TankWatch: New York Jets

The Jets are winless. Yet they should be better. Blaming Aaron Glenn and looking for a QB in the 2026 draft would be very Jets of them.

This was always supposed to be a self-care season for the New York Jets. They are still in recovery from the toxic Aaron Rodgers codependency. Their primary 2025 goal was to stitch together their shredded dignity, or at least what passes for dignity in Jetsville. Expectations were low, even by Jets standards: just be competitive and non-embarrassing while the latest new regime tries to establish itself and Rodgers’ residual compensation/aroma fades from the cap ledger/restrooms.

The problem with low expectations is that things can look really ugly when you fail to meet them. Through five games, the Jets defense has not recorded a turnover. Their offense commits crippling early mistakes, then curls up into a little ball until late in the fourth quarter. The Jets are the NFL’s only winless team. But they have at least treated their fans to both types of losses so far this season: heartbreaking and soul-crushing.

The Jets Story So Far

The Jets took a 26-17 fourth-quarter lead on the Steelers in Week 1, and it was as if Icarus flew too close to the sun. Xavier Gipson promptly fumbled a kickoff to cap a Steelers comeback and restore balance and harmony to creation. The Jets cut Gipson in what Aaron Glenn claimed was not a “rash decision.” Jets fans immediately loaded up the mock draft simulators they have never un-bookmarked in their web browsers.

After a thumping at the hands of the Bills, Tyrod Taylor (filling in for a concussed Justin Fields) brought the Jets back from a 26-13 deficit late in the fourth quarter and nearly upset the Bucs when Will McDonald returned a blocked field goal for a touchdown. Baker Mayfield and Emeka Egbuka responded in the waning seconds by ripping out the Jets’ heart and feeding it to some stray cats.

The Dolphins, one of the few NFL teams more masochistic than the Jets this season, entered last Monday night eager for a spanking. But Braelon Allen fumbled before crossing the goal line, Tua Tagovailoa and company responded with a 96-yard touchdown drive, and the Jets remained safely in the Dolphins rearview mirror for the rest of the evening. Isaiah Williams, Gipson’s replacement, fumbled a kickoff return and fielded a punt at the 3-yard line with the Jets trailing in the second half. Glenn cut him, though he was just re-signed to the practice squad.

The 37-22 Week 5 loss to the Cowboys was like an extended dance remix of the Monday night loss to the Dolphins. This time, Breece Hall fumbled near the goal line, the Cowboys took a 17-3 lead, and the Jets stopped blocking, tackling and covering receivers until it was time to pad their stats in the fourth quarter. At least no kick returners were pink-slipped.

In short, the Jets appear to be getting worse every week. And they didn’t have much ground to give up in the first place.

Leadership Structure

Glenn is best known as the former Dan Campbell lieutenant who isn’t Ben Johnson.

The Jets, you see, are natural beta-male wingmen. If the Jets were to approach two ladies at a singles event, they would immediately fixate on the homely one who snorts when she laughs and burps when she snorts. The Jets chose Glenn, who played cornerback for them in the 1990s, because they knew he wouldn’t say no.

Glenn fits the Jets coaching archetype. He’s a former defensive coordinator. While most franchises prefer offensive gurus, the Jets are still seeking a head coach who can develop a young quarterback by scowling at him.

The Jets have also historically gravitated toward non-white head coaches: Glenn, Robert Saleh, Todd Bowles, Herm Edwards. That’s laudable, though it’s hard to escape the impression that Woody Johnson and his sons think of coaching the Jets as a low-status service job.

The only impression Glenn has made on the outside world through five games is: “Coach with cool beard who despises kickoff returners.” In fairness, Saleh was on the job for three-and-a-half years without making even that much of an impression.

Glenn’s offensive coordinator is former Lions assistant whose name sounds like a Hunger Games antagonist Tanner Engstrand. When Campbell, Johnson and Glenn divvied up the Lions offensive staff in January, Glenn clearly got the third overall pick. And it wasn’t a snake draft.

In fairness to Engstrand, his first-quarter game scripts look clever and Lions-like. Then someone fumbles at the goal line.

General manager Darren Mougey was plucked from the Broncos front office. Sean Payton calls the shots in Denver, with George Paton as his functionary. Mougey was the functionary’s functionary.

Mougey has spent his short Jets tenure mopping up the Aaron Rodgers oil spill. The only thing I can say for certain about him is that his name sounds like a Nightmare Before Christmas creature whose body is made out of boogers.

And then there is Woody Johnson – zillionaire pharmaceutical heir, political fluffernutter and all-around dillweed – and his club-kid fail-great-grandsons Brick and Derp Jack. Woody squelched reports that Brick was meddling in team affairs in January. Nope, Woody is no longer distracted by his former duties as America’s Ambassador to Soho Walk-Ups. He remains in complete command of the franchise, just as he has for most of the 21st century. How reassuring!

