Andrew Mills | NJ Advance Media

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By Steve Politi | NJ Advance Media

It's hopeless.

Yes, this is a very general statement, but when it comes to the current state of the New Jersey sports scene, it applies no matter where you look.

Start with football teams. The Giants? They are 4-21 in their last 25 games. The Jets? Heading to their eighth straight season without a playoff series. Rutgers? Barreling toward a 1-11 season and the Big Ten basement.

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Elsa | Getty Images

Oh, sure, the Yankees made the playoffs. But the Red Sox -- the hated Red Sox -- won the entire enchilada after knocking them out. The Devils made the postseason, too, but were quickly ushered to the exits in five games as one of their old rivals claimed their first Stanley Cup.

Think about it: Has there ever been a more detestable collection of champions for New York fans than the Red Sox (MLB), the Capitals (NHL) and the Philadelphia Eagles (NFL). That's like getting dumped at the prom and having your date leave with your enemy.

It is Brutal, with a capital B.

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Steve Politi | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

This is hardly scientific, but it's hard to remember a more bleak time for our local teams. A few years ago, the Giants and the Yankees were having parades. A few years before that, you had the Devils and the Yankees in the middle of their dynasties.

The '80s weren't great, but at least the Giants won a couple of Super Bowls -- hell, even the Mets won a World Series. You'd probably have to go back to the mid '60s, a half century ago, to find a time that was just as grim.

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Andrew Mills | NJ Advance Media

Nearly everyone is rebuilding or, at the very least, retooling. This got us thinking: Which of the local teams is most hopeless? Which teams leave a sliver of hope that something good might happen before their fans grow old and die, and which teams are pretty much guaranteeing a lifetime of misery at this point?

Here is our official ranking, from least to most hopeless:

(Editor's note: We left off the Red Bulls because they are MLS regular season champs -- and even they noticed. As for the Islanders, we thought they moved to Kansas City six years ago.)

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9. YANKEES

Why it's hopeless: The hated Red Sox won another World Series, and did so after beating the Yankees in the regular season AND the postseason. That means in each of the past two seasons, the Yankees were eliminated by teams in the American League – Boston and Houston – that have gone onto win titles and seem poised for long-term success.

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Sean M. Haffey | AP

Why that might change: This is a young team that won 100 games with homegrown stars like Aaron Judge, Gleyber Torres, etc. They'll be in the postseason again next season, barring an unforeseen change, and have the resources to pour even more money into the roster. Boston can't win everything. (At least, we think it can't. Can someone double check that?)

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Projecting the 2019 Yankees lineup for Opening Day

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Hopeless prognosis: This October will be the 10-year anniversary of the last World Series in the Bronx, which isn't long for a normal franchise but is the third longest drought for this one. An offseason spending spree might improve the outlook but -- yes, them again -- the Red Sox had the biggest payroll in baseball.

Hopeless comparison: Oh yes. We've got ourselves a Jan Brady situation here.

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via GIPHY

Final hopeless rating: One a scale of 1 to the Federal Deficit, the Yankees are just a mere blip of hopelessness compared to the utter inescapable despair inflicting most of the other NY/NJ teams.

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8. DEVILS

Why it's hopeless: Once a postseason fixture, the Devils haven't won a playoff series since the 2011-12 run to the Stanley Cup Final. The last championship, meanwhile, was an eternity ago in 2003. Martin Brodeur is literally a statue now. The rival Capitals, of all teams, won their first Stanley Cup and had an epic celebration throughout D.C. Ugh.

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Alex Brandon | AP

Why that might change: A young core, led by Hart Trophy winner Taylor Hall, stormed back into the postseason last spring -- and while they lost in five games to Tampa Bay, there is little doubt that things are trending up. If Nico Hischier becomes a star and the Devils (finally) sign a few difference-making free agents ...

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The 35 greatest all-time Devils players

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Hopeless prognosis: The Devils are a nice young team. The problem is, the next step -- from the fringe of the playoffs to a true contender -- is the hardest one to take in the NHL, and there's still a big gap from the top Eastern Conference foes and them. Still, you have to start somewhere.

Hopeless comparison: The Devils are in the middle of a mountain, making the slow steady climb. And, because this is hockey, the mountain is covered in ice. Is there a gif for that? Of course there is.

