Following five straight losses, the New York Jets finally got back on track with a 21-13 victory over the Houston Texans on Halloween night. Aaron Rodgers threw three touchdowns, Garrett Wilson made the catch of the year and even Davante Adams got in the mix with his first touchdown as a Jet. New York now sits at 3-6. What happens next?
Maybe this victory over Houston could serve as a turning point for New York. There's plenty of football left to be played. The season is just halfway over. It's clear the Jets haven't lived up to their potential, but maybe that changes moving forward.
Below, we will break down the Jets' chances of making the postseason. Entering this weekend, the Jets are the No. 10 seed in the AFC. Seeds 5-7 make up the wild cards -- positions currently held by the Denver Broncos (5-3), Baltimore Ravens (5-3) and Los Angeles Chargers (4-3). Before we get into some of the simulations, here is the Jets' remaining schedule.
Jets' remaining schedule
| Week | Opponent |
|---|---|
10 | |
11 | |
12 | *BYE WEEK* |
13 | vs. Seattle Seahawks |
14 | |
15 | |
16 | vs. Los Angeles Rams |
17 | |
| 18 | vs. Miami Dolphins |
The Jets' remaining schedule isn't necessarily daunting, but Tankathon actually believes it's one of the easiest remaining schedules in the NFL. They have it ranked as the fifth-easiest in the league. Whether New York's upcoming opponents have good records or not at this point, the Jets need to take one game at a time. That's something interim head coach Jeff Ulbrich is focused on.
"I know it's coach talk, but Arizona is all I'm focusing on," Ulbrich told reporters on Friday. "The world may end after this Cardinal game, you know that's all I'm worried about is this game."
Jets' playoff chances
According to SportsLine data scientist Stephen Oh's simulations, the Jets are projected to win more games than they lose the rest of the season. But, they will need to do more than that. Oh has the Jets finishing the 2024 regular season with 7.2 wins. That means a losing record, which means no postseason football.
Entering this weekend, Oh has the Jets with a 12.1% chance to make the playoffs. There are just six teams in the AFC with worse odds to make the postseason.
| Jets | Percentage chance |
|---|---|
Win division | 0.9% |
Make playoffs | 12.1% |
Win AFC | 0.5% |
Win Super Bowl | 0.2% |
This data isn't great if you're a Jets fan, but there's still reason for optimism. Thursday night was the Jets' first win this season vs. a team .500 or better. The offense scored touchdowns on all three drives in the second half (excluding kneel downs), while the defense recorded eight sacks -- the most in a game for New York since 2013.
Maybe Rodgers isn't racking up MVP votes this season, but he's put together some impressive late-year runs before. The Jets are going to need one of those runs to make the dance.