Jets Season Preview and Record Prediction
With the preseason over, the Jets potential remains up in the air after sitting every starter aside from center Joe Tippman. There’s no doubt New York has revamped from last season and went all in to bring home a Super Bowl. The depth of the team seems impressive, as the backups went 3-0 in the preseason. After plenty of injuries last season, this is a positive sign for a roster with many veterans teaming up to make a run.
Granted, the stars remain healthy throughout the season, but the Jets could make some serious noise in a loaded conference. The betting odds currently have them favored to go over their win total of 9.5 games. After finishing 7-10, the Jets are fortunate to garner the fourth easiest strength of schedule, according to Vegas win total. All eyes will be on New York, with six primetime games and an additional game across the pond in London.
The Jets lead off their schedule away against the 49ers on Monday Night, a game where Aaron Rodgers looks to have a major bounce back after disaster struck last opening game for the Jets. This is the first of the four games against the NFC West that New York has. The rest come from Week 10 on, flying to Arizona to verse the Cardinals and hosting the Seahawks and the Rams. The Jets can fare well against this division, but each match-up provides a test. The ceiling in this division is 3-1, but there is a true chance the Jets can only take two of these games.
The AFC out-of-division foe is the South in 2024, which is a division with a ton of potential. Their first matchup is in Week 2 at the Titans, and down the road versus the Texans on a Thursday night, the Colts on a Sunday night, and in Jacksonville for the second half of a Florida trip after facing Miami. Given the steaks and the improvements in the division, it is once again no walk in the park. Once again, the Jets could take three of these games, but a split in the South may make more sense.
Now, because the Jets finished third in the division, they have matchups against the Steelers, Vikings, and Broncos. The first two are once again on primetime, facing the Steelers in Pittsburgh on a Sunday night and the Vikings in London. This year they host the Broncos, a familiar opponent of the Jets in the past few years. They surely have the advantage in each of these three games on paper, but due to the locations, travel, and time they face on the schedule, the Jets can see a loss in these three games.
To round things out, the Jets have their six division games. The Jets are currently favored to win the AFC East, hinting at an advantage over the Bills, Dolphins, and Patriots. New York finally lifted their losing streak against the Patriots and should sweep what could be the worst team in the NFL. As for the Bills and Dolphins, both teams always put up a good fight, but it would be fitting to split against both teams. This would put New York’s floor right at their over under in wins, at nine or ten. If they can beat out the NFC West or AFC South, the Jets have the potential to surpass the double-digit win mark and perhaps go 11-6. As long as the Jets don’t catch the injury bug, the Jets can set themselves up as a division winner and even get their first home playoff game since 2002. From there, the AFC is a major challenge, but it will be an incredible energy in New York if the Jets can be a legitimate playoff team.
