The coaching staff is just one reason to hate the Patriots. Elsa/Getty Images
At this time of year everyone has some kind of ranking published for all 32 NFL teams. I didn’t want to be left out, thus I bring to you the 32 NFL teams ranked by “hateability”.
Sure, I might have made up the word hateability, but I saw that somebody had done a likeability ranking a few years ago and I didn’t want to copy them.
So here are are 32 NFL teams ranked from least hated to most, and a quick reason why.
32) Cleveland Browns - You can’t hate them. Feel sorry for them? Sure. Hate? Naw.
31) Kansas City Chiefs - The Chiefs fans are really nice and Andy Reid seems like everyone’s favorite uncle.
30) Buffalo Bills - When you lose four super bowls, and then don’t do anything after that, nobody hates you, they just laugh at you.
29) Seattle Seahawks - Lucky for the Seahawks the departure of Richard Sherman has moved them way up the list. Of course, some people don’t like Pete Carroll, but those people are asses. Also, Russell Wilson seems cool.
28) Chicago Bears - Sweetness, the Refrigerator and the Super Bowl Shuffle made everyone a Bears fan, despite Jim McMahon being a total tool.
27) Jacksonville Jaguars - They burst on the scene as an expansion franchise and then sucked for a long time, but with a killer defense and running attack it’s safe to say that nobody gives a bleep about the Jags.
26) Indianapolis Colts - If you hate Andrew Luck you probably hate babies, kittens and old people.
25) Miami Dolphins - Dan Marino made everyone a Dolphins fan. Of course everyone hated them for the two years that Nick Saban was their coach, but that was only temporary.
24) Atlanta Falcons - It’s not that people hate the Falcons, it’s just that nobody likes a choker.
23) Green Bay Packers - You would think that a team with such a winning tradition would be more hated, but everyone loves cheese and beer and that’s what most of the fans bodies are made of. They would be higher on the list if Jim McMahon hadn’t played there in 1995 and 1996.
22) New Orleans Saints - The Saints sucked for so long we all just got used to feeling sorry for them.
21) Houston Texans - Speaking of feeling sorry for a team…
20) San Francisco 49ers - A lot of reasons to like this team but they tumbled down this list after adding Richard Sherman.
19) Arizona Cardinals - Nobody cares enough about the Cardinals to hate them. They’d probably be higher but Jim McMahon played for them in 1994.
18) Denver Broncos - Everyone loves John Elway and Peyton Manning. Also, they have cool colors and you can get high during the game.
17) Baltimore Ravens - Lets be real, the average person probably hates this team because of Ray Rice, but they should hate them because of that stupid pregame dance Ray Lewis did for years.
16) Los Angeles Rams - The greatest show on turf was pretty fun to watch, but even their own fans don’t care enough to bother going to the games. It’s not really hate it’s more apathy with this squad.
15) Tennessee Titans - Bud Adams was a horrible owner, but most people outside of Houston didn’t care about that. That said, just about everyone grew to hate Jeff Fisher.
14) Tampa Bay Buccaneers - Hard Knocks made people like this team a bit more than they probably should. Winston is really easy to hate, especially after watching him eat all those Ws. In fact, this might not be low enough after rewatching.
13) Carolina Panthers - Cam is prone to a hissy fit after a loss. Nobody likes a hissy fit.
12) Minnesota Vikings - Purple is ugly (sorry Prince...RIP). Also, Jim McMahon played for the Vikings (1993) so that’s enough of a reason to hate them.
11) Detroit Lions - People love Barry Sanders and Calvin Johnson, but the fact that this crap team is forced down our throats every Thanksgiving makes everyone hate them.
10) New York Jets - Most people only hate the Jets because they are in New York. Case in point, if they were the St. Louis Jets, nobody would care about this team enough to hate them.
9) Los Angeles Chargers - A lot of folks don’t like Phillip Rivers, and that’s fine. But the real reason people hate the Chargers? Jim McMahon played for them (1989).
8) New York Giants - I think most people feel sorry for Eli Manning because he looks like he’s lost all the time, but the real reason people hate the Giants is ODB. And also, because they play in in a different state, despite being called the NEW YORK Giants, they play in New Jersey.
7) Cincinnati Bengals - Boomer Esiason was easy to hate, but so was Pack Man Jones, and all of the legal problems the Bengals players have had over the years.
6) Oakland Raiders - I’ll probably get death threats from their fans just for having them this low, but my goodness, just pick a city to play in already (and stay there). Also Gruden in the booth calling games is great, Gruden on the sidelines calling plays is a jerk.
5) Pittsburgh Steelers - Everyone hates winners, and this franchise has done plenty of that. Big Ben’s off the field trouble didn’t help, but Mike Tomlin seems like a good dude, so this could be worse.
4) Washington Redskins - Dan Gilbert is a d bag; plus the name is offensive to plenty of people.
3) Dallas Cowboys - Two words: Michael Irvin. Two more words, Dez Bryant. Last two words: fan base.
2) Philadelphia Eagles - Their fans booed a baby and called an old lady the C word. As if that wasn’t enough, Jim McMahon played there for 3 years (1990-1992).
1) New England Patriots - Oh boy, where do I begin. The coach? The owner? The QB? The bro at tight end? The Cheating? The winning? The success? The fans? All equally great reasons to hate this team.
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The Jets host the Texans and their scary defense on Halloween night! Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images.
Houston (6-2) at New York Jets (2-6)
Thursday, 8:15 p.m. EDT, Amazon Prime
BetMGM NFL odds: Jets by 2.
Against the spread: Texans 3-4-1; Jets 2-6.
Series record: Jets lead 7-3.
Last meeting: Jets beat Texans 30-6 in East Rutherford, New Jersey, on Dec. 10, 2023.
