Dealing with the enemy

It’s very competitive out there and they try to survive and stay viable. So this news didn’t come as a big surprise considering the circumstances.

Daily News writer Manish Mehta has become a force on the Jets’ beat.

Don’t ask me, just ask the New York Post.

From what I hear, the New York Post will have three writers covering the Jets on a daily basis in 2015.

In the past they’ve often had one, on some days, two.

But this season they will have three.

The Daily News usually has two writers on the scene – Mehta and Seth Walder.

So the Post is going to up the ante, and send three.

I’ve been covering the Jets for 20 years, and I’ve never seen a paper send three writers to cover the team daily. Game days – yes, during the week – no. That is, unless there is a game of significant import, or the team is in the playoffs.

This move is clearly aimed at competing with Mehta, who has become a publicity machine for the Daily News, with the help of Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio.

Mehta is brilliant at creating headlines, and when he does, Florio, who has a wildly popular website, links it to a national audience. Florio also constantly has Mehta on his television and radio shows. They have a symbiotic relationship.

Mehta, isn’t necessarily a great football reporter, but knows how to play the new media game, and how to create a lot of attention on social media.

At a recent mini-camp, Darrelle Revis held a press briefing at his locker. When asked about “Deflate-gate” by the media throng at his locker, Revis took the high road. He refused to say a bad word about his former team.

But after the pack left Darrelle’s locker, Mehta went over, and peppered him for a good half-hour with questions, hoping to land a money quote.

And during this cross-examination, he got the star cornerback to give him one-line that made national headlines.
After throwing his line in the water over and over, he landed a big catch when Revis said. “(The Patriots) have a history of doing stuff.”

The Daily News got a ton of publicity for this.

He also got Sheldon Richardson to sound off on Mo Wilkerson’s contract – “If Gerald McCoy can get $100 million, I’m pretty sure my guy Mo Wilkerson can get $100 million.”

This was the same Richardson who wasn’t talking to the media throughout the off-season. So the first time he talks, Mehta gets him to sound off on Mo’s contract.

Mehta’s adept at getting players to slip on banana peels and give him quotes that create national news on a regular basis.

Perhaps the team needs a better strategy to deal with Mehta.

But it’s pretty apparent the New York Post, a bitter rival of the Daily News, has decided they need a better strategy.

And they feel “three’s a charm.”

July 13, 2015

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