2021 Was Difficult
The New York Jets 2022 outlook is bright? Well, it's nuanced. They had a pretty strong offseason in terms of acquiring talent. There is stability on the coaching staff. And apart from Zach Wilson ALLEGEDLY sleeping with his mom's friend, it's been pretty quiet. It has been a very un-Jets-like offseason. The only thing going against the Jets is the division and conference in which they play. The AFC is loaded top to bottom, and the AFC East has 3 teams that will be in the playoff hunt. The New York Jets success in 2022 shouldn't be measured as much in wins and losses, but what the direction of the franchise is in 2023 and beyond.
They've Added Talent
Draft classes are difficult to grade at this point, but it looks like they got some real players. They traded back into the 1st round to pick at 26 that gave them 3 picks in the top 26. Corner Ahmad "Sauce" Gardner from Cincinnati had one of the best college careers ever. In his final season with the Bearcats, he didn't allow more than 13 yards to a single receiver. He also NEVER allowed a touchdown in his college career. Dude is a stud. WR Garrett Wilson and DE Jermaine Johnson are super talented. They picked up Breece Hall out of Iowa State in the 2nd round. In fact they drafted a WR, RB, TE, and OL in the first 4 rounds. They're trying to infuse talent into a roster that is still lacking proven talent.
What Will Lead to Success
If the Jets are going to be successful in 2022, 2 things have to change. 1) Zach Wilson has to be better, and 2) Robert Saleh needs to improve the defense. Zach Wilson's rookie campaign was forgettable to say the least. He was just a hair over 55% completion percentage, threw more interceptions than touchdowns, and his team was 3-10 in games he started. Robert Salah is not blameless either. His defense was nothing short of horrendous last year. They are dead last in the league in yards allowed and points allowed. So as long as quarterback play, and the defense improve, then the Jets should be more competitive than last year. Here's the New York Jets 2022 outlook.
Schedule Breakdown
9/11 vs. Baltimore Ravens
9/18 @ Cleveland Browns
9/25 vs. Cincinnati Bengals
10/2 @ Pittsburgh Steelers
10/9 vs. Miami Dolphins
10/16 @ Green Bay Packers
10/23 @ Denver Broncos
10/30 vs. New England Patriots
11/6 vs. Buffalo Bills
11/13 BYE
11/20 @ New England Patriots
11/27 vs. Chicago Bears
12/4 @ Minnesota Vikings
12/11 @ Buffalo Bills
12/18 vs. Detroit Lions
12/22 vs. Jacksonville Jaguars (Thursday Night Football)
1/1 @ Seattle Seahawks
1/8 @ Miami Dolphins
Who did the Jets upset at NFL HQ to get this schedule? I dare you to find a more difficult start to any schedule in the league. They start off with all 4 AFC North teams in the first 4 weeks. Their saving grace is the Browns in week 2. Deshaun Watson should be suspended for this game, so getting either Jacoby Brissett or Josh Rosen gives them a punchers chance. Who knows about the Steelers, but I can't envision this team going into Pittsburgh and walking out with a win. I don't think they win any of those games. The next 5 aren't any easier. They get all 3 divisional teams at home with back-to-back road games against the Packers and the Broncos. They haven't won a divisional game since 2019! Denver might be the most improved team in the league while the Packers still have a very good defense and Aaron Rodgers. They could enter their bye week 0-9, and I don't think that's an absurd thing to say. The second half of their schedule is much more manageable. Home games against the Bears, Lions, and Jaguars are all winnable, and a road game against the Seahawks is as well. But, they have their 3 divisional road games with a trip to Minnesota. I think the Jets are a better team in 2022, but that schedule is a gauntlet.
Prediction: 3-14 (Chicago Bears, Jacksonville Jaguars, and Seattle Seahawks)
Key Additions
G Laken Tomlinson (San Francisco 49ers); 3-year/$40 million
TE C.J. Uzomah (Cincinnati Bengals); 3-year/$24 million
K Greg Zuerlein (Dallas Cowboys); 1-year/$2.75 million
CB D.J. Reed (Seattle Seahawks); 3-year/$33 million
S Jordan Whitehead (Tampa Bay Buccaneers); 2-year/$14.5 million
Fantasy Players
Like most of the bad teams in the NFL, the Jets are thin when looking at impact players for your fantasy team. Michael Carter looked like a RB3 that you could start in a tight spot last year, but the addition of Breece Hall from Iowa State really drops his value. Rookie Garrett Wilson has an unknown ceiling, and the Jets should be trailing most of the season meaning he should have plenty of opportunities, and the same goes for Corey Davis. Apart from Wilson in a late round and Davis even later, I don't see any Jets players worth a roster spot at the beginning of the year. An injury to either Hall or Carter will create an opportunity for the other to get enough touches to warrant a roster spot.
Best Case Scenario
The best case for the 2022 New York Jets shouldn't be measured in the win-loss column. Robert Saleh needs to improve the defense, and Zach Wilson needs to show the organization that he is the guy moving into 2023 and beyond. However, this is the NFL and moral victories normally don't keep guys in jobs for very long. The Jets need to get a win in the division (wither at home against the Dolphins or Patriots), and win the 3 home games against Chicago, Detroit, and Jacksonville. Sprinkle in road wins against the Seahawks and either the Browns (minus Deshaun Watson) or the Steelers.
Best Case Scenario: 6-11 (Pats or Dolphins, Bears, Lions, Jaguars, Seahawks, and Browns or Steelers)
The Jets zhave Already Won the Offseason
Zach Wilson Reportedly Slept With His Mom’s Best Friend – Twitter Reacts
A little background. Zach Wilson used to date Abbey Gile (whose Instagram page is now marked "currently unavailable"). You see, there may have been drama in the breakup as Zach's former BYU teammate and friend Dax Milne, a Washington Commanders wide receiver, is rumored to be in a relationship with Gile now - and according to the rumors it cost him a friendship with Wilson. Someone commented on the rumor that Gile was a “homie hopper.” Abbey responded with this:
Former GF Abbey claims that Zach Wilson was spending some quality time with his mom's best friend. Whether or not there is any truth at all to that isn't really important to people on Twitter. And as the jokes fly, Zach Wilson - who led the Jets to a 4-13 record last year, is now approaching legendary status. Maybe this will be the confidence boost he needs? Could this be the year the Jets finally turn it around and match their 2019 success where they almost broke .500? Or am I so desperate for NFL news that we're down to jokes on Twitter? Let's see those jokes.
Zach's current girlfriend - in case you were wondering
Maybe this is the confidence boost he needs to beat the Patriots this year?
