There are so many instances when you could point to the New York Jets as an “unserious” franchise. But the organization’s social media team connecting its fanbase to a newly signed player through the power of a breakfast sandwich isn’t one of them.
Last month, the Jets signed Mike Williams to a one-year contract worth up to $15 million. Apparently, fans have social media user @NYJ_Matt to thank for completing the deal by ordering a Taylor Ham, egg, and cheese sandwich for Williams and DoorDashing it to One Jets Drive.
Shortly after finalizing his contract, the Jets’ social media team captured Williams savoring the Taylor Ham, egg, and cheese sandwich. Williams himself even joked that the iconic New Jersey breakfast sandwich might have been the key to getting the deal done.
“This what got the deal signed right here.” – @darealmike_dub 😂
🫡 @NYJ_Matt pic.twitter.com/k8WnqzHviP
— New York Jets (@nyjets) March 19, 2024
The breakfast sandwich may have taken social media and NFL morning programming — including Good Morning Football — by storm, but it wasn’t a universally celebrated move. Many thought it uniquely captured how fans interacted with their favorite players in 2024 and fostered a connection between the Jets’ fanbase and their new wide receiver. But the New York Post‘s Brian Costello wasn’t impressed.
“I think if you’re a serious organization, any serious organization wouldn’t have done that,” argued Costello on the Post’s Gang’s All Here podcast. “The Jets whine about how they’re covered, how they’re a punchline, and nobody takes them seriously — and then they go and do that. So, that was my opinion.”
Brian Costello giving his take on #SandwhichGate one month later. He implies the Jets and their social media team are not a serious organization for taking part in it
Btw, The NY post covered it positively in 3 articles and used my tweets for pageviews
pic.twitter.com/TCe1JrBgrM— NYJ Matt (@NYJ_Matt) April 23, 2024
Costello is certainly entitled to his opinion, but his own outlet wrote about the story multiple times. Costello himself included numerous anecdotes about the social media sensation that was the breakfast sandwich while also making sure to note that food wasn’t what lured Williams to sign with the Jets.
Of course it wasn’t. The $15 million and getting a chance to play for a quarterback like Aaron Rodgers were likely why. But that doesn’t and shouldn’t take away the fact that this was a unique moment perfectly executed by @NYJ_Matt and the team’s social media admin.
However, it should also be noted that various outlets—the Post included—capitalized on that moment.
New York Post Lead Jets Writer: “why would the @nyjets social team partake in that story? They’re not a serious organization”
The New York Post: pic.twitter.com/DvVWspA3eo
— NYJ Matt (@NYJ_Matt) April 23, 2024
Yes, the Jets are an unserious franchise, and the examples — not just in Awful Announcing’s archives — are endless. But would we really be having this same conversation if it was a Philadelphia Eagles fan who DoorDashed a cheesesteak to the team facility to welcome a player on a free agent visit?
Probably not.
[NYJ Matt on X]
