Don, Hahn & Rosenberg — Hour 3: NY Football Hope?

Date: December 23, 2025
Host: Pat O'Keefe (in for Don, Hahn & Rosenberg)
Main Focus: The state of New York football — are the Giants and Jets worse off than last year? Where’s the hope for fans? Knicks quick hits.

Overview

In this episode, Pat O’Keefe fills in and dives deep into the woes of New York’s NFL franchises, questioning how both the Jets and Giants managed to become even more dysfunctional than a year ago. Pat unpacks failed leadership, coaching misfires, and the lack of hope as both teams limp toward another lost December. He fields frustrated caller stories, draws parallels to other long-suffering fanbases, and briefly discusses the Knicks’ trajectory. Throughout, Pat’s tone is both exasperated and analytical, tapping into the emotional weariness engulfing NY sports fans.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. How Did It Get Worse for NY Football? (00:37–18:00)

• Last year’s “silver linings” for Jets fans erased
  Pat recalls how 2024 ended with guarded optimism: “If they had some semblance of competent head coaching, you win at least, what, three of those games, right? So the Jets finished 5 and 12 last year… you’re looking at an 8, 9, possibly 9 and 8 team… still in the hunt to reach the playoffs.” (03:45)

• This season, both teams regressed — again
  “Twelve months later… How is it worse? How is it worse than it was last year? This was not supposed to be a total rebuild.… they took a big swing at both positions — head coach and quarterback — and they missed badly.” (07:20)

• The fallacy of the quick fix
  Pat highlights NFL quick-turnover trends, mentioning the Arizona Cardinals’ cycle and comparing the Jets’ situations to failed ‘one-and-done’ coaching stints: “That kind of started a trend of this one-and-done… Was never done, ever... Now, in most cases, you get a minimum of two years.” (10:50)

• Jets’ leadership and roster missteps
  O’Keefe criticizes ownership inertia and staff decisions, especially on the field:
  “When you sometimes know, you know… if there’s anybody out there that’s really excited about year two under Aaron Glenn and thinking that, yeah, he took some lumps and it’s a rebuilding situation, but… next year’s gonna be a different story — is that really what we think?” (13:34)

• Jets defensive decline
  What was supposed to be their calling card collapsed: “Their defense was the reason why Aaron Rodgers wanted to come to New York… Well, where is that defense now? It’s a, it’s a, it’s a joke. They just gave up — what’d they give up? 40 points, 34, whatever. It doesn’t even matter.” (15:30)

• Bleak December for NY fans — again
  Pat expresses existential fan fatigue: “It is like Groundhog Day… every single year we get to December, we have two football teams… and we haven’t had one fun NFL season in like a decade. How is it possible… these have been by far the most inept franchises in the NFL for the last eight years?” (16:20)

Notable Quote:

“The odds of us here in New York getting to enjoy a fun season, one way or another, should be double what it is in every other market… We’ve had one fun NFL season in like, a decade. How is it possible…?” — Pat O’Keefe (16:45)

2. Giants: Do They Even Have Their QB of the Future? (17:50–24:00+)

• Jackson Dart’s rollercoaster rookie year
  “Two weeks ago, I was saying that much more definitively, you have your quarterback. I don’t need to see anything else from Jackson Dart. He’s the guy. But the last two or three weeks… now you’re starting to see the frustration.” (21:45)

• Organizational mismanagement stunts growth
  “I think this incompetent organization and this awful leadership from Joe Shane to Brian Daboll, now Mike Kafka and the whole other cast of characters — I think they’re taking a toll on him and they’re beating him down.” (22:40)

• Fans' cyclical despair
  “Here we are as we approach the end of 2025 — each team is arguably somewhat worse. How is that even possible? And where is the hope?” (23:55)

Notable Quote:

“Jets don’t have a quarterback. Giants are doing everything they can to knock the swagger out of their quarterback. And here we are again, just another Sunday coming up where whatever team you root for, they’re just playing out the string. It’s awful. It’s really, it’s as bad as it possibly can be.” — Pat O’Keefe (24:10)

