NFL preview 2017: New York Jets

Can Todd Bowles’ team possibly rebound from a disastrous 2016 showing? We take a look at what to expect this season from the revamped New York Jets.

Not every team in the NFL can have a successful year in terms of wins and losses. When it comes to the New York Jets, they look bound and determined to have a dismal season. There are some who feel that given this offseason that is indeed the intent of the organization. We find that incredibly hard to swallow, regardless of the perceived evidence. But what indeed did happen to a club that appeared to be headed in the right direction?

Go back to 2015. That offseason, head coach Rex Ryan was replaced by new general manager Mike Maccagnan and head coach Todd Bowles. The latter was named the 2014 NFL Assistant Coach of the Year after a highly-successful stint as a defensive coordinator with the Arizona Cardinals. Meanwhile, Maccagnan wasted little time utilizing free agency, trades and the NFL draft to revamp a club that had failed to make the playoffs each of the previous four seasons.

The incoming talent included quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick and wide receiver Brandon Marshall, both acquired via trades, as well as a slew of cornerbacks in Darrelle Revis and Antonio Cromartie (both in their second go-rounds with the franchise) and Buster Skrine. The sixth overall pick in the draft that spring was talented USC defensive lineman Leonard Williams.

It all came together quite nicely for Bowles, who showed he could get the job done. A 4-12 finish in ’14 resulted in six more victories by the Jets. Fitzpatrick recaptured the previous magic he had with offensive coordinator Chan Gailey and a talented defense made a complete turnaround. It resulted in a 10-6 showing but not a playoff appearance as the team fell short on tiebreakers. More specifically, two losses to the Buffalo Bills and new head coach Rex Ryan proved to be the difference. So in some ways, you could say Ryan kept the Jets out of the playoffs for a fifth consecutive year.

One season later, everything that went right for this club went wrong. Fitzpatrick was a free agent. He and the team took their time getting him re-signed. His poor play in 2016 was perhaps a direct result of the uncertainty of his status with the club. That promising defense that had been such a positive one year earlier did a 180, with Revis and the secondary vulnerable to the big play. Embarrassing losses throughout the season resulted in a 5-11 finish.

And that brings us to 2017. The offseason saw the organization cut ties with Marshall, Revis, wide receivers Eric Decker (limited to three games in ’16), as well as longtime stalwarts such as seven-time Pro Bowl center Nick Mangold and 10-year pro/inside linebacker David Harris. Let the housecleaning begin.

Which brings us to the upcoming campaign. There was a quarterback competition between incoming veteran Josh McCown, third-year pro Bryce Petty and 2016 second-round selection Christian Hackenberg. And it indeed will be the journeyman signal-caller who will get the nod in Week 1 against the Bills. Anyone who saw Hackenberg in the recent preseason loss to the New York Giants knows that he has a lot of work ahead of him. Now it’s just a matter if McCown can capture even a hint of his 2013 form when he was with the Chicago Bears and threw 13 touchdown passes and only one interception in limited duty.

As for the rest of the offense, this is a limited unit with its share of question marks on the offensive line. Quincy Enunwa was an emerging wide receiver but is out for the year with a knee injury. Running backs Matt Forte and Bilal Powell remain but there’s little else. Can the recent acquisition of wideout Jermaine Kearse from the Seattle Seahawks help?

The defense is a different story and has gotten younger and arguably better than a season ago. Leonard Williams is joined by Muhammad Wilkerson and nose tackle Steve McClendon up front (Sheldon Richardson is now a member of the Seahawks). Demario Davis and second-year pros Darron Lee and Jordan Jenkins lead the linebacking corps. The signing of former Dallas Cowboys’ first-round cornerback Morris Claiborne and the drafting of safeties Jamal Adams (1-LSU) and Marcus Maye (2-Florida) to team with Skrine should make for improved play in the secondary.

All told, the forecast for these New York Jets isn’t very promising. The defense probably deserves a much better fate. Bowles has to hope that he can get some competent quarterback play this season and that may be a lot easier said than done. And being in an AFC East that features the defending Super Bowl champion New England Patriots and 2016 playoff participant Miami Dolphins doesn’t make things any easier for this club.

X-Factor

He has certainly made his rounds when it comes to the league. But if you’re looking for an X-factor for the Green and White, it would have to be ex-Cleveland Browns quarterback Josh McCown. Of course, that’s also ex-Buccaneers and ex-Bears and…you get the picture. In the last two seasons, he put up 18 touchdown passes and 10 interceptions in 13 games (11 starts) with the Browns. The Jets will be McCown’s eight different employer since he entered the NFL in 2002 as a third-round draft choice by the Arizona Cardinals.

Now when we say he would have to be a factor, we’re talking 2015 Ryan Fitzpatrick-like play. That season, the Jets finished 10-6 and that journeyman signal-caller threw a team-record 31 touchdown passes. Of course, that appears to be unrealistic given the surrounding talent on this club. But among the quarterbacks on the roster, only McCown appears even somewhat capable of such a performance.

Best case

We don’t have to remind anyone of the various occasions in which a top-notch defensive unit can pave the way for a Super Bowl title. You would have to go all the way back to…2015. The Denver Broncos overcame an erratic year by veterans Peyton Manning and later Brock Osweiler and still managed to hoist the Lombardi Trophy following the season. That year, Wade Phillips’ unit force plenty of turnovers. The defense took matters into their own hands when it came to scoring points and stifled even the best of offenses.

If the Jets are to make any kind of noise this season and keep their heads above water, the likes of emerging Leonard Williams, as well as Wilkerson, Adams, Maye, Lee and Claiborne will have to come up extremely big. And don’t rule that out. But even if that was the case, it’s hard to believe that this is still not a 10-loss team even under the best of circumstances.

Worst case

Is this a trick question? The inference has been made that this organization jettisoned a lot of its notable talent this offseason in order to lose games. The supposed goal was to secure a higher pick in next year’s draft. With apologies to the conspiracy theorists out there, there is no real evidence of that being the case. Still, it’s not inconceivable that this would have been a club vying for a Top 5 selection even if it had kept most of those veterans.

Let’s cut to the chase. New York’s offense is as big of a problem as expected. This team finished with the second-most turnovers in the NFL a year ago (34). A lot of that fell on the quarterback situation. And that looks no better or perhaps worse than it did a season ago. And even the best of defensive units can’t hold up every week. There are far too many questions surrounding a team that will struggle to move the football consistently.

Final word

The forecast appears pretty dismal for Todd Bowles’ squad. The offense appears to be problem plagued, regardless of who is playing quarterback. And don’t be surprised if McCown, Petty and Hackenberg all get their turn starting at least one game this season. Meanwhile, with Enunwa out for the year, Powell and Forte look like the lone real playmakers on the unit.

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It’s harsh but realistic. It would be a big-time surprise if the New York Jets didn’t finish last in the AFC East for a second straight year. Once again, it’s rebuilding time for the Green and White.