Last year, the New York Jets traded star defenders Quinnen Williams and Sauce Gardner to the Cowboys and Colts respectively. At that point, even the most optimistic fan could not have imagined what is now unfolding. The pipe dream of landing a franchise quarterback and wide receiver Jeremiah Smith was just that, right?

How realistic would that be?  Even with three first round picks?  How likely was it that the Jets would land the top two picks?  Or even two of the top three?  It may have seemed impossible then, but it certainly doesn’t now.

Just a couple of weeks ago with the Dolphins and Raiders coming up on the Jets schedule, it felt like Gang Green had a decent shot to get to 4-4.  From there, could some momentum carry them to six or seven wins on the year?  We wondered aloud right here, but as we know, things can change fast in the NFL.

First, those potential wins turned out to be losses.  So instead of 4-4, the Jets sit at 2-6.   With the Chiefs and Bills up next, a 2-8 start is all but locked in.  From that point on, would anyone be surprised if the Jets finish the season with no more than 3 victories?  Then there’s the story of the Indianapolis Colts.

Indy included their 2027 first round pick in the Gardner deal.  They might be the worst team in the NFL right now.  In the midst of a fire sale that could see more premium talent exported, they have a very real chance to hand Gang Green the first pick in the draft.

Should that happen, both the Jets and Colts finish with 3 wins or less, GM Darren Mougey will be in better position to turn this team around than any GM in franchise history.  And while his picks outside of round 1 haven’t yielded much, he appears to have hit several home runs in the first round.  David Bailey, Omar Cooper Jr, Armand Membou and Kenyon Sadiq offer plenty of proof of that.

Of course there are other teams that may be seen as “in the running” to get the top pick in the Dolphins, Titans and Chargers.  But the Dolphins, despite dumping almost all of their top talent, have played some very good teams quite close while clobbering the Jets two weeks ago.  A few more wins for Miami may be in the cards.

Then of course there’s the winless Chargers who just have too much talent to stay atop the draft.  At some point, they’re going to play well enough to reel off a few wins.

We’ve got to wait a couple of months to find out, but when the time comes, if things break right for Gang Green, it’s going to be a very interesting draft season.

Another week for Aaron Glenn’s defense, and another embarrassing loss.  This time it was a 38-33 loss to Brock Bowers and the Las Vegas Raiders.

The Jets had no answer for Bowers who finished the game with 89 yards and a couple of touchdowns.   The Jets countered with some great performances of their own, but it wasn’t enough.  Braelon Allen went over 100 yards before the half and finished with a career high 147 yards and a touchdown while AD Mitchell finished with 142 yards and a touchdown of his own.

Despite the loss, there are some silver linings.

-The Jets have young play makers.  In fact, they have lots of them.  Over the past couple of weeks we’ve seen huge performances from rookie Omar Cooper, Allen, Mitchell, Mason Taylor and of course we already know what Garrett Wilson is capable of.  Add Kenyon Sadiq in the mix with an offensive line that has three long-term starters in place and this job will be attractive to any potential head coaches.

-This loss, paired with another loss by the Colts, puts the Jets in position to potentially end the season with two picks in the top five come draft time.   Imagine the possibilities.

-Despite the defensive being a flop as a whole, there were some good individual efforts that the Jets should be very happy about.  Defensive tackle Darrell Jackson filled in admirably for the injured T’Vondre Sweat and we even saw Jack Heflin flash on a few plays, picking up a couple of pressures up the middle.

Aaron Glenn’s time as the New York Jets head coach has hit a new low.  Glenn’s Jets fell to the previously winless Miami Dolphins in 28 -25 home loss.

Ten things you need to know:

1) Dolphins quarterback Malik Willis had thrown just two touchdown passes all season.  He matched that total today against the Jets with two more.

2) The loss now makes Aaron Glenn 0-8 against the AFC East since taking over as the Jets head coach last season.

3) Prior to today’s game, the Dolphins had four sacks on the season with all of them coming in the same game.  They managed to pick up two more today against the Jets.

4) Aaron Glenn gave a baffling answer when asked why he saved all of his first half timeouts rather than stopping the clock to allow the Jets time to score.  “We thought we were going to get a stop” said Glenn.  That’s exactly why a head coach should want to stop the clock, no?

5) Garrett Wilson and tight end Kenyon Sadiq combined for 34 yards on three catches.  Since his 100 yard game against the Lions last month, Sadiq has managed just four catches for 21 yards.