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via GIPHY

Hopeless prognosis: By definition, "hope" is the belief that something good might happen. So Devils fans have a reason to watch, even if it could be a while before the next banner is raised to the Prudential Center rafters.

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7. JETS

Why it's hopeless: Good grief, the franchise's lone trip to the Super Bowl is about to start getting AARP notices in the mail. This is shaping up to be another lost season with a head coach and a collection of offensive skill players that inspire exactly nobody. Tom Brady is never, ever going to retire.

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Dave Martin | AP

Why that might change: Sam Darnold. Finally, the Jets hope (pray) that they've got the franchise quarterback they've lacked since Joe Namath. If they can just put some pieces around him -- and drafting high each year means they have a few good young difference makers -- they'll be back in the playoffs soon. Maybe. Ah, hell, forget it.

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The 50 greatest NFL players from New Jersey

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Hopeless prognosis: The Jets will have enough salary cap space to add several big-time free agents. If they have a high draft pick, they'll have a shot to add another cornerstone at wide receiver or along the offensive line. The trick is actually identifying the right players. If they ever got that right, they wouldn't be approaching 50 years without a Lombardi Trophy.

Hopeless comparison: The Jets are the Sisyphus of NFL teams.

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via GIPHY

Hopeless rating: It speaks to the gloom in the NY/NJ sports scene that the Jets are the third least hopeless team, but here we are. A true Jets fan only looks up to see if the next shoe is dropping.

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6. RANGERS

Why it's hopeless: This franchise went 54 years between Stanley Cups and there are days when it feels like they're going to wait another 54 or so. The window on great goalie Henrik Lundqvist's prime has slammed shut as the team went into full rebuild mode, selling off their veteran leaders and hiring a college coach. At least "1994" doesn't sound good in chants.

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NJ Advance Media file

Why it might change: Give the Rangers credit for at least realizing that it wasn't going to happen with this core. In the old days, they would have acquired every fading star in the league -- is Marcel Dionne still playing? -- and tried to sell the fans on false hope. The only hope here is that they're going to rebuild the right way. It's just going to take a long, long time.

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Ranking the 50 greatest coaches from N.J.

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Hopeless prognosis: The late season trades did a nice job restocking the team's farm system, so done the right way, this rebuilding might move faster than expected. But if you do a quick Google search on "Rangers" and "rebuilding," this quote pops up: "We're rebuilding but it doesn't have to take forever." The source of that quote is a reminder that it very well may take forever. It was James Dolan.

Hopeless comparison: This big fella seems about right ...

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via GIPHY

Hopeless rating: The Capitals won the Cup. The Penguins are always contenders. The Devils have a nice young core. Even the Flyers -- nah, scratch the Flyers. At least there's that, right? The Flyers still suck! The pillow that Rangers fans sob into at night is soggy, but not enough that it might freeze.

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5. NETS

Why it's hopeless: They're the Nets. Hopelessness is in their DNA. This is a team that mortgaged the future for the Celtics' past, ensuring (at least) a decade of irrelevance. They've changed their address from East Rutherford to Brooklyn, but they haven't changed their status as a second-fiddle franchise to their equally hopeless rivals at Madison Square Garden.

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Bill Kostroun | AP

Why it might change: The Nets actually have first- AND second-round draft picks in every draft through 2024, a stunning change for a franchise that murdered its long term hopes by dealing away picks for aging players. If they stink (and they do) those picks could produce players and, who knows, wins.

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Hopeless prognosis: The Nets need a move on the Jason Kidd-for-Stephon Marbury level to get them back into the conversation in the Eastern Conference. They've got the draft picks, which is a good start, but they lack that great young player that a franchise needs to even start thinking about hanging a banner.

Hopeless comparison: Zzzzzz.

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via GIPHY

Hopeless rating: If the Nets win a championship, will anyone even notice? That's pretty hopeless. But at least they're not the Knicks. (And at least they're not our problem in the Meadowlands any more.)

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4. METS

Why it's hopeless: The Wilpons still own the team. What? You need more than that? This is a big-market team that behaves like a small-market one, and it chewed up and spit out the man who practically invented the modern GM in Sandy Alderson. Now they're hitting the reset button with a career agent calling the shots. Any one really trust the Mets to do something outside the box successfully?

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John Munson | NJ Advance Media f

Why it might change: Those arms. Jacob de Grom is the best pitcher in the National League -- that is a significant building block going forward -- and the rest of the starting rotation, including Noah Syndergaard, is still solid. Of course, they've had that pitching for years with little to show for it.

