Newly acquired New York Jets guard Greg Van Roten grew up a fan on Long Island. Now that he’s in green, he never wants to leave.
The timing never seemed to be right with Greg Van Roten and the New York Jets. The team showed interest in the long island native under two previous general managers.
Mike Tannenbaum invited him to rookie minicamp, but he didn’t sign him. Mike Maccagnan worked him out years later after Van Roten played in CFL, but again, nothing came to fruition.
But after finally becoming a starter in the NFL for the past two years, Van Roten is ready to come home. New general manager Joe Douglas acquired Van Roten as part of an overhaul of the offensive line. According to Connor Hughes of The Athletic, that’s a dream come true for Van Roten.
Now that the veteran guard has his ultimate wish, he doesn’t want to let it go. The 30-year-old told Hughes, “If I’m healthy and able, I want to play as long as I can. For it to be with the Jets? It would be incredible.”
That’s music to fans’ ears. Jets supporters have had to endure years of players avoiding the franchise unless they paid through the nose for them. For Van Roten to openly say he wants to finish his career with the Jets — if possible — before ever playing a down is fantastic.
It speaks to the culture that Douglas is building in Florham Park. This isn’t a team of for-hire mercenaries that come in for a few years and move on for more money. This is a team of people who love football and want to be part of the culture that Douglas and Gase are building.
It’s been a long time since Jets fans have experienced a culture players wanted to be a part of. Douglas is slowly but surely changing that.
