabue getting involved, Parcells took up the reins in NY and the Jets agreed to send draft pick compensation the other way. 

So this game was everything for Jets fans and it didn’t disappoint. It represented the dawn of a new era. The Jets forced 2 turnovers and restricted Seattle to 4-for-13 on third down while Neil O’Donnell threw 5 touchdown passes to go with 131 rushing yards from Adrian Murrell.

Although that season didn’t end in a playoff berth, it did end with the Jets first winning record since 1988. Big Tuna meant business. 

1) 2011 – New York Jets 27-24 Dallas Cowboys

Finally we have one of the most emotionally charged occasions I can remember as not only a Jets fan but as a football fan. 

The Jets were coming off back-to-back trips to the AFC Championship game and had Super Bowl aspirations behind Rex Ryan, a suffocating defense and an offence that possessed a dominant offensive line 

But the game itself was the secondary factor as this game was played on September 11th, on the 10th anniversary of the tragic events of 9/11. 

Nick Folk would kick the game-winning FG with under 30 seconds to play from 50-yards, setting the Jets on their way. But the memory of this game will be the atmosphere in the stadium, the players in their FDNY hats with the flag on the jumbotron and Grammy-winning country group Lady Antebellum performing the national anthem. 

It was a game that was dramatic for all the right reasons and an occasion that will live long in the memory.