Last week: Texans beat Colts 23-20; Jets lost to Patriots 25-22.
Texans offense: overall (9t), rush (18), pass (8), scoring (14).
Texans defense: overall (2), rush (13), pass (3), scoring (15t).
Jets offense: overall (24), rush (30), pass (13), scoring (25).
Jets defense: overall (4), rush (17), pass (2), scoring (11t).
Turnover differential: Texans plus-4; Jets minus-3.
Texans player to watch
RB Joe Mixon. He has carried Houston's offense in the three games since he returned from an injury and could be even more important this week after wide receiver Stefon Diggs tore the ACL in his right knee last Sunday and is out for the season. Mixon ranks third in the NFL by averaging 100.6 yards rushing a game and has had at least 100 yards rushing and a TD run in three straight games.
Jets player to watch
Edge rusher Haason Reddick. After ending his lengthy contract holdout early last week, Reddick made his Jets debut and played 26 snaps on defense with two quarterback pressures while working mostly on third downs. His snaps might increase a bit Thursday and he could help the Jets get after C.J. Stroud, who has been sacked 22 times this season — tied for third most in the NFL.
Key matchup
Jets offensive line vs. Texans' pass rush. New York has had issues this season with injuries, consistency and protecting Aaron Rodgers. The Jets will face a tough test Thursday night against the Texans, whose 27 sacks are third in the NFL. DE Will Anderson Jr. is tied for third in the league with a career-high 7 1/2 sacks, including at least one in his past three games. DE Danielle Hunter has 5 1/2 sacks and DT Tim Settle has four, powering a formidable defensive front for Houston. Hunter leads the league with 51 quarterback pressures and Anderson is fourth with 39, the only teammates in the top 15, according to Next Gen Stats.
Key injuries
Diggs' injury leaves Houston without its top two receivers. Nico Collins, who leads the Texans with 567 yards receiving, is out for at least one more game after being placed on injured reserve with a hamstring injury. ... S Calen Bullock was limited in practice Monday and Tuesday after injuring his shoulder Sunday. … LBs Azeez Al-Shaair (knee) and Henry To’oTo’o (concussion) both missed the Colts game, but could return this week. … S Jimmie Ward could miss a fifth straight game with a groin injury. … LG Jarrett Patterson is in the concussion protocol and is likely out. … RB Dameon Pierce missed practice this week with a groin injury. ... Jets LB C.J. Mosley suffered a stinger in his neck during pregame warmups at New England and was meeting with neck and spine specialists this week. ... RG Alijah Vera-Tucker (ankle), WR Allen Lazard (chest), DL Leki Fotu (knee) and safeties Tony Adams (hamstring) and Ashtyn Davis (concussion) all missed the game vs. the Patriots and their availability for this week was uncertain. ... K Greg Zuerlein was placed on IR. Riley Patterson and Spencer Shrader were signed to the practice squad, and one will be promoted for the game.
Series notes
The Jets have won the past two meetings. ... New York won the first five meetings, including the first game between the franchises in 2003, when LaMont Jordan's late 8-yard touchdown run helped lift the Jets to a 19-14 victory. ... Zach Wilson threw two touchdown passes in the most recent meeting, a 30-6 rout by New York during which Stroud left with a concussion.
Stats and stuff
The AFC South-leading Texans have won four of their past five. ... Stroud is 2-0 with three touchdowns and zero interceptions in two career starts in prime time. He had 285 yards passing last week for his ninth career game with at least that many yards passing, which is tied for second most in the NFL since 2023. ... WR Tank Dell had a touchdown reception last week and has a TD catch in two of his past three games. ... TE Dalton Schultz had a season-high 52 yards receiving against the Colts. He has two TD receptions in each of his past two Thursday night games. ... Hunter has 10½ sacks in eight career Thursday night games. … LB Neville Hewitt, who spent the 2018-21 seasons with the Jets, forced a fumble last week. … Rookie CB Kamari Lassiter had a career-high three passes defended last week. … S Jalen Pitre had his first interception of the season last week. ... S Eric Murray had seven tackles and a season-high three passes defended last week. ... New York is trying to snap a five-game skid. ... Jeff Ulbrich is 0-3 as the Jets’ interim head coach since replacing the fired Robert Saleh on Oct. 8. Ulbrich, also the team's defensive coordinator, said earlier this week he'll continue to call plays on defense. … Rodgers snapped a streak of three consecutive games with an interception. He has seven in eight games, six shy of his single-season career high set in 2008 in his first year as Green Bay’s starting quarterback. ... Rodgers hasn't passed for 300 yards since throwing for 341 against Chicago on Dec. 12, 2021 — a span of 30 regular-season games and 31 overall, including one playoff game. ... WR Garrett Wilson leads the NFL with 84 targets, 11 more than the Giants’ Malik Nabers. Wilson’s 51 receptions are second in the league behind Las Vegas’ Brock Bowers, who has 52. ... WR Davante Adams had four catches for 54 yards, giving him seven receptions for 84 yards in two games since being acquired from the Raiders. ... Second-year WR Xavier Gipson caught his first career TD pass last Sunday. ... TE Tyler Conklin has a TD catch in consecutive games after not having one since catching two TD passes in Week 8 of the 2022 season against New England. ... RB Breece Hall has 316 yards receiving, the most among NFL running backs. ... Edge rusher Will McDonald has eight sacks, second in the NFL to the Giants’ Dexter Lawrence (nine). … The Jets have only six takeaways, ranking among the fewest in the league. Backup CB Brandin Echols has New York's only two interceptions.
Fantasy tip
Houston wide receiver John Metchie is coming off a career-best three-catch game and could see more targets — and perhaps his first NFL touchdown — with both Diggs and Collins out. Might be worth a stash as a potential WR3.
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