While the 2022 NFL regular season ended with just one winning record for a squad playing at MetLife Stadium, New York football was the most fun it’s been in quite some time. The proof of that is in the pudding, too. And by pudding, I’m talking about attendance numbers for Jets and Giants home games.
The Dallas Cowboys led the league in attendance, drawing an average of 93,465 fans to Jerry’s World, according to ESPN. But number two in the rankings? That’d be the Jets, who drew just a shade over 78,000 fans through eight home games. Oh, and the Giants were right behind them at number three. Big Blue drew an average of 76,474 fans to home games at the Meadowlands this year.
There are a couple of things to note here regarding the Jets’ number, too. Among the top four (the Green Bay Packers round out this group), Gang Green is the only squad that accomplished this in eight home games. The other three all had nine. They’re also the only AFC team within this group at the top of the league.
Both New York squads enjoyed a noticeable bump in attendance. The Jets placed seventh in average home attendance during the 2021 season (71,676). Meanwhile, the Giants were fourth with an average of 73,882 fans at home games during that campaign.
Winning some games and just generally showing promise will help with that, right? We spent a lot of last fall just relishing the fact that both the Jets and Giants were playing in football games that mattered in October, November, and December.
It’s like what late Raiders owner Al Davis used to say: “Just win, baby.” That’s the best form of marketing there is.
After the Giants’ first playoff appearance since 2016 this past season, you’d have to imagine the fan base is energized and will continue to come out in droves next year. As for the Jets, expectations will be high whenever Aaron Rodgers officially becomes their starting quarterback. So, fans won’t be going anywhere, either.
You can reach Matt Musico at matt.musico@xlmedia.com. You can follow him on Twitter: @mmusico8.
