Here's the NFL's Take

Just got word out of the NFL offices as to how the coin flip went and who will open the new Meadowlands Stadium. Actually, both the Jets and Giants will.

The Giants will have the official opening on Sunday afternoon, Sept. 12, and the Jets will open ESPN's Monday Night schedule the next evening. That will mark the first time the two teams opened the season at home on the same weekend since 1991.

How did the league decide that? Well, there indeed was a coin flip, according to the press release. That was held Friday afternoon.

"Commissioner Goodell noted that both the Giants and Jets ownership felt passionately for their fans about being the first to play at home on the opening weekend of the regular season and could not agree on how to resolve the issue, including whether to conduct a coin flip," the spokesman explained. "The commissioner said that, since both teams presented good reasons for playing first, he concluded that the fairest resolution would be to play both teams at home on the opening weekend and to make his decision on which team plays on Sunday by flipping a coin.

"The commissioner flipped the coin last Friday with his staff at the NFL office. He then notified both teams on Friday of his decision and that he flipped a coin to determine the team playing on Sunday."

That indicates there were no representatives from either team present, which makes Jets owner Woody Johnson's reported flip-out over the flip's secrecy a bit, well, flipped out.

The Jets will host the first preseason game at the new stadium in August.

"We look forward to playing the first regular season game ever in the new stadium," a Giants spokesman said. "We have a great new home, and it's right next door to Giants Stadium, a building that housed our three Super Bowl championship teams. We look forward to building the same legacy for our new stadium, and it starts on September 12."

Guess you can count that as a thinly-veiled "nyuk, nyuk, nyuk" to old Woody.

Perhaps now we can mercifully put this issue to rest.

EP