3. Caller Reactions — Fan Pain and Theories

OG in Sacramento: “The Curse of Joe Namath” (18:04–20:06)

• OG reminisces about decades of Jets drama and floats a spiritual “curse” haunting the team (“the curse of Joe Namath”).
• Cites ownership failings and culture.
• Tells Pat: “I’m 75 years old. I’m on the downside of the hourglass, if you get what I’m saying. I’m trying to enjoy myself… The Knicks won the Cup. I’m cool with that. I don’t know if I’ll see any of my sports… ever win anything.” (19:46)

Pat’s response: “I don’t know what the curse of Joe Namath is… It’s a lot simpler than that. It’s incompetent management… There’s been poor ownership situations in all sports… at a certain point, you’ve got to, even by accident, trip into the right candidate — and the Jets and Giants haven’t seemed able to do that.” (20:13)

Manny in Flushing: Ownership Woes and Knicks Perspective (30:00–31:54)

• Manny: “The only remain[ing] consistent is both teams — it’s the ownership. Of course, Woody Johnson is like one of the worst… you gotta give [Mara] accountable for his action…”
• Also weighs in on Knicks: “Jalen Brunson is a superstar… Cade Cunningham he’s [got] promise, but Brunson’s done so much more.”

Pat backs up Brunson’s star status: “Jalen Brunson is a superstar. He has proven that over the last several postseasons… He's better now than he ever has been. He's getting better every single year. Jalen Brunson is a superstar. Cade Cunningham is an emerging superstar.” (31:54)

Greg in the Car: Empathy from a Titans Fan (34:32–36:29)

• Greg calls as a Tennessee Titans fan, relating to the NY football pain:
  “It’s almost eerie how the teams… near each other… every year you look forward to the season, think it’s going to be different, and then it slowly fizzles out… wondering what to do. Do you continue to, like, invest your emotion in the team the rest of the year?”
  (35:00)

Pat’s response: “It is rough… all you want to do… it’s not too much to ask that once every five years, your team is in December and is at least playing meaningful games and, or competitive games. And more often than not, the Giants and the Jets… are in the month of December and the games mean absolutely nothing.” (37:13)

Key Segment Timestamps

• Jets dissection & December blues: 00:37–18:00
• Giants, Jackson Dart, regime failures: 17:50–24:00
• OG in Sacramento (Curse of Namath): 18:04–20:06
• Knicks quick hit & Brunson vs Cunningham: 31:54
• Greg in the Car (Titans empathy): 34:32–36:29
• Pat’s final Giants summary: 42:22–47:05

Notable Quotes

• "How is it possible that the two teams that play in the same freaking building… have been by far the most inept franchises in the NFL for the last eight years?" — Pat O’Keefe (16:30)
• "Jackson Dart… for like a month and a half, injected a lot of life into this organization… But the caution I always give… if you are in the wrong situation, your career can be derailed before it's even had the chance to take off." — Pat O’Keefe (21:53)
• "Jets don't have a quarterback. Giants are doing everything they can to knock the swagger out of their quarterback." — Pat O’Keefe (24:05)
• "Jalen Brunson is a superstar… Cade Cunningham is an emerging superstar. He hasn't done it long enough and he hasn't done it at the level that Jalen Brunson has done it yet." — Pat O’Keefe (31:54)

Knicks Brief

• The conversation briefly touches on Knicks basketball, emphasizing recent “load management” absences (Brunson, Anunoby) and how this regular-season approach is a new era post-Thibodeau. Pat is high on Jalen Brunson’s development but recognizes tonight’s game (vs. Timberwolves) is a tough one due to injuries and schedule density. (42:22+)

Summary

Pat O’Keefe, standing in for Don, Hahn, and Rosenberg, amplifies the frustrations of New York football fans: both Jets and Giants somehow regressed from already abysmal years, with the cycle of bad leadership, missed roster swings, and lack of hope stronger than ever. Fan calls echo the themes of despair, ownership blame, and nostalgia for better times. As New York faces another December with nothing to play for, Pat wonders when — or if — the tide will ever turn, ending on a reflective, exasperated note that resonates with the weary city.