Looking back, probably could remove the 2004 team. Even though they started 5-0 and then 9-3, they lost to pats twice, and probably never would have beat them on the road, even if Brien made one of those FG.
I had forgotten that. And agree that O'Brien was much better than Todd. You convinced me sir, I will change my vote. But I'm curious. Somewhere along the line after this run the Jets decided to change their philosophy and focus on defense. I don't think is was a sudden, overnight thing, it was like an evolution, but those years were the last great offensive years. It's long past time we went back to that formula. EDIT: And apologies to those who agree with my original post that said the 1982 team was the best. I have to agree with Hasty's point that O'Brien makes the '86 version better, but both were great.
Have to go with the 82 team, which should have made it to the Super Bowl. Shula not covering the field and Todd throwing 5 INTs (3 to LB-A.J. Duhe) did them in during the AFC Championship game. It appears the result of that game was decided before it was even played.
I'm going with '98. If we beat the Broncos, we win the VLT. I have no doubt. Any team with Martin and Chrebet will always have a place in my heart. Love those guys. I wear no. 28 to the few games I can get to. I'm sure you know why.
If we are taking a single point in time rather than a season then I'll go for the 1986 team By Week 12 we were in a mess and lost 5 straight, mostly in blowouts, and the season just fizzled out. However, rewind to Week 7/8 and there were realistic expectations of a Subway Series VLT matchup. Outside of Joe Fields, the OL was a little sub-par but that team still has my favorite offense in the last 40 years.
82 team I expected we would win and I believe we were favored. 98 the jets and Broncos were the 2 best teams in the league after Minnesota lost. We had a chance to win that game. 09 and 10 were the most talented playoffs teams we have ever had outside of QB. But I never expected us to win with Sanchez as our QB. 2008 was imo our most talented team but with a team that hated their headcoach. The 1986 team when we were 10 and 1 was the only time I felt we were the best team in the league. I hate Paul McGuire! I felt more optimistic about the 2002 team than the 2004 team after we destroyed the colts.
IMHO the 1998 Jets team was the best. I believe it was the only Jet team to go 12-4 (after starting 0-2). They had Hall of Famer Parcells and a very senior coaching staff. Vinny was having a great season. With the famous Helmet TD against the Seahawks it just seemed like it was destined to be - until it all turned to sh*t :-(.
10-0 halftime lead in Denver with Parcells in AFC championship game... that hurts daily. Oh by the way “ slightly above average” roster managed by a genius. I think coaching matters.
I wish the Jets would just go and get a proven winner for next year already!! Enough with these first year test cases!!
Freeman was unbelievable in the Bengals game. The 4th quarter TD from Todd to Walker to win that game in LA was incredible. Probably the high point in the Dick Todd era. Their weak point was another cheating HC. Shula had the tarp removed and flooded the field before that horrible AFC championship game. Walt Michaels who was actually a really good Head Coach lost his mind and was sent to a Sanatorium in Switzerland after that loss.
I have to go with the 98 team. From top to bottom that was probably one of the deepest teams the Jets have ever had and probably the best overall coaching staff in the history of the franchise. Had they gotten by Denver I don't see how they lose to Atlanta in the Super Bowl, looking back on it. The champion was coming out of the AFC that year more likely then not, although things would of been a lot more interesting had Gary Anderson not missed that kick against Atlanta, sending Minnesota to the Super Bowl instead.
This. Several of you based your opinion on which team would have won the SB, but that isn't what the OP asked. He asked for the best team, and there's no way that Parcells', Herm's or Ryans' teams can even begin to compare with the '86 team talent-wise. Only injuries derailed that team. '82 might be a close second, but I was in grad school in Dallas and they never showed a single Jets game that regular season so I don't have much in the way of memories of that team. I do have vague memories of the Mud Bowl game in Miami and the killer B's D on Miami that played the games of their careers. Parcells was the better HC, but he didn't have the talent that Walton's team had. Ryan's team had the best OL, but that's it. I'm still shocked that Edwards 2004 team did as well as it did. Edwards was a doofus. They excelled in spite of him, not because of him.
I totally disagree. That team had a lot of older vets who were pretty much done, and/or who never were that great to begin with, but were disciplined, played solid and didn't make dumb mistakes.
Looking at it from a perspective of assessing pure talent compared to the other teams mentioned, I could see where you coming from. You could argue that many of those other teams had more actual studs or perennial all-pro players then the 1998 team. However, the 1998 team was much more deeper from 1 through 53 collectively. Add to that, the Jets coaching staff overall from that season was probably the best one in team history, which is what sort of took the cake from my outlook in comparing them to the other teams in the history of the franchise.
The OP was looking for the "best" team, which imo means most talented, but I can understand why some would look at W-L record, or the CS, or even depth. I definitely agree regarding the '98 coaching staff. I'll have to take your word for the depth, because I don't have time to look up the team rosters and compare at this point in time.
98 Jets for me. Former bust/journeyman QB Testaverde has Pro Bowl year as good as any that Manning, Brady, or Montana ever had. Elite talent on all sides of the ball, and even so-so players are being utilized in a well-oiled machine. A team that was just two seasons prior 1-15 goes 12-4 and makes it to the AFC Championship. Though they lost to the Broncos, that Jets team was every bit as talented, well led, and well coached as the Broncos. If they played that game again, there's nothing that leads me to believe that the Jets wouldn't have been able to come away with a victory. I would also include the 2002 Jets among the best teams. They started slow as Testaverde fell back into his old, inconsistent ways, but they got hot when Pennington took over. With a healthy Pennington and QB, Martin, Richie Anderson, and LaMont Jordan in the backfield, Chrebet, Coles, and Moss at WR, and a defense with John Abraham, Jason Ferguson, Shaun Ellis, Marvin Jones, Mo Lewis, and Sam Cowart to name a few, this was one of the most talented teams the Jets had in the past 20 years. It was good times seeing them slaughter the defending champion Patriots, Favre's Packers, then shut out Manning and the Colts 41-0 in the Wild Card.
Ryan's team had the best run blocking OL. The '98 Jets had the best pass blocking OL this franchise has ever seen. No disrespect to Winston Hill et al., but that was before the pass blocking rules were "reinterpreted" to allow extended arms and open hands (1978). Some QBs get all day to throw the ball, Vinny had all week. And people wonder why he was never that good before or after....