6) Rookie edge rusher David Bailey was credited with another half sack, bringing his total for the year to 5.5.

7) Fellow rookie Omar Cooper Jr. had himself another great day at the office, pulling in 5 catches for 115 yards and a touchdown.

8) Braelon Allen also chipped in with another big day, carrying the ball 17 times for 104 yards; an average of 6.1 yards per carry.

9) By failing to intercept a pass, Aaron Glenn’s defenses now have just one interception in 24 games.  Unfathomable.

10) Preseason fan favorite Nate Lynn was on the field for just three defensive snaps and made his presence felt by picking up a sack.

For the New York Jets and their fans, the 2026 season was really supposed to be about three things.

1: Developing their young talent to work with their QB of the future.

2: Determining whether or not Aaron Glenn was the right head coach to develop their QB of the future.

3: Be in position to draft…their QB of the future.

But now three major developments could make that third, and most important goal, far more difficult than the team had envisioned just a few months ago.

First and foremost, potential changes to what was supposed to be an absolutely loaded draft class at quarterback has some serious question marks.  Secondly, there may be a team or two who could be  in worse shape than the Jets who are in need of a quarterback, and a much weaker schedule than anticipated that could see the Jets picking too low to land the QB of their choice.

Prior to the start of the season, it was assumed that Texas quarterback Arch Manning and Oregon’s Dante Moore would be in a dog fight to be the first quarterback selected.  Instead, Manning is being pushed by his head coach due to poor performance while Moore has missed much of the season due to a concussion.  And if we’re being honest, he wasn’t exactly setting the world on fire prior to the concussion.

Now instead of Manning or Moore, Oregon State’s Drew Mestemaker is generating buzz as the likely top pick in the draft, while Trinidad Chambliss of Ole’ Miss is producing like a top pick, his height (likely around 6′) and age (24) remain concerns for some.

Outside of that group there’s Miami’s Darien Mensah, Notre Dame’s CJ Carr and another new name thrown in the hat this season, Austin Simmons of Missouri.

Of those seven top names, only Chambliss and Moore must come out after this season.  The other five have eligibility left and most have good reason to return to school.  Should this become a situation where only two or three QB’s worthy of a top ten pick are available, the Jets could be on the outside looking in.

The Dolphins and Cardinals are both in dire need of a quarterback and both should end up picking ahead of the Jets.  Having just found out QB Jalen Hurts will miss the remainder of this season, the Eagles could also land in the top ten with a HUGE question mark in Hurts, while the Titans are another QB needy team that’s likely to be in the top five.

So you do the math.  Two or three franchise quarterbacks and the likelihood of having four teams ahead of you in need of QB does not bode well for Darren Mougey and company.  And before you say the Jets can “just trade up” because they have three first round picks, who’s to say a QB needy team will be willing to move down?  And if you can’t land a guy who you believe is a legitimate franchise quarterback, is it worth parting with multiple first-round picks?

Of course the Jets do own the Colts’ first round pick, is it realistic to expect them to finish with a worse record than the Dolphins, Chargers and Titans?  Not impossible, but also unikley.

There’s still lots of football left to be played in college and the pros, but with the way things are trending with the Jets, that “lock” to get a franchise QB in the 2027 draft doesn’t feel quite as automatic as it did just a few weeks ago.

If Aaron Glenn’s superpower is calling the defensive plays, it would appear his kryptonite is facing a team with a decent starting quarterback who may not even require an offensive line.  That was certainly the case today against the Patriots as Drake Maye threw three TD passes while his backup O-line bullied the Jets in the fourth quarter.

Key takeaways?

– With the Jets needing a stop late in the game and the Patriots missing three of their starters up front, it made no difference to the Pats.  New England ran the ball eight consecutive times for 44 yards before icing the game with a field goal.

– It was a breakout game for rookie receiver Omar Cooper Jr. who returned to the lineup.  He would finish with six catches for 103 yards and a touchdown.

– Braelon Allen had a third consecutive strong effort in carrying the ball 17 times for 78 yards, averaging 4.6 per carry.

– Olu Fashanu surrendered his sixth sack of the season.  That’s the most sacks allowed by any player so far this season.

– David Bailey didn’t register a sack after picking up three last week, but he did manage to force a pair of fumbles.  Jamien Sherwood would force one later on that was also picked up by the Jets.

– The Patriots had several key plays through the air on which Hunter Henry was left uncovered.  Asked about it after the game, Glenn said the team just needs to get on the same page on defense.

