Don, Hahn & Rosenberg

Episode Title: Hour 1: Jets Fan Conundrum
Date: November 5, 2025
Podcast: ESPN New York

Episode Overview

The first hour of this episode centers around the New York Jets’ latest major rebuild—a recurring saga for the franchise and its fans. Hosts Alan Hahn, Don La Greca, and Peter Rosenberg dissect the latest trades, the regime change, and the emotional perseverance (or fatigue) of long-suffering Jets fans. Throughout, they debate whether skepticism and pessimism are justified for fans, or whether new leaders deserve a clean slate. The team listens to and analyzes a passionate on-air fan rant, takes caller reactions, and tries to assess what, if anything, can restore actual hope to Jets supporters.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Jets Trade Deadline Moves—Reasons for Skepticism

• Alan Hahn opens the show expressing reluctance to join the optimism about the Jets' aggressive moves, emphasizing historical context:

  “All you have is cap space and draft picks. You don't know what they're gonna be.” (02:00)

• Don La Greca counters that while the past is bleak, this regime should be evaluated separately:

  “It's unfair to judge this regime based on the past…What has this regime done to make you feel apprehensive about moving forward with these picks?” (03:01)

• Both acknowledge that the trades made were smart in isolation but question if this time will truly be different for the franchise.

2. Fan Psychology: Endless Rebuilds and “Hope Fatigue”

• Hahn laments the cyclical nature of Jets optimism, warning against blind hope:

  “Hope is a dangerous thing.” (04:27) “I question everything now. That's what I'm doing.” (04:47)

• The group listens to a cathartic rant from Rick (from the morning show), voicing the pain of constant reset:

  “The only thing they can do is sell you a rebuild and hope. That's all we keep doing...It's a vicious cycle. That's right. It's a vicious. Oh, I'm excited.” (07:32-07:48)

• Don and Peter urge fans to at least give new management a fair shot, while Alan says history has conditioned fans to expect disappointment unless proven otherwise.

3. Leadership, Ownership, and the New Regime

• Alan Hahn questions whether GM Darren Muji and new head coach Aaron Glenn truly have the power—or sufficient pedigree—to lead:

  “He has been a college scout and then he was an assistant GM for just three years before he took this job…He's not making the final choice...the picks will be Aaron Glenn's decision.” (08:27-09:16)

• Don suggests the lines of authority are blurred, and that owner Woody Johnson’s meddling may always be the franchise’s fatal flaw:

  “If you got bad ownership, you're not going anywhere.” (20:29)

4. What Should Fans Feel? Blind Faith vs. Wariness

• Don La Greca asks, why not “skew positive,” at least a little:

  “Why not skew positive? That's all I'm asking you to do. I'm not asking you to jump up and down. I'm not asking you to celebrate Christmas Day. I'm just skewed. Why can't you skew positive?” (13:40)

• Alan Hahn:

  “I am literally in the place now of you got to show me. Well, you got to show me. I'm not going to get excited until you show me.” (18:43)

• The team and callers agree: The franchise’s history—particularly the role of Woody Johnson and failed GMs—makes hope difficult to muster.

5. Caller Reactions: Loyalty, Fatigue, and Nuance

Danny in Centerpoint (28:01)

• Expresses pain over another rebuild but agrees with Don that the new regime deserves patience:

  “I'm sick and tired of the rebuild. But you know what?...We have to judge this man on what he's doing.”
  “He's putting us in a position at this point to do anything we have to do…But at this point, that's where we have to start and unfortunately, it's what we signed up for.” (28:01-30:53)

Jaquan in NJ (32:14)

• Challenges being labeled a “sheep” for supporting the team; demands fair opportunity for the new front office:

  “What good is it just to be negative if you got a chance to just give him a chance?” (34:17)
  “Aaron Glenn and Darren Muji, they're not the Jets' Jesus…just give him a chance. If we're wrong, I'll eat my words.” (33:05-34:22)

Vinny in Staten Island (43:53)

• Claims this is not a full teardown, arguing some traded players underperformed. Hosts push back, insisting Quinn and Williams and Sauce Gardner are high-quality pieces whose departure is significant, even if necessary.

6. The Breece Hall Situation and Front-Office Spin

• The Jets kept RB Breece Hall, publicly insisting this shows it's not a "teardown". Don and Alan say it's simply that the offer wasn't high enough:

  “It is a tear down, all right? And you kept Breece Hall because…you wanted something no lower than the third round. So listen, if Kansas City offered you a third round, then he's probably gone.” (36:54)

• Breece Hall’s own words show resignation:

  “I'm here and I'm worried about, you know, we're playing Cleveland this week. That's what I'm worried about.” (37:29)
  “If it was going to happen, it was going to happen whether I wanted it to or not…So I just got to be where my feet are and they'll take it with a grain of salt, whatever happened.” (40:17)

7. Ownership: The Unchangeable Hurdle

• Don La Greca underscores that ownership is the only through-line in the Jets’ chronic failure, and tells fans they must accept this reality:

  “Woody Johnson is not going anywhere…So you've got to make a decision. As a fan, am I going to trust the football people, the new football people?” (03:01)

• Alan recalls that even bad owners can get lucky and hire the right people, but “hope is all you got”:

  “Even the worst owner in the world can eventually step in it and hire the right guy. And if he hires the right guy and does the right things, you can overcome the bad ownership.” (22:43)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Rick’s Morning Show Rant (06:08):

  “Do you have anyone on your staff in their resume says they're good at identifying and developing young quarterbacks? No, you don't…the only thing they can do is sell you a rebuild and hope. That's all we keep doing. Cycle. It's a vicious. Oh, I'm excited.”

• Alan Hahn on skepticism (18:47):

  “I am literally in the place now of you got to show me. Well, you got to show me.”

• Don La Greca on ownership (20:29):

  “If you got bad ownership, you're not going anywhere.”

• Caller Danny (28:01):

  “I'm sick and tired of the rebuild…But this man just did what he had to do for the future of this team and put his stamp on it…I have to hope that this guy's pedigree…has molded him to do this the right way.”

• Breece Hall on trade rumors (37:29):

  “I'm here and I'm worried about…we're playing Cleveland this week. That's what I'm worried about.”

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Jets fan skepticism & rebuild history: 01:28—06:00
• Morning show “Rick” rant playback: 06:03—08:03
• Debate on leadership, ownership & regime: 08:27—13:40
• Callers: Danny (Centerpoint), Jaquan (NJ), Vinny (Staten Island):
  • Danny: 28:01—31:03
  • Jaquan: 32:14—34:22
  • Vinny: 43:53—45:56
• Breece Hall trade discussion: 36:41—41:45

Tone & Style

• The episode is passionate, sometimes exasperated, often self-deprecating, and always candid.
• The hosts mix fan agony, professional analysis, and New York sarcasm.
• Callers reflect the show's emotional honesty, toggling between hope and resignation.
• The dynamic gives equal space to justified doubt and the desperate optimism inherent to Jets fandom.

Summary Statement

This episode encapsulates the existential crisis of being a Jets fan: wrestling with hope in the face of unbroken history, trying to distinguish between justified skepticism and reflexive negativity, and wondering, with every new regime and “rebuild,” if this time really might be different—or if it’s just more of the same. The hosts never shy from hard questions about ownership and decision-making, but ultimately, even the show's pessimists admit: “Hope is all you got.”