Those congratulating the team and claiming a successful 2015 no matter what happens tomorrow are somewhat delusional. Yes, there have been some positive developments. It appears that the circus has finally left town and the franchise found a coach and GM. But this is not a team built for the future and this season presents a unique chance to make a run in the playoffs against a weak AFC field. This team is hitting on all cylinders. A loss to the Bills would be devastating and would represent a horribly lost opportunity. Almost everything has gone right this season. The team has had relatively few injuries. The schedule was easy with games against the two worst divisions in the NFL. The Bills and Dilphins also underachieved. Fitz had an unbelievable year that will be hard to replicate. Think Testaverde in 98. He has never come close to a season like this before and likely won't again. QBs don't develop at 33 years old. This team is not young. It is in win now mode. The best players outside the DL are all over 30. Mangold and Ferguson are well into their 30s and seem to be on the decline. Fitz Was discussed above. Marshall is 32 and is coming off an injury filled 2014 and has been gimpy at times this year. Revis is declining at 30. Cromartie is virtually done. Same with the LBs. The past three drafts have not yielded much young talent. This is not a team on the rise. Just look at the AFC playoff teams. Does any team scare you? Look at the QBs other than Brady. Most AFC teams are also banged up, from NE to Cincy, to Denver. When will that happen again? The Jets are legitimate SB contenders, even as a 6 seed. The Jets get in the playoffs and who knows. There is no guarantee the Jets are in this position again next season. The 2016 schedule looks brutal.The Pat's and Brady do not appear in decline yet. Another 10-11 win season seems like a tall order. We have seen that teams can win a SB from the 5-6 spot if things break right. Things are breaking right for the Jets. But a loss to Buffalo means wasting Fitz' career year, wasting the best season in Jets history for acWR duo, wasting a balanced rushing attack, and wasting s a sons from declining defenders like Revis and Harris. Yes 2015 was fun, but seasons are often remembered for how they end. This team has to win tomorrow or this will be a season of regret, not accomplishment.
Honestly, the only team that legit scares me from both the AFC and NFC are the Cardinals. Then again, if we're playing the Cards, that means the Jets made the Superbowl You're right, if the Jets get in, anything can happen. The AFC is not that dominate at the moment, and plenty of teams are banged up.
Gotta strike while the iron is hot. This season has lined up to where we've avoided major injury to our top players , which are mostly older players. The window isnt going to be open for long. 2 years. 3 tops. Losing tomorrow and missing out would be catastrophic IMO. Think about it. 5 straight wins , including wins against Miami, finishing off a sweep which never happens. Beating the Giants, which also never happens. And then beating New England, which rarely happens. To then lose to our old coach for the 2nd time this year when his team has nothing left to play for, I really cant imagine it. To me, losing tomorrow, would be worse than losing a playoff game.
You're very right about the age thing. At work tonight I was thinking about how next year with the schedule, age, injuries, and just luck, we'll probably regress from this season. You never know though. Maybe Fitz will be the answer for us for the next 5 seasons. Maybe the defense will get even better. Maybe our young wr, and injured tes will improve more. Maybe we will draft a stud rb. It's too hard to speculate all this, so let's just enjoy the now.
OP, what were you expectations before the season? Also, do you still think that Fitz is "helium armed" and "want to see a Geno Smith on the field ASAP"?
How quickly we forget what it is, to really suck. Yes, many of our starters are aging, but we do have young talent coming up and we have a GM with a brain, who knows everything we know about the roster. QB play has and will be every teams limiting factor. No one thought of Fitz as our long-term solution, he is a solid hold the fort guy while the team rebuilds, same for Cro. Stop and smell the roses.
It doesnt have to be one way or the other though. You can enjoy the current ride while also wondering what next season will bring. I trust MacCagnan 100 percent. But we dont have that much young talent based on prior incompetence. Remember 98 into 99 with how we ended one year and then reality struck.
Our defense is very young, save for Cro and Revis. Their replacements are already on the team. The O-line is getting old, but it's not like they'll drop dead after Sunday's game. If you trust mac 100%, then enjoy the season knowing next year will get better. This thread isn't any different, than the one Klekcodouche started after last Sundays loss to the Pats... Enjoy good football, worry about how we suck, when we suck.
I dont expect us to suck anytime soon. But I also thought the same thing in 2010. And 2006 , 2002 and 98. Whether it was injuries or players not living up to expectations , something always happened. Its been like that my lifetime as a Jets fan. 2 good years or so then 4 bad ones. Over and over again. So thats what Im expecting. I agree with enjoying good football. But not every thread can be a glass half full thread.
+30000 Actually according to Bowles an unsucessful season is not winning the SB. Thank God for that. We are in a win now mode. Just poll the players The future is now (x10,000) We dont win this game we bear the shame Behind many Jet fans are doubting Thomas' justifying their lack of faith with "thanks for a great season bullcrap" or "I am happy with our progress" I for one cant sign up with some douchy apologists and they know who they are on TGG. Why dont you all get behind Heath Evans and Willie McGuinness on the NFLnetwork who hate the Jets and are convinced Buffalo will beat us?? The Jets on the road to respect here>>>>>>Carpe Diem
May I remind U if we do not win the SB then it was another UNSUCCESSFUL season just like every regular season since 1969 has been. Remember the goal in the NFL is to win the SB so if you do not accomplish that feat U R a loser just like all the other teams that do not win the SB
I like the way Bowles goes about his business and his approach is what the Jets need right now. And I did root hard for Rex's Jets, primarily because I wanted to stick it up all the asses of his haters. But Rex was like a supernova, destined to implode. You have to think that Bowles demeanor is a positive for this team going forward. I know this team is going to get absolutely killed if they lose today, but win or lose, I think those who are at the helm are the right guys to get us through it.