– Glenn was also critical of his offense, saying they’re not finishing the way they should.  He says it will be a point of emphasis in practice to get the situation fixed.

– Garrett Wilson was inexplicably a forgotten man once again.  He finished the game with just 4 catches and had only 2 through the first three quarters.

– And just as ridiculous as Wilson’a lack of targets was Kenyon Sadiq finishing with just one reception for 12 yards, giving him 3 catches for 15 yards since his 100 yard performance against the Lions.

How quickly things can change in the NFL.  Just a couple of weeks ago fans were calling Drake Maye’s 2025 season a fluke that came as the result of playing a last place schedule.  In the two weeks since, Maye has caught fire, throwing 7 touchdowns to just one interception.  Now the Jets come to town with a defense that just logged eight sacks against the Cleveland Browns.

What should we be looking for?

– David Bailey finally showed what he can do in picking up three sacks in a variety of ways off the edge.  If Bailey can become a consistent force off the edge, he makes the entire defense better and makes life hard for Maye.

– The Jets nickel corners will be big in this one as DeMario Douglas and Efton Chism have been major factors of late.  Douglas is far more established as a guy who can give you fits underneath, but Chism has impressed after joining the Pats as an undrafted free agent.  Expect Jarvis Brownlee and Deangelo Ponds to be busy.

– Will McDonald will team with Bailey off the edge and should challenge Patriots right tackle Will Campbell.  He looks to be trending toward playing, but he’s been nursing a knee injury this week.  If he’s even a half a step slower with the bad knee, the Jets can cause problems with Bailey, McDonald and Kingsley Enagbare when he’s head up against Campbell.

– Wide receiver Omar Cooper Jr. is expected to make his return after missing all but a few snaps in week 1 this season.  Giving Geno Smith a second option to go along with Garrett Wilson could do wonders for the offense.

– Will we get another look at Kenyon Sadiq?  Following his breakout performance against the Lions in which he went over 100 yards and scored a touchdown, tight end Kenyon Sadiq has 2 catches for 3 yards in the two games since.  This has to stop.  Get the kid the football.

Prediction:

It’s difficult to envision the Jets going on the road and beating a hot Patriots team.  They have a shot at a win if Cooper and Sadiq get involved in the offense, but until we see the Jets try to get them involved, we’re picking the Pats to win it 27-20.

Welcome to the NFL David Bailey.  With many fans asking when the Jets number two overall pick would “arrive”, we have our answer.  It was today against the Cleveland Browns.  In a big way.

The rookie led a ferocious Jets pass rush as he picked up three of Gang Green’s eight sacks to go along with six tackles, nine hurries while drawing a pair of holding calls.  After the game Bailey said that he doesn’t spend any time on social media so only focuses on what his coaches and teammates tell him.

What else do you need to know?

– Also picking up sacks were Will McDonald, Jowon Briggs, Darell Jackson, Dane Belton and Jamien Sherwood.

– Garrett Wilson had three catches for 70 yards and a 32-yard touchdown on the opening drive, finishing the day with 104 yards.

– Braelon Allen had a career-long 22-yard touchdown run and topped 100 yards for the first time in his career, carrying the ball 24 times for 116 yards.

– Rookie defensive tackle picked up a pair of batted passes at the line of scrimmage along with a sack several tackles around the line of scrimmage.

– A bounce back day for Jamien Sherwood who has been beaten badly in coverage of late.  Browns running backs were non-factors in the passing game.

– Joe Tippmann was beaten badly in pass pro on several plays, giving up multiple sacks, but did a stellar job in the run game, contributing greatly to Allen’s big day.

– Another excellent game from safety Dane Belton who led the team with eight tackles to go along with his sack.

– Kenyon Sadiq was a non-factor all day, finishing with 2 catches for 3 yards.  More importantly however, is that he’s in concussion protocol following a big hit on his second catch, meaning he’s unlikely to play next week.

When Aaron Glenn and the Jets line up to take on Todd Monken’s Browns this week, they’d better hope there’s enough rain in New Jersty to slow down Cleveland’s offense.  You may not realize it, but the Browns have an impressive stable of pass catchers for Deshaun Watson to work with.  So where are the key matchups?

Jets Secondary vs Browns Receivers:

Normally we’d pick a head-to-head player matchup here. Cleveland has too many receivers to throw to for us to focus on just one.  With rookies Denzel Boston and KC Concepcion working with fellow receiver Jerry Jeudy and tight end Harold Fannin, the Jets need their secondary to be healthy and ready to roll.

