Unofficially, the Jets’ season was over before Halloween following a 0-7 start.
But their nightmare year will officially end Sunday in Buffalo.
Aaron Glenn’s first season as coach has been memorable for all the wrong reasons. Ineptitude at the quarterback position, a significant setback defensively and zero interceptions have all plagued the Jets this season.
Despite their embarrassing 3-13 record entering what is likely the final game at the Bills’ home, Highmark Stadium, Glenn believes Gang Green has improved in a few areas.
“Overall, as a team, and I’ve said that at the beginning, there are certain things that were a huge emphasis for us as a team to see how we want to get better,” Glenn said. “In ’24, I think we were last in the league as far as running the ball, I think in ’23 we were in the bottom 10, and we got ourselves to where we were somewhere in the top seven for right now, so that was a huge emphasis and I’m proud of the way our guys went about that, and Breece [Hall] getting 1,000 yards.
“Also, man, we were dead last in the league when it came to penalties for two years straight, and this year, I think we’re somewhere between 17, so that’s a huge improvement for our guys. And then also, as far as special teams, man, we’ve become one of the elite special teams units across the league. Those are some things that were a huge emphasis from the very beginning and I know there’s some things that we have to clean up, and as we go forward those are some things that we’re looking at, and that’s defense, and really our passing game on offense.”
During his first few months on the job, Glenn referred to the Jets as a “win-now” team. But that completely changed after a nearly winless first two months of the season, in which even Jets owner Woody Johnson lambasted then-starting quarterback Justin Fields for his poor play.
The Jets recovered to win three of five games after their 0-7 start. However, they enter their finale against the Bills on a four-game losing streak, having been outscored in December 153-46.
Gang Green has also lost five one-score games, highlighting issues with execution and inconsistency. Though 16 games, the Jets are averaging 272.4 yards per game, the fifth-fewest mark in the NFL. They also rank dead last in passing yards per game (145.8) and 28th in points per game (18.3)
Undrafted rookie free agent Brady Cook will start in his fourth consecutive game on Sunday. Glenn has repeatedly told reporters that Cook “gives us the best chance to win,” despite veteran Tyrod Taylor returning to the team after missing last week due to personal reasons.
Cook is the right man for the job, but not because he gives the Jets the best chance to win. He gives them the best opportunity to secure a top-three pick in April’s NFL Draft.
Whether you call it tanking or not, the Jets are in evaluation mode. From the moment they traded Sauce Gardner and Quinnen Williams at the trade deadline, Glenn was assured he would be back for the 2026 season.
It’s also no secret that the Jets quarterback for the 2026 season is not on the roster. After signing a two-year, $40 million contract last March, the Jets will likely release Fields with a June 1 designation. That would save the team $10 million.
Fields, 26, was benched Nov. 17 and was placed on injured reserve with what the team described as “knee soreness.” He was 2-7 as the starter, ranking 27th out of 30 qualified passers in Total QBR (37.3).
The Jets will likely reset their entire QB room with Taylor set to become a free agent in March. Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza or Oregon’s Dante Moore could be at the top of the Jets’ draft wish list. But no matter what happens, Cook says he is “grateful” for one final start this season.
“I’ve learned a lot from a quarterback perspective,” Cook said. “From a leader perspective being on this team and starting games for the first time and I’ve learned that it is still football. It’s the game that we’ve played our entire life.
“It’s a kids’ game, it’s a complicated one, it’s imperfect, but it’s the game we love, and you still have to have fun doing it, and that’s kind of the message this week is let’s go have fun. Let’s go have fun playing football, and let’s execute and let’s go see what we can do this last game.”
The Jets players and coaches are tired of talking about it, but Sunday is the final chance to put an end to a dreaded interception-less streak. For 16 games, the Jets failed to record an interception, marking the longest streak in NFL history. The last time the Jets intercepted a pass was a year ago, when Ashtyn Davis registered two in the season-finale victory against the Dolphins.
Typically, teams find a way to luck into an interception or two each year. But the Jets haven’t had such good fortune during the last four months.
This represents a fall from grace for a Jets defense that was statistically a top-five defense the past three seasons before Glenn’s arrival. Entering the final game of the season, the Jets are 23rd in yards (348.4) and 30th in points allowed (29.3). The Jets also have just 26 sacks, which is next-to-last in the league.
Glenn fired defensive coordinator Steve Wilks following an embarrassing Week 15 loss to the Jaguars. But the defensive results have remained the same under interim defensive coordinator Chris Harris.
“We’re continuing to focus,” Harris said. “We’re continuing to focus to get takeaways and they’ll come and like I said this is a bizarre situation.
“Never seen it, but our guys are working hard. Working hard, so we’ll see. We’ll see. I’m excited about the opportunity though.”
