Jets Fans Wanting to Build a Statue to Their GM Over the Trade Return He Got for Sam Darnold is the Cutest Thing You'll See All Year

This is Jets GM Joe Douglas. When he's not dominating the Dad Joke Game, he's busy being the architect of the New York Jets. And has been for three full seasons now. Seasons in which his team's records have been:

2019: 7-9

2020: 2-14

2021: 4-13

So it stands to reason that this is a make-or-break year for Douglas. When your winning percentage is .265 after three seasons, your seat is the temperature of the core of the sun. Still, by virtually all accounts he's coming off a good draft, with four picks in the Top 36. More to the point, he seems to have the unwavering support of Jets fans. How, you may ask? 

The Baker Mayfield trade. 

As the leader of the free world would put it: Not a joke. A trade Joe Douglas wasn't involved in makes a trade Joe Douglas orchestrated look better by comparison. And that is all it took to win the hearts and minds of his team's fan base. 

Just to define our terms, the Panthers just agreed to send the Browns a conditional pick for Mayfield. According to reports, if he plays 70% of Carolina's snaps, it's a fourth. If not, it's a fifth. In exchange for sending Sam Darnold (drafted by Douglas' predecessor, so that's not on him) to Carolina, Douglas received a sixth in 2021 plus a second and fourth last draft. 

So clearly a win for Douglas and the Jets. Shrewd bargaining by him. Credit where it's due. And any fan of the team would be completely justified to give him an attaboy, nice job, way to haggle, Chief. But this is not just any fan base. These are fans of the New York Jets. And so starved are they for a win, every crumb tossed before them gets treated like a banquet. 

I mean, look at these reactions:

I'm not mad. I'm not putting Jets fans down. On the contrary. I think this is absolutely adorable. They're so proud of this, and so happy to have something to celebrate, how can it not fill you with joy? They're like a toddler who was able to put her shoes on the right feet and velcro them all by herself. (They're not up to tying laces just yet.) They're a 3-year-old beaming on the potty because he went No. 2 all by himself without messing in his Pull Ups. And that pure, innocent joy is contagious. 

Which is why I'll just appreciate how proud and happy they are. Reminding them that other GM's make deals like this before they've poured their second cup in the morning feels like an act of cruelty at this point. Especially given how 90% of the moves they've been overjoyed by over the last 50 years or so have blown up in their faces like a Candygram for Mongo. 

So instead, I'll just metaphorically pat them on their collective head and say, "Good job! Who's a big team now? You are, buddy. That's who," and give them a cookie. If nothing else, this trade will help Douglas land an assistant GM job when the Jets win five games this year.