RB Quinshon Judkins vs LB Jamien Sherwood:

While the secondary has their hands full with the receivers, don’t sleep on Quinshon Judkins who has the tools to be one of the better backs in the NFL.  A threat to catch the ball out of the backfield, it would be hard to imagine Todd Monken won’t try to exploit the Jets inability to cover backs.  Sherwood and DeMario Davis were both abused two weeks ago against the Lions and we could see more of the same this week.

LT Olu Fashanu vs DE Jared Verse:

No, Verse isn’t Myles Garrett, but he’s still a very good pass rusher.  Fashanu has struggled this season, giving up 4.5 sacks through four games.  As poorly as he played in the rain the last time the Jets were at home, look for the Browns to attack him until he shows he can hold up.

NT T’Vondre Sweat vs Elgton Jenkins:

The Browns get Jenkins back from injury and he’s got a heck of a test in front of him as he faces the 360 pound Jets nose tackle.  Sweat has been one of the few bright spots for the Jets on defense and a big reason why Gang Green was so stout on the goal line last week.  Sweat will be a key player if it’s a wet field and the Browns try to lean on Judkins.

Prediction:

With the Jets playing the way they are right now, picking them would be peak homerism.  Browns take this one 24-20.

These are the types of games that get head coaches fired.  Especially when you’re a defensive head coach who proclaims that calling plays is your “super power”.

Aaron Glenn and the New York Jets took on the Bears and backup quarterback Tyson Bagent, allowing Chicago to put up 492 yards of offense just one week after giving up 381 to the Lions.  For those who may not have a calculator handy, that’s 873 yards (and 54 points) in just two weeks.

Asked about the performance of his defense, Glenn pointed out the fact that the Jets have taken on two very good offenses over the past two weeks.  He’s not wrong, but the reason why owner Woody Johnson is (rumored to be) paying Glenn $12 million a year.  To be a defensive genius who can slow down good offenses.  Too many days like these past two Sunday’s, and Glenn won’t be around next season.

It’s still early on and there’s plenty of time for the Jets to get their act together and avoid being embarrassed by backup quarterbacks, but things are already worse than they were supposed to be.  With Glenn and GM Darren Mougey going out and adding so many pieces to the defense, Glenn was supposed to be able to keep high flying offenses in check.

On the bright side, the Jets finally ended their 20-game streak of failing to produce an interception when veteran safety Minkah Fitzpatrick picked Bagent off on a shot over the middle.  Jets defenders would intercept three additional passes, but each of them were overturned by penalty.

The Jets will be significantly hobbled by injuries this Sunday against Chicago, but the Bears can say the same as the status of quarterback Caleb Williams remains up in the air.  Bears head coach Ben Johnson is playing coy on who will start, but it would come as quite the surprise if Caleb Williams were to suit up.

The Bears starter isn’t expected to play as his grade 2 hamstring strain could keep him out for up to four weeks and took place just over a week ago.

With that in mind, let’s take a look at some of the key matchups:

Jets ILB’s vs Bears RB D’Andre Swift: 

The Jets linebackers were downright disastrous last week against the Detroit Lions.  DeMario Davis and Jamien Sherwood combined to allow 13 completions on 15 targets that resulted in 176 yards through the air.  You’d better believe Ben Johnson took note and will get the ball to Swift until the Jets show they can stop him.

RB Braelon Allen vs S Dillon Thieneman:

Allen will be starting in place of the injured Breece Hall and Thieneman is a heat seeking missile at safety who can cover a ton of ground.  So far this season he’s been credited with sixteen tackles through three games which leads the team.  The Jets running game hasn’t been able to get anything going over the past two weeks and if they don’t account for Thieneman, it’ll be another long day on the ground.

Head Coach Aaron Glenn vs Head Coach Ben Johnson:

These two went head-to-head countless times as Dan Campbell’s coordinator’s in Detroit.  Glenn has done some good things for the Jets this season, but Johnson has been as good as advertised as an offensive genius.  Last week he managed to get third-string quarterback Case Keenum to light it up on offense, going 11-for-11 against the blitz.  Meanwhile, Glenn’s unit has managed zero pressure against opposing QB’s without blitzing.  Not a great combo.

Prediction:

The Jets fall to 1-3 as Johnson’s offense is too much for Glenn’s defense in a 31-21 final.