Each day until the kickoff of the 2026 NFL season, TeamFB7 will dive into a team with analysis, critiques, breakout player picks and overall predictions. We’re working backward from our early preseason power rankings with a couple of updates/tweaks based on subsequent developments. The New York Jets now sit at No. 28.
It’s easy to pick on the New York Jets.
They haven’t been to the Super Bowl since Joe Namath and the 1968 team won it all, owning the longest active championship drought in New York professional sports.
They haven’t been to the playoffs since the 2010 season, owning the longest postseason drought not only in the NFL but of any team in the big four professional leagues.
Last year, New York hired a head coach in Aaron Glenn who was a three-time Pro Bowl cornerback as a player, then a defensive backs coach, then a defensive coordinator, and somehow in his first season the Jets became the first team in NFL history to not record a single interception (since it became a tracked statistic in 1933).
That could only happen to the Jets.
Meanwhile, as they stumbled to a 3-14 finish, their former first-round pick and once expected franchise quarterback Sam Darnold won a Super Bowl with the Seattle Seahawks. Since giving up on Darnold after the 2020 season, the Jets have used nine different starting QBs — soon to be 10 (and counting) with place-holder Geno Smith this year.
Recent New York Jets Quarterback History
Speaking of Darnold and Smith, the biggest reason for Jets fans’ never-ending frustration is that the team has as tortured a history of drafting quarterbacks as perhaps any in the league.
Since selecting Ken O’Brien in the first round of the 1983 NFL Draft — hey, he at least made two Pro Bowls and started 106 games in nine seasons for the team — the Jets have drafted eight quarterbacks in the first two rounds with minimal positive return.
That’s more than 40 years of QB draft disappointment!
That list (excluding 1984 supplemental draft pick Ken Hobart, who instead chose to play in the CFL) is:
– Browning Nagle (1992 2nd round): went 3-10 in his lone season as a starter, released after three seasons and played in 6 more games (1 start) for the Colts and Falcons over next two years.
– Chad Pennington (2000 1st round, No. 18 overall): the best of the bunch despite not starting until his third season, went 32-29 as a starter over eight years with the Jets plus two playoff wins.
*Unfortunately for the Jets, Pennington goes down as more of a “what if?” Injuries derailed him throughout his time there as he only made double-digit starts in three seasons. After being released when the Jets acquired Brett Favre just before the 2008 season, Pennington then had a career year immediately upon leaving New York, finishing tied for second in MVP voting while starring for the Miami Dolphins in 2008.
– Kellen Clemens (2006 2nd round): 4-5 as a starter in five seasons with the Jets before bouncing around the league for seven more seasons mostly as a backup for the Rams (9 starts in 2013) and Chargers.
– Mark Sanchez (2009 1st round, No. 5 overall): Starter on Jets teams that reached the AFC championship game each of first two seasons but regressed to 13 TDs/18 INTS in his fourth year, missed the entire next season due to shoulder surgery and was then released, finishing his time in New York with 68 passing TDs and 69 INTs. He played four more years for the Eagles (8 starts in 2014), Cowboys and Commanders.
– Geno Smith (2013 2nd round): 11-18 as a full-time starter his first two seasons but made just 1 more start over next two seasons due to injuries (including a broken jaw sustained in fight with a teammate), finishing his first Jets tenure with 28 TDs/36 INTs. He spent the next three seasons as a backup for the Giants, Chargers and Seahawks, then re-emerged as a starter in Seattle the next year, making two straight Pro Bowls before being traded to the Raiders last year and back to the Jets now for his 13th NFL season.
– Christian Hackenberg (2016 2nd round): Did not play a down in two seasons with the Jets, traded to the Raiders for 7th-round pick, bounced around the league and never ended up playing a game for any team.
