The New York Jets and the New York Giants have both started out 3-0 in the young season.  But for New Yorkers, it’s never too early to envision a “New York Super Bowl.” 

But whoa…hold your horses.  Let’s start out with an exhibition tilt – in exclusive Ball or Nuthin’ style.

Face of the Franchise:  Eli Manning vs. Mark Sanchez – Eli has a Super Bowl victory and a huge, undeserved, contract under his belt.  Mark Sanchez has a win against a Tom Brady-led Patriots team…as a rookie.  Pretty impressive stuff by both leaders.  I’m gonna have to go with Manning until Sanchez delivers more results.  If in doubt, you can’t go wrong with a quarterback of that name. (Giants 3, Jets 0)

Coolest Helmets/Logo/Uniforms:  The Giants’ red, white and blues (and sometimes grays) are certainly well respected.  But the Jets’ logo has a little more kick…and their throwbacks are just off-the-wall crazy.  (Jets 7, Giants 3)

Brandon Jacobs making mince meat of the Redskins' secondary.

Most Colorful History:  How can you get more colorful than “Cool” Joe Namath?  He defined the Jets – and football in general – in the 60′s.  (Jets 14, Giants 3)

Team With Most “Swag”:  The Jets are the team that nobody expected to come out and play this well.  They’ve caught the NFL by swarm with their 3-0 start.  Meanwhile, the Giants have not “snuck” up on anyone.  They were expected to be at the top – and they haven’t disappointed.  Now that’s swag.  Gotta give ‘em a touchdown with a 2-point conversion for that.  (Jets 14, Giants 11)

Superstar Player Loss Factor:  Who have recovered the best from their loss of star power? The Jets lost one of the most decorated quarterbacks in the game, Brett Favre.  While he led them to a respectable 10-6 record last year, they failed to make it into the postseason.  The Giants said goodbye to Plaxico Burress, their 6’6″ go-to-guy who figured to be their number-one receiver again this year.  I’d give the Giants the nod on this one, only because on paper Mark Sanchez is a better replacement for Favre than anyone of the Giants wide outs is for Plaxico.  (Giants 18, Jets 14) 

Player Most Likely To Embarrass Opponents:  Leon Washington is a big play time bomb.  Defenders bounce off of Brandon Jacobs like he’s made of rubber.  But I’m an ankle-breaker type of guy – - so I’m gonna go with Leon.  (Giants 18, Jets 17)

Well, there you have it.  A close battle won by the more experienced team.  All NFL analysts are pretty comfortable putting the Giants among the league’s elite…and rightfully so. 

Let’s see if the Jets can continue to make enough noise to get it on in the “Jets vs. Giants – Round Two”.