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The New York Jets’ postseason hopes officially ended Sunday after a crushing 32-26 overtime loss to the Miami Dolphins. The defeat marked their fifth fourth-quarter collapse of the season and extended their playoff drought to 14 years — the longest active streak in North American professional sports.
“When you’re up in the fourth quarter, all of a sudden it starts to feel like you have a losing problem.” wide receiver Garrett Wilson said after the game. “[It’s like] you have a gene or some s—.”
A Record of Frustration
The Jets’ 14-year drought surpasses the Buffalo Sabres’ 13-season playoff absence and sets the longest active streak across the NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL, and WNBA. The Los Angeles Angels (10 seasons) and Pittsburgh Pirates (nine) trail behind.
The Jets last appeared in the playoffs in 2010 under Rex Ryan, with Mark Sanchez as quarterback. Since then, they’ve cycled through four head coaches — Ryan, Todd Bowles, Adam Gase, and Robert Saleh (with Jeff Ulbrich now serving as interim) — yet the results remain the same.
In NFL history, only five teams have endured longer playoff droughts, including the New Orleans Saints’ 20-year streak (1967-86) and the Buffalo Bills’ 17-year dry spell (2000-16).
From High Expectations to Disappointment
The Jets entered the season with Super Bowl aspirations, fueled by the presence of quarterback Aaron Rodgers. ESPN Analytics gave them a 57% chance to make the playoffs at the start of the season, which peaked at 80% after a 2-1 start.
Since then, they’ve dropped nine of their last 10 games, now sitting at 3-10. Tight end Tyler Conklin expressed the frustration felt throughout the locker room:
“It’s obviously something this team was built to do, so not doing it is really frustrating, and it sucks that mathematically it’s not even a chance anymore,” Conklin said. “So, yeah, overall it’s just frustrating. There’s nothing we can do about it at this point, but it’s frustrating as hell.”
A Game of Missed Opportunities
Rodgers had one of his best performances of the season, throwing for 339 yards and a touchdown, marking his first 300-yard game in 35 outings. Wilson and Davante Adams combined for 16 catches and over 220 receiving yards, helping the Jets score on their first five possessions.
However, defensive breakdowns and costly penalties overshadowed the offensive highlights. After a 42-yard field goal gave the Jets a 26-23 lead with 52 seconds left, a short kickoff allowed Miami to return the ball 45 yards, setting up Jason Sanders’ game-tying 52-yard field goal.
In overtime, the Jets’ defense folded, allowing an eight-play, 70-yard drive capped by Jonnu Smith’s 9-yard touchdown catch.
“We have to find a way to finish and close these things out,” Interim head coach Jeff Ulbrich said. “We’ve got to be at our best when our best is required, and we’re not getting that accomplished and I have to look at myself first.”
Searching for Answers
The Jets’ struggles in close games defined their season. They are winless (0-7) in games decided by six points or fewer. Rodgers admitted the team didn’t meet its expectations.
“Yeah, the expectations were high,” Rodgers said. “We didn’t reach them, not even close. Felt good three weeks into the season. Everybody felt real good. Since then, it’s been a lot of difficult games with opportunities to win. We just didn’t figure out how to win enough games. I didn’t play good enough in some crunch times and we’re sitting here with the record we have.”
The Jets now face an offseason full of questions, with hopes that Rodgers’ return in 2024 can help end a postseason drought that has haunted the franchise for over a decade.
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This report used information from ESPN.
