Don, Hahn & Rosenberg: Hour 1 - “Jets Big Deadline”

Date: November 4, 2025
Podcast: Don, Hahn & Rosenberg – ESPN New York
Hosts: Don La Greca, Alan Hahn, Peter Rosenberg

Main Theme

This hour delves into the New York Jets’ monumental moves at the NFL trade deadline: a full-scale teardown involving the trades of core players for future draft picks. The hosts and callers debate whether this signals progress or more of the same perennial hope and disappointment for fans, focusing on the abilities and intentions of new GM Darren Muji and the philosophical crossroads the franchise once again faces.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Jets "Blow It Up": Reactions to the Trade Deadline Moves

• Jets trade stars (notably Sauce Gardner to Indianapolis and Quinnen Williams to Dallas) for a bevy of draft picks:

  • 2026: 2 first-round, 2 second-round picks
  • 2027: 3 first-round picks

• Consensus: Necessary step, but offers only the “currency of hope.”

  [00:30] Don Hahn:
  “They're blowing it up. And you know what? If you're a Jet fan, you got to be loving this ... this is the first time, for me anyway, where I feel like they might have gotten it right with Muji ... This is what bad football teams do when they have so many missing pieces. They take the things they have and try to trade it for something better.”

• Emphasis on moving valuable assets that couldn’t deliver wins, repositioning for a new future.

2. Skepticism and Caution: Is This the Same Old Jets?

• Alan Hahn provides a measured counterpoint—praises the haul but warns of “scar tissue” from years of disappointment.

  [03:22] Alan Hahn:
  “This is the easy part. Getting good deals, it's easy to sell. It's what you do next ... Draft picks ... are the currency of hope ... But it still has to do that. We have seen this before ...”

• Both hosts and callers discuss the historic inability of the Jets to convert picks into wins, regardless of management regime.

  [05:18] Alan Hahn:
  “Got a lot of scar tissue ... it never seems to work out ... There’s certain teams you always bet are going to screw it up.”

3. The Rationale: Why Move On from Talent?

• Discussion on the logic behind trading stars — their contracts, lack of a quarterback, and lack of team depth.

  [01:15] Don Hahn:
  “Having a lockdown Corner on a 1 in 7 football team seems odd. You know, it's like putting a Rolls Royce logo on your Volkswagen. It just, it's a waste.”

• Cites failed attempts to maximize a talented defense, lack of success with current personnel

• The view that the Jets’ top assets were most valuable on the market, not the roster

  [10:16] Don Hahn:
  “What talent do I have can get me first round picks? And they're gone. I think that's what he's looking at. I didn't draft any of these guys ...”

4. Coaching and Front Office Trust: A Leap of Faith?

• Who’s in charge now, and do they deserve the benefit of the doubt?

• Alan Hahn: Outgoing regime had its chance; now it’s Muji’s turn, but trust is not automatic.

• Callers and hosts routinely confront the fatalism of Jets fandom—should you “give up” or hope anew?

  [31:11] Don Hahn (to skeptical caller):
  “Then give up because they just brought in a new general manager. What are you going to do? Eventually you hope you get the right people to get it right. But if you're telling me the jets are never going to get it right, why do you root for them? Give up.”

5. Fan Therapy: Emotional Toll and Hope

• Callers lament years of futility and compare their loyalty to self-inflicted pain.

• Hosts empathize, recalling other franchises who eventually turned it around (Saints, Patriots, Warriors).

  [16:29] Caller:
  “My daughter is gonna be 16 in January. When she was in the womb, that was the last time I saw a playoff game. I'm dying, Don. I'm dying.”
  [42:57] Don Hahn:
  “Why do you continue to put the cigarette out in your palm every football season? Pull the plug, dude, it's over. Well, if you're gotta believe in something, but if you're a pessimist, it sets you up to prepare for the inevitable failure.”

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “Draft picks are the currency of hope. It’s nothing more than that right now until you do something with it.”
  — Alan Hahn [37:56]
• “If you are going to get first round picks, you don't get first round picks trading average players, done players, injured players, you got to give up quality players. Yes, but you've had these quality players ... but what good’s the talent if you don't win with the talent?”
  — Don Hahn [32:43]
• “You had all this Jet talent and it didn’t amount to anything ... Now, you got to get a quarterback. How do you get a quarterback? Cap space and draft picks. How do you rebuild? Cap space and draft picks. That’s what you do.”
  — Don Hahn [16:29]
• “Why do you even bother anymore? If you know it's going to go bad, then why are you self mutilating yourself? ... Pull the plug, dude, it's over.”
  — Don Hahn [43:20]
• “Let’s not pretend like these players were trash ... They were worth more in the market than they were on the roster.”
  — Alan Hahn [36:43]

Guest Segment: Rich Cimini, ESPN New York Jets Reporter

[23:44–27:12]

• Cimini shares inside info on why Sauce Gardner’s contract was structured to be tradable, and how even Sauce’s camp was blindsided by the trade.
• Certifies the day as “transformational” in franchise history, recalling no precedent for such a day-of blockbuster flurry for the Jets.
• Foresees the team holding onto Garrett Wilson unless blown away by an offer; Jermaine Johnson and Breece Hall still possible moves but unlikely.
• Notable Quote:
  “I can't ever remember them making two trades of this magnitude at the same day, bringing back what they got back. Now ... it's a total rebuild.” — Rich Cimini [25:46]

Callers React: Disbelief, Frustration, Resignation, and Hope

• Long-suffering fans air grievances—some see the logic, others cannot trust the franchise to succeed with the assets.
• Hosts challenge fans to either buy in to change or stop torturing themselves.
• Disagreement over the true quality of departed players and wisdom of moves; consensus emerges that while moves were necessary, the outcome is far from certain.

Other Highlights & Fun Moments

• Light banter opens the show, riffing on nicknames and Rosenberg’s wild hypothetical antics [00:06].
• “Do you watch the games?” becomes a running joke through multiple calls [41:23, 41:35].
• College basketball opening discussed in brief, with wit about local teams and broadcast logistics [39:19–40:19].
• Comparison to Giants’ similar crossroads; envy of Jets’ asset cache [18:19].

Key Timestamps

• Jets blow-up explanation & reaction: [00:30]–[04:40]
• Historical skepticism & “currency of hope”: [03:22], [05:18]
• Logic for rebuilding, comparison to other teams: [09:51]–[12:06], [17:36]
• Rich Cimini segment (insider analysis): [23:44]–[27:12]
• Fan calls: frustration, generational pain: [15:35], [16:29], [41:57]
• Debate over quality/representation of traded players: [33:00]–[37:47]
• Philosophy on fandom & hope: [43:20]–[47:44]

Tone and Delivery

• Language/Tone: Candid, wry, sometimes raw; authentic New York sports banter with blunt honesty and humor. The hosts balance empathy for fans’ pain with occasional tough love, pushing listeners to face the hard truths behind perennial disappointment.
• Quotes preserved in original context and style.

Summary

In a pivotal hour defined by seismic Jets trades, Don, Hahn & Rosenberg explore deep questions of hope versus skepticism, the logic of painful rebuilds, and what it means to keep the faith in a franchise notorious for breaking it. With expert insight, fan therapy, and self-deprecating humor, the episode captures a momentous, precarious turning point in Jets history—one teetering between meaningful renewal and familiar letdown.