Cowabunga Dude! C'mon Jets, Losing Is All In Your Minds

By Thomas Hensch

I believe the Jets, yes, the New York Jets, can make the playoffs.

Yes, Jet fans, I said the "P" word.

The Jets likely need to run the table to make it because they have dropped six of their last seven games.

Everybody has them dead and buried. But bare with me here. There is good reasoning behind my boastful claim.

In Laird Hamilton's book "Force of Nature," he discusses negativity. For those of you who don't know who Hamilton is, he has been hailed as the world's greatest big-wave surfer. C'mon folks, you've seen Laird in that American Express commercial where the surfing dude gets airlifted by helicopter into a monstrous wave so that he can put his life on the line for the ultimate ride of his life.

Yeah, that guy.

Hamilton writes, "Negativity; we all get it, but that doesn't mean you have to take it. Negativity is going to crop up in your mind. I think that's an unfortunate part of being human. It's as sure as daytime, nighttime. The question is: How much life do you give it? How dominant do you let it get? You have to make sure that the positive has more power and gets more time in your head than the negative. If you let the negative side take charge, you're going to find yourself in a hole."

Hamilton said that when he's surfing he's consciously removing the negative thoughts. I can't blame him because it could be his last ride ever if he wipes out. In sports, Hamilton said, "Mental discipline is key, and when it comes down to it, negativity is the easy way out. Quitting: easy. Daring to triumph: hard."

In 2002, the Jets were 2-5 and had to travel to play the 6-1 Chargers in San Diego. The media and fans had this game as another loss for the "Same 'ole Jets." But master motivator Herm Edwards delivered that famous line during his weekly press conference:

"Hello, you play to win the game. You play to win the game."

The Jets then went out and destroyed the Chargers 44-13. The positive attitude that Herm gave to his team was the turning point of the season, but the Jets still had to work hard and have faith that they would make the playoffs.

After a crushing 20-13 loss to the Bears in Chicago, the Jets were 7-7 and trailed the Dolphins and defending Super Bowl champion Patriots in the division. The Bills were also 7-7, but the Jets had beaten them twice so they had that particular tiebreaker.

The Jets went up to New England the next week and won 30-17 on Sunday night in front of a national audience on ESPN. What's crazy is the Jets also needed a lot of help, assistance in the form of a win by the 4-10 Vikings over the Dolphins.

They got it in the form of a 20-17 victory on Gary Anderson's 53-yard line-drive field goal late in the fourth that never seemed to get more than 10 yards off the ground.

That set the groundwork for a wild and crazy Week 17. The Jets were playing the Packers at the Meadowlands at 4 p.m., while the Dolphins were entertaining the Patriots in Gillette Stadium.

My buddy and I had tickets to the game so we were praying for a Patriots victory (which would eliminate the Dolphins) and a Jets victory over the Brett Favre-led Packers, which would give them the AFC East title.

It was a snowy, cold day at the Meadowlands. During the first quarter, the crowd erupted when the scoreboard displayed that the Patriots had come back and defeated the Dolphins 27-24. The Jets went on to crush Green Bay by 25 and win just their second divisional title. The Jets then went on and destroyed the Colts 41-0 in a home wildcard game before losing 30-10 to the Raiders in the divisional round.

So there's precedent for the unthinkable to take place.

In order for the Jets to win their next six games, they need the entire team and coaching staff to step up and outwork their opponents.

Here's what Hamilton said about defeating negative thoughts: "If you're plagued by negative thoughts, here's a simple cure: Do something. If you think about it, negative thoughts are a luxury. They're a way to avoid getting down to work. We are each our own greatest inhibitors. We stop ourselves. The irony is if you just get out of your own way, you'll do really well. And the sooner you face the work the easier it'll be. The work will actually be the fun part."

Since Rex Ryan, Kerry Rhodes and Bart Scott like to "talk the talk," and since we know they have had problems "walking the walk," how about they try "working the work?"

They do that and they can start to think like Al Davis.

"Just win baby."

Thomas Hensch, otherwise known as @tommyjets on Twitter, is a lifelong fan and Gang Green eternal optimist. Please follow him on Twitter.