Throughout their 56-year history, the New York Jets have suffered some heartbreaking losses. There was the “Heidi Game” in 1968 where the Jets blew a late lead on the the road to the Oakland Raiders. In the 1982 AFC Championship Game, the Jets were done in by Miami Dolphins linebacker A.J. Duhe who intercepted three passes from quarterback Richard Todd. In January 1986, the Jets appeared on their way to a trip to the AFC Championship Game when they collapsed down the stretch and fell to the Cleveland Browns in the Divisional Playoffs. In 1994, the Jets were on the wrong side of the “Spike Game” and Dolphins quarterback Dan Marino. In 1997, the Jets headed into Week 17 of the National Football League season only needing to defeat the Detroit Lions and ensure a playoff berth after a 1-15 season in the previous year. But the Jets lost the game while also allowing Lions running back Barry Sanders to go over the 2,000-yard mark in rushing on the season against them. In the 1998 AFC Championship Game, the Jets held a 10-0 second half lead over the Denver Broncos only to collapse and lose 23-10. In 2000, the Jets began the season with a record of 5-0, only to miss the playoffs with a record of 9-7. In the 2004 AFC Divisional Playoffs, Jets place kicker Doug Brien missed three field goals and New York would fall to the Pittsburgh Steelers in overtime. In Week 17 of the 2008 National Football League season, the Jets would lose at home to the Dolphins who were led by former Jets quarterback Chad Pennington as Miami would beat out New York to win the AFC East.
After consecutive losses in the AFC Championship Game in 2009 and 2010, the Jets had four consecutive non-winning seasons. But things got turned around for the Jets during this National Football League season under general manager Mike Maccagnan and head coach Todd Bowles who were each in their first year with the organization.
After 10 games, the Jets found themselves with a record of 5-5, as they had already eclipsed their win total from 2014. The Jets would then put together a five-game winning streak which was highlighted by them defeating the defending Super Bowl Champions in the New England Patriots in Week 16 at home. And after the Steelers lost that same day to the Baltimore Ravens, the Jets only needed to defeat the Buffalo Bills in Week 17 for to secure their first postseason berth since 2010.
But the Jets were going to be in for a 15-round fight against the Bills due to the fact that their head coach Rex Ryan had been fired by Gang Green last January after six years with the team. The Bills had already defeated the Jets in Week 10 by a score of 22-17 and they were looking to spoil their postseason dreams. The Bills defense would force 3 interceptions by Jets quarterback Ryan Fitzpartrick while also dictating the pace offensively as they once again knocked off New York 22-17. And when the Steelers knocked off the Browns, it meant that the Jets would be watching the playoffs from home in spite of their 10-6 record.
The 2015 National Football League season was a good one for the Jets as they turned things around after such an abysmal 2014. The Jets amassed 6,038 yards of total offense which was a single-season franchise record along with having two wide receivers in Brandon Marshall and Eric Decker each gain at least 1,000 yards receiving. The Jets also possessed one of the best defensive lines in the NFL in defensive ends Muhammad Wilkerson and Leonard Williams, along with defensive tackle Sheldon Richardson that were a part of a unit a defensive unit that was fourth in the NFL this season in total defense. And in spite of all of that, the Jets are watching the postseason from home as they are only to left to wonder what could have been for them.
For the first time in postseason history in the National Football League, all four road teams won last weekend; including the two teams the beat the Jets out for wild card spots in the AFC in the Steelers and Kansas City Chiefs. And it has to sting for the Jets as they know that they matched up well with the Houston Texans and Cincinnati Bengals who were the two division winners that hosted playoff games this past weekend in the AFC and lost. Typically each season is defined by a few plays for a team in the NFL, and the Jets know that they let some opportunities slip through their hands.
After the Jets won their first two games of the season, they missed an opportunity to begin the year with a record of 3-0, as they came out flat at home against the Philadelphia Eagles and lost 24-17 as this game would be defined by a foolish lateral from Marshall which resulted in a turnover. The Jets entered Week 7 with a record of 4-1 with a chance to knock off the Patriots and take over first place in the AFC East. And in typical Jets fashion, they played the Pats tough as they had the opportunity to force overtime late in the fourth quarter. But on the final play of the game, Marshall failed to line up onside which resulted in a 10-second runoff and the game ended. And once you factor a pair of games against the Bills that were mired by turnovers, the Jets know that they were good enough to make the postseason. However being good enough, and actually doing it are two different things in the National Football League.
The Jets enter the off-season with a ton of big decisions to make as quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick, running back Chris Ivory, and Wilkerson lead a list of 20 unrestricted free agents for them. There is also the possibility that cornerback Antonio Cromartie could be released as a cap casualty due to the fact that he is set to earn $8 million next season. Fitzpatrick provided the Jets with some stability at the quarterback position which is something that they have not had in a long time. But how much will the Jets be willing to commit to a player of Fitzpatrick’s caliber who has been a career journeyman in the National Football League?
In spite of the questions that the Jets will have to answer over the next few months, there is a different vibe around this team due to the fact that for the first time in a long time, they appear to have direction in leadership which is a credit to Maccagnan.
Maccagnan came in last January as a man who had a plan and he executed it to precision this season. Maccagnan hired a head coach in Bowles that was on the same page with him while also bringing in talented veteran players in Marshall, Cromartie, and cornerback Darrelle Revis that were positive difference makers: however they just fell short of the postseason.
Going forward the key for Maccagnan, Bowles, and the Jets is to put together consistency along with using their heartbreak last week against the Bills as motivation for next season instead of making it something that will wear them down heading into next September. Losing like the Jets did to end their season hurts, and for them to shed their long image of being the “same old Jets”, this is a team that will need to return next season with a fierce hunger that can potentially propel them to bigger and better things.
Source: Spotrac.com
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