10 NFL teams doomed to be worse in 2016

Roster-wise, the New York Jets should have one of the 10 best teams in the NFL. But as we’ve been taught time and time again, being good on paper means next to nothing in the NFL, where one injury or blown call can send a team careening into an insurmountable tailspin.

After finishing last season 10-6, New York may have been the best team in the league to not qualify for the postseason. Still, the the Jets haven’t exactly had a quiet offseason, with the Ryan Fitzpatrick contract standstill emerging as one of the biggest front-office distractions in football. At 33 years old, Fitzpatrick might be just good enough to lead New York to the AFC Playoffs. Worth the months of back-and-forth at the expense of the team’s overall quarterback development? I’m not so sure.

The Jets present, at least presumably, the biggest challenge to the New England Patriots in the AFC East — assuming there is one. While the Jets have the roster to take advantage of Tom Bradys’ four-game Deflategate suspension at the start of the year, New York’s early-season schedule will have the Jets lucky to be 3-3 through Week 6.

Fitzpatrick is going to have to play some borderline Pro Bowl-caliber ball if the Jets have any hope of improving on last year’s forward momentum, thus ensuring them of an AFC Wild Card berth. With so many members core players — including Fitzpatrick and wide receiver Brandon Marshall — having never played in the NFL Playoffs, do the Jets know enough about what it takes to get to the postseason?

It’ll be hard to see the Jets notching back-to-back 10 win seasons, no matter how great of a head coach New York might have in second-year man Todd Bowles. 9-7 might be realistic, but an 8-8 or 7-9 mark feels far more likely for a team many believed overachieved a season ago.

Next: 7. Atlanta Falcons.