The 2015 season is a success no matter what happens today. When you take a last place 4-12 and turn it into no worse than a second place 10-6 you've made some strides in the process. When you do it with a huge spending spree there are some caveats involved but the improvement in the team has been marked on both sides of the ball and there's reason to believe that improvement will carry over into 2016 as well. The Fins spent heavily in free agency also, with their young QB locked up to a 5 year deal and then regressed enough to get the coach and likely also the GM fired. The Bills made some big deals and brought in a high-powered new coach and they stepped backwards as well. So to say the Jets season is somehow diminished or a failure if they lose a tough game on the road, and the divisional road games are always tough, is just setting yourself up to feel worse if that's what happens. All of that said, today does have some real bearing on where we'll be in 2016. If we win there's a very strong chance the Jets do what they have too to bring Ryan Fitzpatrick back and also to extend Brandon Marshall for another year or two past 2016. If we do well in the playoffs the odds go way up on both and if we win the Super Bowl they're basically a cinch. If we lose and miss the playoffs there will be more of a back to the drawing board approach to the off-season, trying to improve on what the 2015 team did and there are fewer sure bets in that process. There's still a good chance the Jets try to bring Fitzpatrick back but they'll also be looking more heavily at the future at QB as well as 2016. Marshall is under contract for next year and the Jets might decide just to roll through the contract year and see what happens. For Todd Bowles a win today gives a feather in the cap with both the fans and management that may come in very handy if the breaks turn sour for the Jets due to injuries or other effects beyond his control next year or in 2017. Making the playoffs in a must-win game to cap a 6 game winning streak at the end of the season is the kind of thing that tends to build a lot of credibility. Losing a tight game wouldn't hurt him much but winning would give big benefits down the road, particularly if that winning ticket extends deep into the playoffs. Rex Ryan stuck around for an extra year in 2014 because of the credit he established in 2009 and 2010. He got hired in Buffalo right away largely due to those two runs also. Most importantly, a win today would go a long way towards salving the wounds that fans and the team still have from three straight coaching regimes that started out in promising fashion and then slowly imploded under the weight of poor talent evaluation, draft-pick management and prioritization of cap space. For Mike Maccagnan a win and a run in the playoffs would provide some space to really think about what is best for the Jets over the next 2 or 3 years as he builds his roster, choosing who to keep and who to let go from the players Mike Tannenbaum and John Idzik assembled before him. Tickets will sell themselves next season, based on a strong 2015, and the spring can be spent re-assembling the puzzle instead of trying to make big moves to get over the hump. Hopefully it's a blowout in the Jets favor so we can all start celebrating early today. It's always great to watch a good tight game but I want the capper to a truly amazing run by the Jets so I can be posting with double-vision by midway through the 3rd quarter.
I'm good with where we are. Marshall is great but he's not a make or break player, neither is Fitz, Brick, Harris or Cromartie. All those guys can be easily replaced in free agency or even through the draft. The key to me is our front 7 and the DB's, as well as what Chan has built on offense. That's what makes us a contender. I'm not worried about losing Fitz next year or Cromartie or Brick, we'll be fine. We might actually be even better off, we don't know. Marcus Williams for sure is an upgrade over Cromartie. Petty is a young QB, he doesn't have as much experience obviously but arm talent wise he's way ahead of Fitz. This is not a "our window is closing" situation for the Jets. Those teams are usually teams that couldn't quite make it to the Superbowl. We just flat out stunk the past few years. Our window isn't closing, I see this team only getting better from here on out. We have a great defense and a good coordinator in Chan who is well known to plug in guys and get the most out of them.
Some of you are missing the point. The playoffs are wide open this year. This team could run the table. Think Giants in 07 and 11. This team would not be squeeking into the playoffs like in 09. It would not need an improbable win like the one over the Pat's in 10 after losing to them by 43 earlier in the n the season. This team can play with anybody in the field. This is as balanced a team the Jets have had since 98. It is not reliant on the defense like the Ryan playoff teams were. But to have that chance, they have to make the playoffs. I've been a fan of this team since 1966, and to be honest, 10-6 with no playoffs because they lost a win and in game to Ryan and the beat up Bills would be devastating. In fact, this team would already be the n the playoffs if it didn't give away the game to the Bills earlier this season in a horrible loss. Two losses to the Bills and Ryan would go down in the SOJ lore to keep the Jets out of the playoffs will go down in SOJ lore, no matter how much "fun" some of you had. 10-6 and no playoffs this season would be an incredible disappointment. I don't care where they came from last season. With the upgrade in personnel, this looked like a 7 to 9 win team before the season. But 10-6 and no playoffs is no different to me than 8-8 and no playoffs. The Jets may not get another chance like this for a while. Today is a must win game. Otherwise, get ready for a major disappointment and another notch on the belt of futility, sorry to say.
LMAO! You are high if you think Brandon Marshall is replaceable. He only produced the best season in Jets history for a WR. The green colored glasses are on
Huh? Move the goalposts to what? Absent a miracle in Cleveland, the Jets either win and move on or lose and go home. That's it. If you're happy with two losses to the Bills keeping the Jets at home and a month of watching other teams in the playoffs, you are a different fan than I am.
