There wasn’t a party — or any type of ceremony. Just an email earlier this year informing Steve Sandberg, a lifelong fan of the New York Jets, that he had finally paid off his two personal seat licenses, the ones that allowed him to pay extra to watch 16 mediocre (and often maddening) seasons of Jets football.
The annual fee of roughly $450 for the pair of seats produced far more losses than wins. And not a single home playoff game.
Sandberg, however, isn’t fazed. Those PSLs, good for two end-zone seats, bought him something far more valuable: a lifetime of memories with his son — the same kind he once shared with his father.
“Would it have been better if they won more games? Of course,” he said.
“Would it have been better if they made the playoffs? Of course.
“But that’s not what this was about. This was about taking advantage of an opportunity to create a lifetime of father-son moments.”
***
Sandberg had attended Jets games with his father for years, but only when a family friend didn’t use his tickets. Sandberg, a Senior VP and Managing Director at MikeWorldWide, dreamed of having seats of his own.
That opportunity came in 2010.
The Jets and Giants opened MetLife Stadium that fall — and introduced the now-infamous concept of having to buy the right to buy tickets.
It didn’t go over well.
And while fans of both teams balked, more Jets fans walked.
With more seats available and disgruntled fans giving up their season tickets, Sandberg found himself off the waiting list and into his own seats, for about $5,000 apiece.
At the time, it felt like a bargain, especially compared with what Giants fans paid. And when the Jets reached the AFC Championship Game for the second straight season that year, Sandberg thought he had timed it perfectly.
“I thought it was the start of a dynasty,” he said.
He soon endured the curse of being a Jets fan.
The team hasn’t made the playoffs since — the longest postseason drought in the NFL. In fact, the longest in any of the four major professional sports leagues.
***
Sandberg fell in love with the Jets in the old Giants Stadium.
“That’s where I found my passion for the team,” he said. “I loved the environment — being there, seeing the game in person, all the energy that came with it.”
He remembers gravitating to the grit and toughness of Wayne Chrebet, still his all-time favorite player.
He remembers the raucous nature of the stands — and his introduction to more than a few choice words.
And he remembers the eerie silence that followed when lineman Dennis Byrd collapsed on the field, temporarily paralyzed after a collision.
“You could hear people breathing,” he said.
There was the heartbreak of the 1998 season, ending with a loss to the Broncos in the AFC Championship Game. Then the freak Achilles injury to quarterback Vinny Testaverde the following fall, dashing Super Bowl hopes in Week 1.
No worries, Sandberg thought at the time. There would be other years.
***
Sandberg puts most of the blame for the Jets’ struggles on the quarterback position.
They put too much on a young Mark Sanchez.
They foolishly chased Tim Tebow.
They gave up too soon on Sam Darnold.
They won meaningless late-season games in 2020 to miss out on Trevor Lawrence, then used the pick on Zach Wilson — in a draft that featured multiple future hall of famers.
They wasted years on Aaron Rodgers.
That’s why Sandberg hopes the Jets don’t select a quarterback with either of their first-round picks tonight (No. 2 and No. 16).
“There are too many other needs,” he said — noting his preference for Ohio State defensive standout Arvell Reese with the No. 2 pick.
Just as long as they don’t take a quarterback.
“Unless a quarterback is ready to start on Day One, they’re not worth a first-round pick,” he said.
Sandberg is content with veteran Geno Smith, who has carved out a solid — if unspectacular — career since the Jets gave up on him after the 2016 season.
***
Sandberg isn’t giving up on the Jets.
“This is what it means to be a fan,” he said. “There are good years and bad years. It’s easy to jump on a front-runner. I’m loyal.”
And he’s a family man.
His son David, now a high school junior, was a newborn when MetLife Stadium opened.
The opportunity to create memories is what Sandberg wanted — and what he got. How much longer that will last isn’t entirely clear.
If David goes away to school next fall, Sandberg may need a new game partner for a few years.
No problem, he said, the seats will be waiting.
And now that he officially owns his PSLs outright, one of the perks is being able to pass them on.
“The idea that my son could someday watch the Jets with his son,” Sandberg said, “is really amazing.”
Of course, he’d like to attend a Super Bowl first.
Sandberg remains confident the Jets will someday end a drought approaching 60 years (they last won Super Bowl III in 1969).
And he’s willing to wait.
“This was never a short-term investment,” he said. “This has been a lifelong journey.
“I just want to make sure I have a front-row seat with my son when they finally do win — and they will win.”
