Playoffs might be a bridge too far for the New York Jets in 2020
This offseason, the New York Jets undoubtedly have taken a step forward in their rebuild. They addressed major issues along the offensive line and had a very solid NFL Draft under general manager Joe Douglas. For a team that was 7-9 a year ago, the expectation is another step forward.
But the playoffs? Maybe not quite yet.
While it is true that the Jets should be a fundamentally better team, to say that they will flip their record and be 9-7 might be a stretch for 2020. Given the shakeup on the offensive line and the overall lack of depth still on this roster, the inability to have a true offseason due to the COVID-19 pandemic will surely be a factor in how good the Jets can be this season.
The good news is that for the first time in two decades, the AFC East is wide open. With no Tom Brady on the New England Patriots, the chance is there for any of the four teams in the division to make a run and get into the playoffs. The Patriots are still going to be tough, even without Brady. The Buffalo Bills made the postseason last year as a Wild Card team. The Miami Dolphins spent big and had a great draft. The division is a lot deeper than it was a year ago let alone two years ago.
And the Jets do have a better roster than last year, although it might be too steep a mountain to climb in 2020 according to former NFL general manager Randy Mueller. There are still plenty of questions about this team.
“[The] Jets are an improving team in a division that has never been so up in the air, all because of the exit of TB12. They have definitely upgraded talent on paper,” Mueller told SportsIllustrated.com. “The head coach is just as unproven as the talent around him though and its far from ‘a given’ that he can bring it all together. I think people hesitate to jump on Jets-ban wagon- because of that as much as any other reason. X and O's are one thing but communicating, motivating and leading a franchise are giant parts of the job and there are coaches in this division that have shown to be able to get people to fall in line behind them.
It wouldn’t be a shock to see any of the four teams in the division finish atop the AFC East. The Jets do have a young quarterback who is arguably the best in the division as well as a rapidly rebuilding roster on both sides of the ball. They face a tough schedule and in terms of talent, probably are a season away from taking that next step.
The Bills, especially after the offseason move for Stefon Diggs, are the favorites to win the AFC East and rightfully so. The Dolphins nailed free agency with big signings and got better in the draft as well.
“The Bills are further up the developmental learning curve when you consider their playoff appearance last year and how can you not like what Brian Flores/Chris Grier have done (on paper) with Miami?” Mueller said. “I just don't see the Jets getting there this year.”
Mueller is a former general manager with both the New Orleans Saints and the Miami Dolphins. In addition, he spent a decade with the San Diego Chargers as their vice president of football operations, leaving the post in 2018.