– Sam Darnold (2018 1st round, No. 3 overall): Went 13-25 as a starter in three seasons with the Jets with 45 TDs/39 INTs before being traded to the Panthers. After making 17 starts in two seasons in Carolina, he was a backup for the 49ers for a season before reviving his career with the Vikings and Seahawks the last two seasons, winning 28 regular-season games, making two Pro Bowls and winning the Super Bowl.
– Zach Wilson (2021 1st round, No. 2 overall): Went 12-21 as a starter in three seasons with the Jets with 23 TDs/25 INTs before being traded to the Broncos for a late-round pick swap. He did not appear in a game in his lone season in Denver before bouncing to the Dolphins last year (11 pass attempts off the bench) and now the Saints.
*The four best quarterbacks the Jets drafted in those last 40-plus years — Darnold, Pennington, Smith and 1992 sixth-rounder Jeff Blake (who played 3 games for New York before finding success and making a Pro Bowl with the Bengals) — all had their best years with other teams.
And when they’ve swung big in free agency to solve the problem — Boomer Esiason from 1993-95 (15-27 as a starter for the Jets), Neil O’Donnell from 1996-97 (8-12), Favre in 2008 (9-7 with 22 TDs/22 INTs), Aaron Rodgers in 2023-24 (the Achilles injury wiping out the first year followed by a 5-12 season) — that’s largely failed too, with Vinny Testaverde as the best exception.
The Jets’ Latest Rebuild
All of that is to say that if the Jets are ever going to get out of rebuilding mode, end that 15-years-and-counting postseason drought and change the narrative around the franchise, they’re going to eventually have to find a franchise quarterback.
It’s not Smith, who returned to the team this offseason from the Raiders for a late-round draft pick swap (a 7th for a 6th). He turns 36 years old in October, wasn’t great in his last Seahawks season (21 TDs/15 INTs) and then struggled mightily with the Raiders (3,025 passing yards, 19 TDs/17 INTs in 15 games).
But he’s a serviceable placeholder (and a much better choice than the Justin Fields signing a year ago).
That move also allowed the Jets to spend this year rebuilding other parts of the roster before taking another shot at a rookie quarterback. The 2027 NFL Draft is expected to be loaded with top QB prospects, and New York has three first-round picks with their own selection, the Colts’ pick from the Sauce Gardner trade last year and the better of either the Cowboys or Packers’ first-round pick (which was sent to Dallas for Micah Parsons) from the Quinnen Williams trade last year.
In the meantime, the Jets had a strong offseason with an emphasis on retooling a defense that gave up the second-most points (29.6 per game) and eighth-most yards (355.6 per game) last season.
They sent a seventh-round pick to the Dolphins for veteran safety Minkah Fitzpatrick (5 Pro Bowls, 3-time first-team All-Pro in eight seasons) and flipped defensive end Jermaine Johnson II to the Titans to fill a greater need at defensive tackle with T’Vondre Sweat.
And in free agency, they added a slew of pieces for that defense in edge rushers Joseph Ossai (3 years, $34.5 million) and Kingsley Enagbare (1 year, $9 million), highly productive veteran linebacker Demario Davis (2 years, $22 million), defensive tackle David Onyemata (1 year, $10.5 million), safety Dane Belton (1 year, $4 million) and cornerback Nahshon Wright (1 year, $3.5 million).
The Jets then selected the top edge rusher in the draft in Texas Tech’s David Bailey at No. 2 overall, took the top tight end at No. 16 in Oregon’s Kenyon Sadiq and moved back into the end of the first round to address their pressing need at wide receiver by taking Indiana’s Omar Cooper Jr. at No. 30.
What difference will that all make in 2026? Let’s break it down …
Already Covered In Our “32 Teams In 32 Days” Series: No. 32 Miami Dolphins, No. 31 Las Vegas Raiders, No. 30 Cleveland Browns | No. 29 Arizona Cardinals
New York Jets Reset
2025 Finish: 3-14
Head Coach: Aaron Glenn, second season
Hot Seat Meter (0-10): 5
Offensive Coordinator: Frank Reich, first season (former Colts, Panthers and Stanford HC, former Eagles and Chargers OC)
Defensive Coordinator: Brian Duker, first season (first as NFC DC)
*Glenn is expected to handle defensive playcalling in games.