Quarterback Situation

America is no longer the land of second chances, because Justin Fields has taken them all.

Fields remains breathtakingly talented. By all accounts, he’s a diligent worker and righteous dude. But he still searches for his second read the way my wife searches for her car keys before she’s had her coffee. (Are they on the dining room table? No. Better check … the dining room table.) When tasked with deviating from the game script by doing anything other than sprinting toward daylight, Fields becomes Michael Scott at an Improv workshop.

Yet the NFL’s reigning fifth-year rookie can do no wrong in the eyes of many fans. After Fields’ klutzy fumble against the Dolphins in Week 4, I asked Bluesky followers if they had seen enough of him. Several replies took the form of: Umm, actually, his right tackle keeps getting beaten. Yes, the Jets line is inexperienced and has had some trouble with silent snap counts and the like. And what can a veteran quarterback possibly do when pressured besides retreat backwards, flap his arms like a penguin trying to escape a walrus and plop the football onto the field as if he were tied of carrying it?

When Fields scrambled for a long touchdown a little later in that Dolphins loss, a whole subsection of the Internet climaxed. Based on the number of replays of that video available on social networks, you would think Fields was an MVP candidate, not a forever-gestating cicada larvae who ricochets goal-line throws off defenders’ helmets and the Skycam, then later attempts Tim Tebow jump-passes on fourth-and-short.

Fields could pull a Geno Smith and suddenly figure things out when he’s 32 years old. He’s currently 26. The Jets cannot wait that long.

What’s Going Right

A few things, actually:

• The Jets average 5.4 yards per rush, third-best in the NFL.

• The offensive line is young, healthy and physical.

• Some defensive veterans are playing well, most notably the Q. Williams Brothers (Quinnen and Quincey).

• Nick Folk has been perfect on field goals, going 4-for-4 on 50-plus yarders.

• The Jets have outscored opponents 61-40 in fourth quarters. There’s a lot of garbage-time production in that figure, but: a) garbage time ended up mattering against the Bucs; and b) per decades of Football Outsiders research, “garbage time production” is often predictive of future success.

What’s Going Wrong

A partial list:

• Zero takeaways. Opponents have fumbled six times without losing any, so there is some bad luck in play here.

• Seven lost fumbles.

• The Jets defense has recorded just seven sacks. Their pressure rate of 13.8% ranks 30th in the NFL, per Pro Football Reference.

• Jets defenders have also missed 46 tackles, per PFR, tied for the second-highest total in the NFL behind the Bengals.

• Garrett Wilson has 33 receptions. No other wide receiver has more than five.

• Jets pass-catchers average just 9.7 yards per catch.

• Fields and Taylor have lost 136 yards on sacks. Only Cam Ward’s Titans have lost more. Subtract the sack yardage from the short completions and you get a passing game that’s sputtering to get into first gear.

• The Jets have been outscored 91-36 in second and third quarters. They are establishing a pattern of looking good on their first series, melting down for a half at the first sign of adversity, then trying to write the whole term paper on the bus ride to school.

Building Blocks

Young Jets stars ripen like avocados, going from encouragingly shiny-but-unready to brownish and fetid the moment you invite some friends over for chips and guac.

So while the offseason Garrett Wilson and Sauce Gardner contracts made sense from a football standpoint, the deals were perilously risky from a Jets standpoint. Wilson is playing well, but Sauce may be pressing a bit, and history warns that the franchise and their potential core superstars are about to enter a period of mutual disenchantment.

Other young players are performing well. Rookie left tackle Armond Membou is a piledriving run blocker and non-terrible pass protector. Sophomore left tackle Olu Fashanu had a rough game against the Cowboys but isn’t bad. Third-year guard Joe Tippman is a sturdy mauler.

Edge Jermaine Johnson, drafted in the same class as Wilson and Sauce, was playing well before an ankle injury. Despite his Week 4 fumble, second-year running back Braelon Allen was pushing Breece Hall for carries before landing on IR with a knee injury.

Throw in some young contributors like rookie tight end Mason Taylor, and the Jets don’t look at all on paper like a team that’s 0-5 and worthy of a TankWatch feature.

Future Assets

The Jets possess nearly $75 million in paper cap space for 2026, per OverTheCap.com. They can clear more space by converting Quinnen Williams’ $20.7-million salary into a signing bonus. The Jets could cut Fields for the relatively modest price of a $13 million cap hit in the offseason if they choose to.

The Wilson and Sauce contracts don’t really become costly until 2027. Even then, they are manageable if Wilson and Sauce are playing at a Pro Bowl level.

