5 NFL teams that lost Week 1 and will make the playoffs
By Luke Norris
2. New York Jets
J-E-T-S. JETS! JETS! JETS!
The New York Jets should be 1-0. It’s as simple as that.
In a tough Week 1 matchup with the Cincinnati Bengals, albeit a home game, the Jets defense was all over Andy Dalton, sacking the Cincy quarterback seven times, including 2.5 from Leonard Williams and two by Steve McLendon.
However, Dalton remained poised and went 23-for-30 with 366 yards and a touchdown, as well as an interception. Despite that pick, the secondary allowed A.J. Green to go off for 180 yards on 12 catches and has to reel that in a bit if they want to start winning some games like this.
The offense was decent in the opener, with Ryan Fitzpatrick throwing for two scores and completing 19 of his 35 attempts for 189 yards and Matt Forte picking up 96 yards on the ground and an additional 59 in the air in his New York debut. But they couldn’t get anything done on third down, converting on just four of their 12 chances. And they were unable to get into the end zone despite marching all the way to the Cincy one-yard line in the second half, instead settling for a chip shot from Nick Folk.
And speaking of Nick Folk, the veteran kicker missed the first extra point of his career on Sunday and also had a 22-yard attempt blocked. Take those little mishaps away and the Jets are sitting atop the AFC East along with the New England Patriots. But despite the loss, New York can take a lot of positives from Sunday’s contest, and while they may not win the division, they have the talent and depth to compete in what could end up being a wide-open AFC.
They’ve got a matchup with former head coach Rex Ryan and the Buffalo Bills coming up on Thursday night, and if they can get through a few tough weeks on the schedule following that game, don’t be surprised to see the Jets sneak into one of the Wild Card spots.
Next: Dallas Cowboys