Best Offseason Move: Trading for Fitzpatrick.
The veteran safety and former No. 11 overall pick (in 2018) last earned All-Pro honors in 2022 with the Steelers, but he’s still a very good player and the kind of experienced leader that was needed in the Jets’ secondary.
PFF graded Fitzpatrick 7th out 98 qualifying safeties last year at 81.9 for a season in which he had 82 tackles, 4 tackles for loss, an interception, 6 passes defended and a forced fumble in 14 games for the Dolphins.
And he came cheap — at least as far as the trade from Miami, which was cleaning house of expensive veterans and took only a seventh-round pick in return. The Jets then gave Fitzpatrick a three-year, $40-million extension.
As an honorable mention here, we’ll also spotlight the decision to re-sign running back Breece Hall to a three-year, $43.5-million extension amid questions of whether he’d be traded or given the franchise tag. Hall just had the Jets’ first 1,000-yard rushing season since 2015, and with the right quarterback draft pick next year the team could be competitive again while Hall is still in his prime.
Worst Offseason Move: Lack of emphasis paid to solidifying the offensive line.
Some of it was beyond the Jets’ control, perhaps. Former first-round pick Alijah Vera-Tucker, who had started at both left and right guard for the team before missing last season due to injury, left for a big payday from the Patriots (3 years, $42 million). And starting left guard John Simpson left for the Ravens on a 3-year, $30-million deal.
Because Vera-Tucker didn’t play last season, the Jets had already found an answer at right guard in moving center Joe Tippmann there last season. Tippmann (ranked 33 out of 81 OGs by PFF) earned a 4-year, $64-million extension with his performance. To fill Simpson’s void on the left side, New York signed former Raiders left guard Dylan Parham, who struggled in pass protection (6 sacks, 28 pressures allowed, per PFF) as part of what was the worst offensive line in the league in Las Vegas. (PFF still ranked him 38th out of 81 OGs overall).
The bigger concern is at center. Josh Myers signed with the Jets last year to be Tippmann’s backup at center, but Vera-Tucker’s injury and Tippmann’s subsequent position change forced him into a starting role. PFF ranked him 39th out of 40 centers last season, yet the Jets still gave him a 2-year, $11-million extension in December while fans and media questioned why the team didn’t prefer to seek an upgrade.
Depth along the unit is another major issue.
New York Jets Roster Breakdown
Biggest Strength: Edge Rusher
The Jets’ hopes to be a much-improved defense and expedite this rebuild in 2026 start with the talent and depth on the edges.
Fourth-year EDGE Will McDonald IV has 18.5 sacks over the last two seasons and the best may still be to come.
What he didn’t have last season was a lot of help. That shouldn’t be a problem this year.
The signing of Ossai, who had 5 sacks each of the last two seasons for the Bengals, was notable. Fellow free agent Enagbare, meanwhile, had 11.5 sacks in four seasons as a rotational piece for the Packers and provides added depth.
But ultimately, the hope is that Bailey — the No. 2 overall pick in the draft — is ready to deliver immediately. The feedback from his veteran teammates so far is encouraging to say the least.
Biggest Weakness: Quarterback
Smith should be a more competent QB than the 2025 triumvirate of Fields, Tyrod Taylor and undrafted rookie Brady Cook, but that’s not saying much.
The Seahawks were eager to dump him off to the Raiders a year ago, and the Raiders were even more eager to ship him to the Jets. The Athletic polled 50 NFL head coaches, coordinators and executives to rank the 35 QBs most relevant to the upcoming season, and Smith landed at No. 30 on the list.
Likely backup Cade Klubnik is a rookie taken in the fourth round after an underwhelming career at Clemson (at least relative to expectations). He’s battling Cook and Bailey Zappe for the No. 2 job.