Aaron Rodgers remains on the books in 2026 for about $35 million in dead cap space.

The Jets lack third and fifth-round picks in the 2026 draft. They traded the third-rounder to the Eagles for Haason Reddick, who spent his brief Jets tenure as a conscientious objector and is now happily chasing quarterbacks for the Buccaneers. The Jets can hamstring themselves in ways most franchises could never dream of.

Rebuilding Plan

This situation is not that dire. The Jets can turn things around this year. All hope is not lost!

Closed-Door Meetings. Glenn and whatever grown-ups are still in the management structure should sit down with Sauce and Wilson to air grievances and renew their vows. Locker room leaders like the Williams Brothers and (yes) Fields should bolt the locker room door and have a long talk. The Jets are too young and talented to just corrode like they always do. They need to build some mutual trust.

Set Goals. The Jets can give the Broncos a battle in London this week. They can certainly beat the Panthers in Week 7, Bengals in Week 8 and Browns after their bye in Week 10. A 3-6 record won’t set the world on fire, but it can keep the locker room from bursting into flames.

Find a WR2. Josh Reynolds isn’t the solution. Allen Lazard is a leftover part of the problem. Cutting everyone who bobbles a return isn’t helping. Maybe speedy Arian Smith can provide a spark as a fake Jameson Williams knockoff. Maybe there’s someone on the practice squad. Or the 49ers might cut someone like Marquez Valdes-Scantling if/when their starters get healthy. Tight ends Mason Taylor and Jeremy Ruckert can serve as de-facto possession receivers, but the Jets need to get SOMETHING out of their second wideout.

Generate Some Pass Rush. Jermaine Johnson is traveling to London with the Jets this week, which means he should return soon. Unfortunately, Johnson is always banged up, and he ain’t exactly Myles Garrett when healthy.

Glenn and Wilks have blitzed on 30.2% of pass plays per Pro Football Reference, the sixth-highest rate in the NFL, but that is not helping.

Frankly, if the Jets cannot generate much with their front four, they might as well stop blitzing, drop into coverage and wait for the Panthers/Bengals/Browns quarterbacks on their upcoming schedule to make mistakes.

Meet Glenn Halfway. The whole point behind hiring a defensive coordinator as a head coach is so he can do culture-builder stuff. Tossing him aside after one year is the exact opposite of culture building.

At the same time, Glenn needs to ease back on the “send a message” cuts. I don’t remember Campbell cutting special teamers in fits of pique. And the Jets don’t have the talent to just cast players aside.

No Saviors at Quarterback. The allegedly-stacked 2026 rookie quarterback class didn’t survive September. Arch Manning, Garrett Nussmeier and Drew Aller are out, for various reasons. Guys like Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza and Oregon’s Dante Moore are suddenly in.

Draftniks are straight-facedly shuffling prospects who were on absolutely nobody’s radar six weeks ago (Moore threw for 49 yards in 2024, for heaven’s sake) to the top of their mock draft boards as if they have always been there. Folks, if the names of the “franchise quarterbacks” in a draft class change completely before you rake leaves for the first time, it means there are no franchise quarterbacks in the draft class.

The very thought of the Jets drafting a one-year wonder INDIANA HOOSIERS quarterback high in the first round, slapping his face on the back of the New York Post and expecting him to save the franchise makes my brain want to leap from my mouth and scurry into oncoming traffic. (Yes, I know the Hoosiers were 11-2 last year. Now, let’s discuss the previous 124 years.)

Fields, for all his faults, may have been the right idea. The Jets should try their hand at the reclamation game for another year. Derek Carr? Mac Jones? Tua Tagovailoa? Bryce Young? Spencer Rattler? Another year of Fields, but with a mid-round or second-chance challenger? They all sound like bad ideas, but trust me: the guy you just read about on DraftGoon.com whose games are broadcast on FS4 is an even worse idea.

Bottom Line

The Jets’ greatest danger right now is their gift for self-fulfilling prophecy. They’re 0-5! They should be at least 2-3! Blame the coach! Blame the superstars! Bench the quarterback! Sell at the deadline! The guillotine thirsts for blood!

There’s never any institutional memory of success in Florham Park, no one in the locker room/coaching staff/front office who can recall any good old days. The Jets are perpetually rebuilding but have no idea what a successful rebuilding project looks like. And just when a weight-bearing structure starts to take shape, someone tosses Aaron Rodgers through the roof.

The best thing the Jets can do for the rest of this year is to reaffirm their unstated goals for 2025. They are supposed to be taking a deep breath and finding themselves. They crave stability, positivity, a new normal. Staging a revolt after five games is no way to achieve those things. There’s a young nucleus forming, particularly on the offensive line. For once, they need to nurture it.