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The 50 greatest baseball players from New Jersey

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Hopeless prognosis: The Mets swear they're not doing a "teardown" under new GM Brodie Van Wagenen, which is an interesting to say when you've got a lineup a notch above Triple A. Until this team starts to invest in the team, the hopelessness is never going away.

Hopeless comparison: The Mets are a trust-fund kid on an allowance. The money is there. They just can't get at it.

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via GIPHY

Hopeless rating: Five Wilpons.

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3. RUTGERS

Why it's hopeless: This is a team that can't even compete with Kansas and Buffalo. How is it going to beat Michigan and Penn State? The Scarlet Knights are going to finish 1-11 and, unlike the pros, there is no draft. They've got to recruit their way out of this mess, and right now the recruiting class isn't pretty.

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John Munson | NJ Advance Media f

Why that might change: Low expectations. No one in Piscataway is expecting this program to go toe-to-toe with Ohio State and Michigan for the Big Ten title. Success in college football is a low bar to clear. Just win six games and qualify for a lower-tier bowl and – for a while, at least – the fans will be satisfied.

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The greatest Rutgers players at every position

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Hopeless prognosis: It's hard to see sunlight through the storm clouds when the team has gone 2-10, 4-8 and (soon) 1-11 in the past three seasons. If Chris Ash returns for a fourth season, the Scarlet Knights would need to take a major step forward to go 3-9. Bowling? Maybe ... someday.

Hopeless comparison: Road kill.

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via GIPHY

Hopeless rating: PG. For "pretty grim."

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2. GIANTS

Why it's hopeless: Have you been watching? The Giants have lost 21 of their last 25 games, which is pretty hard to do in the NFL. Eli Manning might someday have a statue in East Rutherford, which is fine, but half the time he looks like he's posing for one. Odell Beckham Jr. just signed a $95 million contract and already doesn't want to be here. Oh, and general manager Dave Gettleman is a dinosaur in a forward-thinking league.

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Bill Kostroun | AP

Why that might change: They are barreling toward another top draft pick and – cross your fingers – maybe they'll pick a quarterback this time. Things can change quickly in the NFL. Saquon Barkley is the real deal at running back. Odell Beckham Jr. hasn't mugged a kicking net yet (but it's early).

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Ranking the 11 worst Dave Gettleman moves

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Hopeless prognosis: Things are going to get more hopeless before they get less hopeless, and that includes the day in the not-so-distant future when they have to part ways with Eli Manning. Then, the quest for a franchise quarterback will begin again, and the hopelessness won't subside until they find one.

Hopeless comparison: They're the class president who shows up at the 20-year class reunion unemployed and reeking of booze. "What happened to HIM?"

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via GIPHY

Hopeless rating: The Giants went 3-13 last season and are on pace to top that this season. That's A-plus hopelessness right there.

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1. KNICKS

Why it's hopeless: This is a franchise 45 years removed from its last NBA championship that feels like it'll take 450 years to win the next one. The entire plan is hinging on the idea that Kevin Durant, a notorious front runner, will decide that he wants to "restore the Garden to its rightful place in basketball" – as if anyone cares about that any more. Meanwhile, James Dolan -- the worst owner in professional sports -- is picking petty feuds with sports radio stations.

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NJ Advance Media file

Why it might change: Well, the Knicks actually have their own 2019 first-round draft pick, and given their ugly start, it figures to be a lottery pick. Kristaps Porzingis is one building block. Maybe Kyrie Irving, another free agent this offseason, decides he wants to return home. Maybe Dolan sells the team to pursue a full-time career as a blues musician. Maybe California falls off into the Pacific and takes the Golden State Warriors with it. You never know, right?

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Hopeless prognosis: To adapt the famous quote from Phil Connors in Groundhog Day: "I'll give you a (Knicks) prediction: It's gonna be cold, it's gonna be grey, and it's gonna last you for the rest of your life."

Hopeless comparison: The Reaper himself has courtside seats.

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Hopeless rating: On a scale of 1 to eternal damnation, we all know where the Knicks are. They might be the most hopeless franchise in the country, and there's a lot of misery out there, folks. We have certainly our share.

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Steve Politi may be reached at spoliti@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @StevePoliti. Find NJ.com on Facebook.