New York Jets Season Recap

AFC East	Finished 4th in Division
Overall Record: 5-11	Draft Position: 6th
Head Coach: Todd Bowles	GM: Mike Maccagnan

Pro Bowlers

• DE Leonard Williams

2016 Rankings

	Yards/Game	Points/Game	Passing Yards/Game	Rushing Yards/Game
Offense	26th	30th	27th	12th	TDs – 30th
Defense	11th	28th	17th	11th	Sacks – 29th	INTs – 29th

Top Passers

Name	Games Started	CMP. PCT.	Yards	TDs	INTs	Passer Rating	QBR
Ryan Fitzpatrick	11	56.6	2,710	12	17	69.6	45.2
Bryce Petty	4	56.4	809	3	7	60.0	19.5
Geno Smith	1	57.1	126	1	1	81.2	30.9

Top Rushers

Name	Rushing Yards	Y/A	TDs
Matt Forte	813	3.7	7
Bilal Powell	722	5.5	3

Top Pass Catchers

Name	Receptions	Yards	Y/C	TDs
Quincy Enunwa	58	857	14.8	4
Brandon Marshall	59	788	13.4	3

Top Defensive Players

• LB David Harris - 95 total tackles, 5 tackles for loss, 0.5 sacks
• LB Darron Lee - 73 total tackles, 3 tackles for loss, 1.0 sack
• DE Leonard Williams - 68 total tackles, 8 tackles for loss, 7.0 sacks, 2 forced fumbles
• CB Marcus Williams - 33 total tackles, 1.0 sack, 2 INTs, 1 forced fumble
• S Marcus Gilchrist - 55 total tackles, 1 tackle for loss, 2 INTs, 1 forced fumble

Impending Free Agents

• QB Ryan Fitzpatrick
• QB Geno Smith
• TE Kellen Davis
• LS Tanner Purdum
• ILB Bruce Carter
• LT Benjamin Ijalana
• OLB Corey Lemonier
• CB Antonio Allen
• OLB Josh Martin

What I Said About Them Before the Season

• I projected that the Jets would go 8-8 this season after going 10-6 last year, a record that seems unbelievable considering how poorly they played this year.  I actually thought better of the team's quarterback situation than it ended up being, believing that Fitzpatrick was going to play at his career averages and Christian Hackenberg would serve as his backup.  Both of those ended up proving to be false as Fitzpatrick was just plain bad and Hackenberg is widely considered a draft bust.  Additionally, I believed that the Jets had enough talent at the skilled positions on offense to overcome this quarterback issue and help the team be competitive.  I was also somewhat excited about their defense, believing in their front seven with its elite pass rushers and their big-name players in the secondary.

Success/Failure

• Failure - The Jets were definitely trying to win this season and compete for a playoff spot. This was evident by their signing of Matt Forte last offseason to offset the loss of Chris Ivory.  The Jets did have a fairly effective defense, efficient at limiting the amount of yards allowed to opposing offenses, but struggled at keeping the other team from scoring, had a mediocre pass rush, and failed to force many turnovers.  Their offense was really bad, with their rushing game the only part of the offense that was successful.  Their offense was in the bottom ten in the league in every other category and their quarterback situation blew up in their face, with none of their starters taking the reins of the position.

Offseason Needs

• The Jets need a little bit of everything except wide receivers.  When they make their first selection with the sixth pick, they should have the opportunity to take the best available player and have him fill a need for them.  In the mock drafts that have been posted, I have seen that the Jets are projected to take everyone from Leonard Fournette at running back to Mitch Trubisky or Deshone Kizer at quarterback.  Another mock also has them taking a player for their secondary, an area that they desperately need help in.  I think that this could be a draft where the Jets need to just take the best available player, even if that's Fournette, who is one of the best running back prospects in years.  At some point, either in this draft or through free agency, the team will have to address their need at quarterback, where Fitzpatrick didn't work, Geno Smith has proven to not be an NFL-starter, and Bryce Petty is still too early in his career to determine his career trajectory.  Perhaps they decide to draft another quarterback in the second or third round to create more competition, take Fournette with their first round pick, and allow Petty to be their starter next year, but having a quality team surrounding him.

*All stats and information come from espn.com, nfl.com, pro-football-reference.com, rosterresource.com, spotrac.com, overthecap.com, and cbssports.com