Since you're a Mets fan, I can understand that you don't understand that Williams, Damon or Mattingly are not Jeter. There is a special attachment to Jeter, and it may be fueled by the haters from other teams, that none of those three even close to getting(and Mattingly is my all-time favorite player). I wasn't old enough for the Mantle years and I wasn't around for the Yogi, Babe or Gehrig years. But, nonetheless, I imagine the attachment to those guys was similar. Yankee fans will continue to be Yankee fans, with or without Jeter, and they'll cheer(or boo) the next guy who plays SS at the Stadium but something will be lost forever if Jeter is forced out with a "This is our offer, take it or leave it" negotiation from the Yankees.