Most Intriguing Rookie: Bailey, certainly.
Though Sadiq, the first-round tight end, bears mention here as well. He delivered an all-time performance at the NFL Scouting Combine and brings absolutely elite athleticism to the position. He could end up the Jets’ No. 2 passing target by the end of the year.
Breakout Player: Cornerback Azareye’h Thomas.
The 73rd overall pick in the draft last year, Thomas logged 311 snaps as a rookie and started five of the 12 games he played, tallying 22 tackles, 2 TFLs and 7 PDs.
The Jets are hoping he’s ready to take a leap forward and compete for a bigger role in 2026, but it’s not just going to be handed to him. The team signed Nahshon Wright, who started 16 games for the Bears last season after being a reserve his first four NFL seasons with the Cowboys and Vikings. Wright had 80 tackles, 3 TFLs, 5 INTs and 11 PDs for Chicago in his breakout season.
Thomas and Wright are competing for the starting job opposite Brandon Stephens.
Regardless of how that shakes out for the start of the season, Thomas will have a role in this secondary. His performance when his opportunities come will decide how big of a role that is.
MVP Pick: Hall.
Hall rushed for 1,065 yards and 4 TDs while catching 36 passes for 350 yards and 1 TD last season. Those aren’t overwhelming stats, but considering no Jets running back had topped 1,000 rushing yards in 10 years, it’s all relative.
Bear in mind, he did that with opposing defenses having no reason to fear the Jets’ passing attack, which ranked dead last in the NFL at 140.3 YPG — 24.9 YPG worse than the Browns!
The passing game should be better in 2026 with Cooper and Sadiq filling in around WR1 Garrett Wilson.
Also consider, had Hall become a free agent or available via trade he would have been among the top targets for any RB-needy team.
We’ll bet he’s in for a career year if he stays healthy.
New York Jets 2026 Schedule
| Date | Opponent | Time (ET) |
| Week 1, Sept. 13 | at Tennessee Titans | 1 p.m. |
| Week 2, Sept. 20 | vs. Green Bay Packers | 1 p.m. |
| Week 3, Sept. 27 | at Detroit Lions | 1 p.m. |
| Week 4, Oct. 4 | at Chicago Bears | 1 p.m. |
| Week 5, Oct. 11 | vs. Cleveland Browns | 1 p.m. |
| Week 6, Oct. 18 | at New England Patriots | 1 p.m. |
| Week 7, Oct. 25 | vs. Miami Dolphins | 1 p.m. |
| Week 8, Nov. 1 | vs. Las Vegas Raiders | 1 p.m. |
| Week 9, Nov. 8 | at Kansas City Chiefs | 1 p.m. |
| Week 10, Nov. 15 | vs. Buffalo Bills | 1 p.m. |
| Week 11, Nov. 22 | at Los Angeles Chargers | 4:05 p.m. |
| Week 12, Nov. 29 | at Miami Dolphins | 1 p.m. |
| Week 13 | BYE WEEK | |
| Week 14, Dec. 13 | vs. Denver Broncos | 1 p.m. |
| Week 15, Dec. 20 | at Arizona Cardinals | 4:05 p.m. |
| Week 16, Dec. 27 | vs. New England Patriots | 1 p.m. |
| Week 17, Jan. 3 | vs. Minnesota Vikings | 1 p.m. |
| Week 18, TBD (Flex Game) | at Buffalo Bills | TBD |
New York Jets Season Prediction And Parting Thoughts
Season Prediction: 5-13
The defense should be much better. The quarterback play should be somewhat better with a better collection of targets available.
Still, this is a work-in-progress rebuilding team with bottom-tier QB play, and it’s hard to find any more than five potential wins (six with a big upset somewhere) on that schedule.
But the Jets had a great offseason and have a trove of high draft picks again next spring, when they should find their next hopeful franchise quarterback.
The arrow is at least pointing up for New York right now.
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